Category: LGBTQ+

  • Not all hate preachers have beards

    Imagine if members of the Scottish Parliament invited leading far-right “race realist” figures to address the parliament about The Great Replacement, the white nationalist conspiracy theory. They would tell MSPs about how political and social elites were harming ordinary white men and women by encouraging immigration. They would claim that this global conspiracy, a conspiracy…

  • Lies, dame lies

    The president of actors’ union Equity has written to The Sunday Mirror about its story claiming “men could be banned from playing panto dames to free up the roles for trans performers”. Guess what? It’s bullshit. Here’s her letter.

  • Sometimes I wouldn’t want to be seen dead with me

    I’m sure you’re familiar with the idea of makeup as warpaint. It can be a kind of disguise, a metaphorical suit of armour you can hide behind when you’re feeling far from cute or confident. I use makeup as warpaint quite a lot. If my eyes are smoky, my lips ruby red and my lashes…

  • When people show you who they are, believe them

    There’s a famous quote by Maya Angelou: when someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time. It means that when someone shows you a clear red flag, you shouldn’t ignore it. Someone who disrespects you will continue to be disrespectful. Someone who is violent will continue to be violent. Someone who is…

  • A lot can happen in three years

    When you’ve made big changes to your life various dates have significance, good or bad. Today’s one of them, because it’s the third anniversary of me beginning to come out. I thought about doing one of those “what I’ve learnt” anniversary posts, but I changed my mind. I haven’t learnt much, or at least I…

  • Murdoch press in “printing bullshit” shocker

    In today’s Scottish Sun, there’s a story about the 2021 census. Like most things the Murdoch press prints in its ongoing campaign against LGBT+ people and trans people in particular, it isn’t true. It’s just an excuse to get the usual crowd of reactionaries – anti-trans academics, vocally anti-trans MSP Joan McAlpine, the Catholic Church…

  • The Endocrine Society is getting really tired of this shit

    Do you know what endocrinology is? It’s the branch of medical science that studies the endocrine system, the glands that secrete hormones. Hormones regulate our metabolism, our physical development, our reproductive function, our sleep, our mood… you get the idea. The Endocrine Society is the international organisation for endocrinology experts, and it works in association…

  • Boo!

    Thanks to an important new study, I now realise that I have been possessed by a ghost. It’s not just me. As this wonderful PinkNews headline puts it: Completely legitimate, rational and not at all offensive study says 85% of queer people are possessed by ghosts It seems that even in the spirit world, ghosts…

  • How hateful conspiracy theories make it into the papers

    The Christian Post is yet another evangelical newsletter from America, and it’s part of an axis that includes the Heritage Foundation and the Family Research Council – two organisations with strong links to the British anti-trans movement. It’s just published an article about the “trans cult” that could have been lifted from The Sunday Times.…

  • The world does not smell of paint

    There’s an old Billy Connolly routine where he talks about The Queen. “A guy once told me that The Queen thinks the world smells like paint, because ten feet in front of her there’s a guy going [mimes frantic painting].” Like the best jokes, there’s a grain of truth in it. When a dignitary comes…