This is an old story from last year but seems to have re-emerged. I was asked to comment on it in a Facebook thread, I am so strongly against transgender males colonising female roles, lives and spaces I thought I’d give my thoughts on this a slightly longer shelf-life than they would have in a Facebook thread.
This piece contains two post-scripts the first which includes Perry accusing me in the Belfast Telegraph of mounting a ‘bullying campaign’ following which Perry resigned from the position, the second postscript shows that Perry did actually leave the position at least two days before this piece was published originally, demonstrating Perry had no cause to blame me for their leaving this post and that the story told to the Belfast Telegraph may have been ‘economical with the truth’.
“Women’s Aid Northern Ireland has announced that Alicia Perry has become a Community Ambassador, and will work with the charity to help raise awareness about domestic and sexual violence” from Elle, dated 15 October 2016.
From “Belfast transgender woman Alicia Perry making history by representing Ireland at beauty pageant” dated 10 November 2015:
She added: “When I was a kid, the idea of a transgender girl looking pretty, feminine and elegant was amazing to me.
“Everyone just thought transgender girls were like something from The Rocky Horror Show and I just wanted to be a nice girl with lovely hair and not too much makeup.
“Growing up, watching Miss World, I just wanted to be like the girls on the stage — like most girls do.
“So to be in the Face of the Globe has given me so much validation, it’s unreal.
“I cried when I found out I was going to the final because I just felt so accepted in my own body that I had been given this amazing opportunity.
This is how Alicia has sought their validation ‘as a woman’, participating in the objectification of woman and perpetuating men’s idea of what it is to be a woman.
“It’s given me so much confidence and so much faith in the human spirit and society as a whole.”
“It was time for me to live as me; as God intended me to be.”
It’s almost like God intended it, hey.
Alicia began living publicly as a woman in September 2011, changed her name by deed-poll and began her hormone treatment.
A year later, she travelled alone to England to have her gender reassignment operation – and her success in the beauty competition marks a new milestone in her life.
Alicia, 39, hopes that her success will inspire others to defy the kind of hate-filled abuse she has faced.
I don’t think that this person, born and socialised male, should be in a role that rightly should belong to a woman, their lived life is completely different and I wonder what makes a male who transitioned at 36 uniquely qualified to represent women over other women. The organisation could have ruled them out for the role without compromising themselves under the Equality Act in England & Wales and I suspect the same there. Their having sought (and I note found) validation at a beauty pageant suggests their views on what it means to be a woman are shaped by their male socialisation rather than empathy with, or even listening to, women.
We are in the sad position now where women are policing other women over males taking roles and spaces that were created by and for women, and all in the name of equality. This is the oppression of women by women themselves.
Postscript:
(I) As reported here in the Belfast Telegraph, Perry apparently voluntarily left this role late May/early June blaming me(!) and attacks by ‘extreme feminists’. Bullying is never acceptable and I do not condone it. There are, however, as highlighted above, valid criticisms of Perry’s appointment to this role and I stand by my criticism. Ironically it’s an abuse of power the Belfast Telegraph naming me in the way they did and it’s misleading journalism to omit the fact that the person making such criticism is themselves transsexual.
The dishonesty of all parties is revealed by the fact this was blamed on ‘extreme feminists’. The lying bastards.
(II) In a statement dated 23 May 2017, Women’s Aid NI stated:
“Women’s Aid Federation Northern Ireland’s Twitter page was targeted by anti-trans commentators, who reported an inaccurate story of our appointment of a trans Director to our Board.”
However, Perry is quoted in the Belfast Telegraph piece as follows:
Ms Perry said the online abuse began last week after she was criticised on social media by blogger ‘Miranda Yardley’ who accused her of taking a woman’s post.
Ms Perry said the online reaction to Ms Yardley’s comments soon became intimidating.
“Her article was being shared and the people commenting on it are showing blatant transphobia,” she said.
The statement by Womens Aid NI was made TWO DAYS before this piece on Perry, published 25 May. The Belfast Telegraph piece is therefore based upon a lie.
Post-postscript
Just as Perry seems to have left this role still under the belief in their own entitlement to this role, so this sentiment is echoed by other trans-identified males. Note the last three tweets are from accounts controlled by a single individual.
