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I’ve seen this a lot today on social media, and it’s clear that many people don’t realise that not only have trans women been peeing peacefully in the ladies since before many of us were born, but that trans women must use the ladies. It’s not just about our safety, although of course that’s important.… [more]
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This Twitter thread by Helen Belcher, who has been analysing media coverage of trans people for many years, is worth your time. I’ve posted the text below. Most trans people I know tried for years not to be trans. The personal cost was often thought to be too high. So when some “white knight†rides… [more]
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…but Rowling is trolling again, and she’s moving into very dangerous territory. The government is considering whether to ban conversion therapy, which is discredited and dangerous. Rowling is trying to convince people that trans-affirming healthcare is also conversion therapy. Here’s The Trevor Project: Conversion therapists use a variety of shaming, emotionally traumatic or physically painful… [more]
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This is lovely. How would you react to your child coming out if you were a giant fictional Japanese sea monster? Thanks to @beeragon for putting together this amazing short titled “Coming Out.” #HappyPride 🌈 pic.twitter.com/wG9OptRSZm — GODZILLA.OFFICIAL (@TOHO_GODZILLA) June 30, 2020 [more]
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If you spend any time on social media you’ll know the power of the long quote printed on a photograph: the format is often used to elevate idiocy or to spread nonsense. A good example just now is of a Samuel Pepys diary entry about “gadabouts” in taverns spreading disease. It’s fake, and uses language… [more]
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Soledad O’Brien’s op-ed in the New York Times is an attempt to expose an uncomfortable truth: news media needs a #MeToo movement. I left CNN more than seven years ago. But I watch its coverage, and that of other news networks — the panel-driven journalism that sometimes gives voice to liars and white supremacists; the… [more]
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I mentioned in a previous post that the UK government promised to ban dangerous “conversion therapy”, a form of psychological torture, two years ago. Today, the UK House of Commons posted on Twitter: How does #conversiontherapy affect the #LGBTQ community? Should it be made illegal? What would that mean to you? ‪@HoCpetitions‬ is investigating a… [more]
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This is a fascinating post on voters and “culture war” messaging. Right-wing politicians love a good culture war. It’s no coincidence that the terms ‘political correctness’ and ‘woke’, both originating on the American left, have been eagerly seized by the right. They know it is an ideal way of stirring up indignation and deflecting attention from… [more]
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Lockdown has acted as an amplifier for many social problems. One sign of that is the increase in LGBT+ people struggling with suicidal thoughts. BBC News: In total, eight charities told BBC News they had seen an increase in LGBT people accessing their support for suicide prevention. The LGBT Foundation has received more calls about… [more]
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Deb Perelman has written an interesting piece in the New York Times about working parents in the time of COVID-19. Why am I, a food blogger best known for such hits as the All-Butter Really Flaky Pie Dough and The ‘I Want Chocolate Cake’ Cake, sounding the alarm on this? I think it’s because when… [more]
Read me in books
My debut memoir, Carrie Kills A Man, was a Scotsman book of the year and Damian Barr’s Literary Salon book of the week, and it was shortlisted for the 2023 British Book Awards book of the year in the Discover category.
My latest book, Small Town Joy, is a celebration of queer influences on and queer artists in Scots music and is out now.
I’m also a contributor to the excellent anthology Fierce Salvage, which is also out now.
