Discrimination claim served on Pride Board
Te Whanganui a Tara | Aotearoa
30 December 2022
Lesbian Action for Visibility in Aotearoa (LAVA) has made a discrimination complaint to the Human Rights Review Tribunal (HRRT) against the Board of Wellington Pride Incorporated. LAVA claimants Hilary Oxley and Marg Curnow received notification just before Christmas that their claim has been served on the Pride Board for their response, due by late January 2023. Currently the HRRT takes approximately 2 years to hear claims.
The Pride Board cancelled LAVA's stall booking at Out in the City 2021, claiming that a LAVA stall would make trans people at the event "feel unsafe", because LAVA members don't share the Pride Board's belief that men can become women. Pride made this claim despite their stated kaupapa of “inclusion and diversity” and a commitment to “engage in the hard conversations about intersectional justice in a peaceful and productive manner”. Marg and Hilary say their complaint to the HRRT addresses unlawful discrimination against LAVA and other lesbians, on the grounds of ethical belief, political opinion, and sexual orientation.
Early in 2021 Hilary and other lesbians at the annual Lesbian Summer Camp created a detailed map showing Wellington places of historic, social, and political importance for lesbians. LAVA booked a stall at Out In The City in March 2021 to display the map with the aim of inspiring lesbians and promoting lesbian visibility. When the stall booking was cancelled just four days before the event, LAVA requested a meeting to discuss the issues, but received no response from the Board. LAVA then decided to hold a peaceful demonstration outside the Michael Fowler Centre (MFC) where the event was to take place, to display the map and protest the cancellation.
At the event a crowd, including members of the Pride Board, formed a noisy counter-protest, very close to the LAVA demonstration and blocking it from view. Some counter-protesters were very aggressive to LAVA demonstrators, and carried signs displaying slogans such as ‘Fuck TERF Cunts’.
A lesbian from a stall inside the event went out to support the demonstration. On trying to return to her stall, she was physically barred from entry by Pride board members, who had arranged with Police to trespass her if she did not leave the premises. She was not permitted to return to her stall.
LAVA complained to the Human Rights Commission, and in December 2021 engaged in mediation with the Pride Board but no resolution was reached. After seeking advice and taking time to consider all their options, LAVA decided to submit a claim to the Human Rights Review Tribunal, with Marg Curnow and Hilary Oxley as claimants on behalf of LAVA. Marg says, "this is a positive step for LAVA and all women and lesbians in Aotearoa and around the world who are battling to maintain our sex-based right to organise without including men”. Hilary says, “I hope the case will be inspiring for lesbians and same-sex attracted women who call themselves non-binary, enabling wide discussion of this and other issues affecting everyone born female.”
For comment contact: lava.aotearoa@gmail.com
Background Information about LAVA
LAVA is a civil society organisation established in 1988 to represent the political interests of lesbians, especially in relation to matters concerning the Human Rights Act 1993. LAVA members were instrumental in ensuring that lesbians are explicitly included as a protected category in the Act. LAVA reformed in 2020 because of concerns about the lack of lesbian visibility in Rainbow organisations and our interests not being represented. Since 2020, LAVA has taken political action over matters such as a change made in secret by the Ministry of Women to include men in the category of women, the introduction of sex self-identification in the Births, Deaths, Marriages and Relationships Registration Bill, and the introduction of conversion therapy prohibition legislation that confuses sexual orientation with gender identity, to the detriment of same-sex attracted people. LAVA does not believe people can change sex and are very clear that lesbians are always female.
September 2022
The deconstruction of the very thing that makes us human
by Sabine Schneider
In July, investigative journalist, artist, and blogger, Jennifer Bilek, spoke at Christian Hillsdale College in Michigan, putting the “gender” identity industry into context. Her speech is a full-scale roundup of what is happening – not just – to women, women’s rights, and women’s reproductive rights, especially in the Western world, but also in other parts of the globe. The outlook is gloomy, but not all is lost. She urges all who have a speck of free will left to open their eyes to the money-laden forces behind “gender” and “trans” ideology and to resist all its manifestations and machinations on every level.
Watch the full speech here.
Read the speech on Jennifer Bilek’s Substack.
Download the transcript.
Find more information on her website, The 11th Hour Blog.
Listen to a few snippets from Jennifer Bilek’s speech.
August 2022
Cardiff Police remove lesbians from Gay Pride Parade
Pride events - not just in the UK - are rapidly becoming a hostile environment for lesbians and gays
by Sabine Schneider
Just like LAVA and other lesbian groups are no longer welcome at Wellington Pride (we were “uninvited” in March 2021), Cardiff lesbians don’t seem to be welcome at their pride march. However, being kicked out by Pride event organisers is one thing. Being removed by Police who have decided that lesbians are spoiling the fun of the “real” pride is quite another.
The story was picked up by Andrew Doyle who in his program Free Speech Nation said, “this new homophobia … [is] much more virulent and common than even it was back in the 1980s.” This new wave of not-so-new homophobia is coming from people who call themselves “progressive” and “kind”, but their actions talk loudly of being regressive and unkind.
This is just the latest example of how the so-called LGBTQ movement is actually just the T and Q riding on the coattails of the movement’s founders and in the process trying to erase us.
Read the astonishingly vacuous statement of Cymru Police, and more about this story on Reduxx.
Finally, LAVA does not want to miss this opportunity to confirm that
Lesbians are adult human females attracted exclusively to other adult human females. There is no space for men in this definition - however they identify.
21 August 2022
Administering “puberty blockers” is sexist, homophobic and specifically anti-lesbian
Today, US-based organisation Lesbians United released its review, “Puberty Suppression: Medicine or Malpractice”, which examines available evidence on so-called puberty blockers. The damning report shows that “GnRH agonists (“puberty blockers”) can negatively affect the skeleton, cardiovascular system, thyroid, brain, genitals, reproductive system, digestive system, urinary tract, muscles, eyes, and immune system. GnRH agonists may be harmful to mental health, and may increase the risk of suicide.”
by Sabine Schneider
In New Zealand, “puberty blockers” are given to minors off-label, which means the drug is prescribed for a condition it is not licensed for.
Just like in New Zealand, the US medical, pharmaceutical, and psychological establishments are actively subjecting children and adolescents to the horrific effects of GnRH agonists, and willfully ignoring the overwhelming evidence against using these drugs to treat any condition that is not life-threatening.
For the review, Lesbians United cited over 300 sources, including clinical studies of adults who took GnRH agonists (the class of drugs also called “puberty blockers”) for prostate cancer, endometriosis, and other conditions.
Lesbians United considers this practice to be a form of torture and abuse, which must be stopped. Every medical professional who participated must be held accountable financially, professionally, and socially, and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
August 2022
Class action against the Tavistock Clinic
After a report into the “affirmative care” model of the Tavistock “Gender Identity Development Service” (GIDS) uncovered massive failings and flaws, the UK’s only “gender” clinic was forced to close last month.
by Sabine Schneider
Now, the clinic - and through it the National Health Serice (NHS) - faces legal action from many young people who are alleging medical negligence. The legal firm Pogust Goodhead who is representing the families estimates that around 1,000 clients will join the class action. Since 1989, when the GIDS unit was founded, almost 20,000 young people received different kinds of treatment for their discomfort with being one or the other sex. Some of these treatments involved being put on a path of lifelong medicalisation and “gender” affirming surgeries. Many of these young people now claim they were misdiagnosed, not seen by appropriate clinicians, and that possible underlying mental disorders were not considered.
Among other failings, the report, named “Cass Report” after its author, Dr. Hilary Cass, found the clinic had not considered or disclosed the severe side effects of so-called puberty blockers - a group of substances given to stop or “pause” a child’s normal development (see the article below).
One could think a class-action lawsuit of this magnitude might give pause for thought or even ring some alarm bells. However, the New Zealand Ministry of Health is unperturbed and follows the “affirmative care” model, unquestioningly “affirming” a person’s self-diagnosis of “gender dysphoria” or being “transgender”.
Tavistock Closure Sparks Questions for New Zealand
Jan Rivers takes a look at the sudden closure of England’s Youth Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS) and considers the impact on New Zealand
In July, the National Health Service (NHS) announced the closure of the UK’s only child and youth gender clinic – the Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS), which is part of the Tavistock Hospital Trust.
The announcement came after an independent review by paediatrician Dr Hilary Cass (the “Cass Review”) had identified serious concerns about the service. Shortly after the announcement, former Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch severely criticised the ideological capture of the UK civil servants she worked with who had told her the service was working well and that there was “nothing to see”.
The closure of the service was unexpected as there were several large-scale research projects still underway. Among the reasons for the closure was an assessment that the service was not safe for patients and that many practitioners had adopted an ‘affirmative’ approach to treating patients’ self-diagnosed gender identity, which acted to ‘overshadow’ other potential causes of their gender distress.
The ’affirmative’ care approach differs markedly from evidence-based medicine and common scientific practice. The basis for this approach is an unprovable belief that ‘gender identities’ are present in all people and to have one different from one’s sex is at the same time a normal human variation and a situation that needs urgent - and often lifelong - medical intervention to align one’s body with one’s perceived identity. Thus claiming a gender identity that differs from one’s sex can best be described as a cultural phenomenon, rather than a medical event.
August 2022
In a startling move, the US Food and Drugs Administration has last month added a disquieting warning to the labels on a substance with the tongue-twisting name Gondadotropin-Releasing Hormone Agonists, also called GnRH agonists. This substance is approved for the treatment of a range of conditions, for example prostate cancer in men, endometriosis in women, and precocious puberty in children. It is not approved – but given off-label – in New Zealand for the treatment of children who present with a mental condition called “gender” dysphoria. When they are given in this context, these medications are commonly referred to as “puberty blockers”.
August 2022
by Sabine Schneider
GnRH agonists affect the sex organs of males (testicles) and females (ovaries) and prevent them from producing testosterone and estrogen/progesterone respecitvely. Without these hormones, normal development of a healthy reproductive system is not possible.
In New Zealand, guidelines developed in 2018 by Waikato University (“Guidelines for gender affirming healthcare for gender diverse and transgender children, young people and adults in Aotearoa New Zealand”) recommend the use of GnRH agonists: “Health teams need to be aware of the positive impact of puberty blockers (GnRH agonists) on future well-being.”
These guidelines promise, “Puberty blockers are considered to be fully reversible and allow the adolescent time prior to making a decision on starting hormone therapy.”
Evidently, the New Zealand Ministry of Health was informed by the Waikato guidelines. On its website, the ministry assures, “Puberty blockers are a medication that can be used to halt the physical changes of an unwanted puberty. Blockers are a safe and fully reversible medicine that may be used from early puberty through to later adolescence to help ease distress and allow time to fully explore gender health options.”
There are many national and international authorities refuting both the safety and reversibility of “puberty blockers”. For example the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, which is one of the most prestigious medical research centers in the world, says that the treatment is “potentially fraught with extensive and irreversible adverse consequences”. The Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine of Oxford University highlights the experimental nature of the treatment, calling it “a momentous step in the dark”. The Royal Australia New Zealand College of Psychiatrists points out the “paucity of quality evidence on the outcomes of those presenting with Gender Dysphoria”. The New Zealand organisation Fully Informed has this and other comprehensive information on “puberty blockers” on its website.
Here are some of the already-known side-effects of GnRH agonists:
thinning of the bones
decreased growing of the bones
infertility
depression
headaches
mood swings
vaginal dryness
acne
muscle pains
dizziness
weight gain
hot flashes
headaches
insomnia
Now, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, the US Food and Drug Administration has added more warnings to the labelling of GnRH agonists, which adds another layer of risk:
pseudotumor cerebri (1)
papilledema (2)
blurred or loss of vision
diplopia
pain behind the eye
pain with eye movement
tinnitus
nausea
These symptoms were linked to the taking of GnRH agonists in six girls aged 5 to 12 years old, one of them receiving “transgender care”, the others treatment for precocious puberty.
The notion of an “unwanted” puberty is dangerous in itself. Human development cannot be switched on of off at will. The attempt to “pause” or “halt” a stage of normal child development comes at a high cost and cannot be undone.
(1) “Pseudotumor cerebri literally means ‘false brain tumor’. It is likely due to high pressure within the skull caused by the buildup or poor absorption of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). The disorder is most common in women between the ages of 20 and 50. Symptoms of pseudotumor cerebri, which include headache,
nausea, vomiting, and pulsating sounds within the head, closely mimic symptoms of large brain tumors.”
(US National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)
(2) “Swelling around the optic disk, the area where the optic nerve (the nerve that carries messages from the
eye to the brain) enters the eyeball. Papilledema occurs when increased brain pressure caused by tumors or other problems results in swelling of the optic nerve.”
by Sabine Schneider
Just as Maya Forstater before her, Allison Bailey has shown that it is possible to fight back against “gender” identity ideology - and win.
In her article on 4w, Jo Bartosh sums up Bailey’s composure during the 6-week trial: “Her resolute rebuttal ... spoke of a lifetime of having to politely correct bigoted bores without rising to their bait.”
In her own press statement, Bailey explains why this case is so important: “The litigation was part of a pushback by gender critical feminists against attempts to replace biological sex with notions of self-identified gender identity”
Her employer, the Garden Court Chamber, has to pay Bailey £22,000 in compensation. Apparently, this is quite high: “Such was the oppressiveness of Garden Court’s actions against her, the Tribunal awarded aggravated damages, which are only awarded where a discriminator’s actions are particularly unnecessary, high handed or oppressive.” (from Bailey’s press statement)
Bailey says, “this case was never about money. I did not win everything, but I won the most important thing: I have brought Stonewall’s methods into the public eye, and I have shown them for what they now are.”
The “transgender” lobby organisation Stonewall maintains in a statement that it did not cause Bailey’s employer to discriminate against her. The group goes even a step further by saying that “the case heard by the Employment Tribunal did not accurately reflect our intentions and our influence on organisations.”
Never to miss an opportunity to present its ideology in every piece of writing, Stonewall manages to shoehorn into a 227-word statement about the Allison Bailey case:
- a lengthy description of their Diversity Champions Programme
- how proud they are of themselves (x2)
- that they are fighting for Afghans, lesbian and bi women, and a ban of Conversion Practices
- keywords: inclusive (x2), equity, freedom, harm, and LGBTQ+ (x5)
Allison Bailey’s courage and persistance has paid off. She is an inspiration for all women and an example for how important this fight back really is.
July 2022
Milestone: Lesbian Barrister Allison Bailey has won the discrimination case against her employer
“We are in the vanguard of a powerful and necessary movement that is turning the tide on gender identity ideology”
Allison Bailey Image by Yui Mok
July 2022. From the inaugural press release:
The Executive Committee of LGB Alliance Aotearoa NZ is pleased to announce its launch in July 2022. The LBGAANZ has been established under the auspices of LGB Alliance UK, but is independently operated in New Zealand by New Zealanders who are either gay, lesbian, or bisexual. LBGAANZ spokeswoman Terri Lipanovic:
"We believe there is a strong need for a specifically LGB group in New Zealand as we wish to ensure that the voices of lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals are heard in all public and political discussions affecting our lives,"
The group is concerned with children who may grow up to be lesbian, gay, or bisexual, as well as maintaining the dignity and rights of all lesbian, gay, and bisexual New Zealanders.
"We will work to protect children from harmful, unscientific ideologies that may lead them to believe either their personality or their body is in need of changing. Any child growing up to be lesbian, gay, or bisexual has the right to be happy and confident about their sexuality and who they are," said Ms Lipanovic.
LGBAANZ is run by volunteers and receives no public funds from external organisations and is not affiliated with any political party or religious organisation.
At last: Representation for NZ lesbians, gay and bisexual people
June 2022
UN is failing lesbians
by Sabine Schneider
As if life as a lesbian refugee in Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya wasn’t hard enough – now lesbians are being subjected to even more abuse in the name of “inclusivity”. Filia has released a video conference you can watch on Youtube: “This event highlighted and raised awareness around the work being done around the Kakuma Campaign. With perspectives from across the board, you’ll be able to hear from Annemarie and Juliet who are still in Kenya, Maggy who now has settled status in the UK, and Alyssa who is part of the European Network of Migrant Women who are also advocating for the women in Kakuma.”
From the Filia website: “Escaping violence and lesbophobia in their home country, lesbian refugees are sent by UNHCR to the Kakuma refugee camp. As they are seeking asylum due to their sexuality they are put in the LGB&T Block 13. This identifies them to other refugees in the camp and they suffer ongoing violence and abuse as a result. The UNHCR and Police have been informed of these crimes but do nothing to support them or keep them safe. On the 12th of August 2020 FiLiA released a podcast episode after interviewing nine lesbian refugees. They spoke of the lack of food, constant physical and sexual abuse and lack of basic shelter for them and the other LGB&T refugees in Block 13 Kakuma camp. Since then, Patricia a five-month-old baby has died after being hit with a tear gas canister and two young men, Trinidad and Jordan, were attacked with a firebomb, Trinidad later died from his injuries. Despite this, as you can hear the women say in their own words, UNHCR are still failing to offer support and protection to the refugees.”
The speakers:
Josephine Annemarie Nalugwa (audio only) is a lesbian from Uganda and an asylum seeker in Kenya. She is a human rights defender.
Juliet Wabule is a lesbian mother and a human rights defender living in Kakuma Refugee Camp. She left her country, Uganda, with her two children after being discriminated, persecuted and receiving death threats. They have lived in Kenya since April 2019.
Alyssa Ahrabare is a French legal expert specialized in human rights and fundamental liberties. Feminist activist, she is Project officer of the European Network of Migrant Women.
Adama-Sira Le Blay is a lawyer and defender of fundamental rights. For more than ten years, Adama-Sira has been specializing in violence against women and the rights of foreign women.
Magadaline Moyo works for Right to Remain as the Organiser for Manchester and Liverpool These Walls Must Fall (TWMF) campaign, a network of community-based campaigners who are part of a movement to end immigration detention in the UK.
June 2022
The inner workings of media bias
One does not have to be a linguist to reveal bias in the reporting on “transgender” - not just in New Zealand. Often, it is less than subtle or even overt ”trans” propaganda. Let’s take a closer look at an article by STUFF reporter Catherine Hubbard, published on 10 June 2022 on the STUFF website.
by Sabine Schneider
In August this year, CATA, the Child and Adolescent Therapists Association of New Zealand, will hold a conference titled “Children, Adolescents and Gender - Negative Impacts of Transgender Ideology”. When the organisers started advertising the event, opposition on social media was swift:
April 2022
UK: Lesbian barrister is suing Stonewall
by Sabine Schneider
In 2019, Allison Bailey co-founded the LGB Alliance, a new organisation for lesbian, gay and bisexual people, that was set up as an alternative to Stonewall. “In retaliation”, says Bailey, “Stonewall had me investigated by my chambers, in an attempt to cost me my livelihood.”
Now she is suing Stonewall Equality Limited to stop them policing free speech, and her employer, Garden Court Chambers.
The headline of an article in The Telegraph read, “Rowling salutes ‘brave’ lesbian barrister suing Stonewall”. For stating the obvious - men cannot be women - J.K. Rowling has also been at the receiving end of an endless litany of abuse and threats, as have Maya Forstater, Sonia Appleby, and Helen Watts in the UK, and Karyn Lisignoli and Katherine Deves in Australia. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
According to a tweet by Linda Riley who invented “Lesbian Visibility Week”, Stonewall is not for lesbians like Allison Bailey, which didn’t sit well with J.K. Rowling:
The image appeared in an article by the Daily Mail (Image: Twitter)
Apparently, men make not only better women, but better lesbians.
J.K. Rowling and Allison Bailey (Image: Twitter/Allison Bailey)
Should we be worried?
NZ universities’ descent into echo chambers for “correct and approved opinions”
by Sabine Schneider
Free Speech Union (FSU) of New Zealand was to kick off a series of university union meetings at Auckland University of Technology (AUT) on 26 April 2022. In the first of this nationwide lecture series, FSU member Daphna Whitmore was scheduled to speak about her experience with Speak Up for Women, an advocacy group whose events in previous years had been canceled by several councils around New Zealand. In 2021, Speak Up for Women won against the Palmerston North City Council who had barred the group from holding an event on council premises.
The start of the lecture series at AUT had been arranged without difficulties months ago, but only when the union advertised the event, the “trans” lobby became aware of it and started their cancel campaign.
29 March 2022
Lesbians United - a beacon of hope
by Sabine Schneider
This is the new crop of lesbians we’ve been waiting for. Lesbians United are advocating for lesbians - US based, but not just for lesbians in the US. Their well-designed website has a clear message: A lesbian is a woman who only experiences sexual attraction to other women. Lesbians United has published a new messaging guide that provides concise, clear arguments that will help in the struggle against the erasure of lesbians. Their Youtube videos might be mostly words, but they are so powerful! Watch the haunting clip about ending “child transition”:
8 March 2022
2 March 2022
The connections between and among women…
… are the most feared, the most problematic, and the most potentially transforming force on the planet. Adrienne Rich
by Sabine Schneider
In the fight against the insidious blight that is identity ideology, we cannot hope to win if we stand alone. To amplify women’s voices globally, to increase our influence and realise our potential, we need to join forces. There are countless groups tirelessly working towards this goal. The one that could unite us all is the Women’s Declaration International. If you haven’t read and signed the declaration - now’s the time to do it. Watch their short introductory video, and then head over to their Youtube Channel, which has hundreds of amazing short and longer videos. Women from across the globe talking about their stance, their hopes, their ideas - and all of us united in the fight against the erasure of women’s sex-based rights, the distortion of language, destruction of traditions, and the eradication of common knowledge.
21 February 2022
Hanging by a glass fiber thread
“Gender identity is about changing humanity” - Jennifer Bilek
by Sabine Schneider
Our sisters at Mana Wāhine Kōrero have put out a video that cannot have come at a better time. The Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Relationships Bill has passed in December, and the Conversion Practices Prohibition Bill has passed just this month. Whether by design or well-intended accident - both bills are helping to push along the truly unsavoury and frightening agenda of so-called transhumanists like Martine Rothblatt and his wife Bina.
Submissions to both bills have outlined the dangers of transgenderism, which is just one small step away from transhumanism. Let’s not forget: If it sounds like a conspiracy theory it’s probably true. And the millionaire/billionaire men, gay men, and men who pretend to be women, don’t exactly make a secret of their dream to become immortal and get rid of anything living. Humans, i.e. women and children - as well as men - however we identify, are just collateral damage.
To dive deeper into the subject, check out the links under Mana Wāhine Kōrero’s video, and also the work of Jennifer Bilek who has tracked, documented and analysed transgender ideology and transhumanism’s driving forces for years. In 2019, she said on Twitter:
“Instituting gender identity as a legal construct deconstructs what it means to be human at core: a biologically, sexually dimorphic species. This is the point. Think about this carefully. Gender is an obfuscation. The state is deconstructing sex.”
The New Zealand government is doing its bit to help this dystopia arrive sooner.
15 February 2022
New Zealand parliament sold women, children and democracy down the drain
by Sabine Schneider
Yesterday, the Conversion Practices Prohibition Bill has passed its third and final parliamentary reading. Only eight MPs - all from the National Party - voted against the bill. Note that only one woman dared to be part of this small enclave of reason. LAVA applauds their courage to vote against an ideology-driven piece of legislation and wishes they had spoken out consistently, publicly, vehemently, and much earlier.
Notably absent was the one woman whose speech during the second reading of the Births, Deaths, Marriages and Relationships Bill (BDMRR) had sparked high hopes: Nicola Grigg. She had said, “to all the women, groups, and organisations who have taken the time to write to me and to speak to me, thank you. You've educated me. I've listened to your views, your concerns, your fears, and now…” - she’s voted them down.
Also glaringly absent were the Maori Party and ACT Party. When the truth about the BDMRR and Conversion Practices Prohibition Bills has dawned on the public, LAVA will be ready to remind everyone who sold them out.
LAVA was part of a large international chorus warning against this bill. In countless letters, articles and submissions, LAVA has always expressed the most serious concerns about this legislation, not only because the legislative process was undemocratic and non-representational, but in particular because its wording mandates the very practices it aims to prevent.
Since there have not been any documented cases of conversion practice in New Zealand for decades, the law will be of little help to gay and lesbian New Zealanders. On the contrary – instead of preventing harm to gays and lesbians it will do harm to children who would potentially grow up to be gays and lesbians.
By restricting therapeutic approaches that seek to identify the reasons for young people’s distress over their biological sex, the Act effectively outlaws parents, therapists, teachers, and others who are actively trying to prevent harm. The law assumes that young people’s questioning their sex is the same as wanting to actually become the other sex. This directly contradicts the available evidence.
By making it illegal to question a child’s belief that it is “born in the wrong body” the new law will lead to the suppression of the developing sexuality of children who would otherwise be gay or lesbian.
New Zealand's guidelines for treatment say that children and young people have to be “affirmed” at all times – from the parental home to kindergarten and school, from GPs to hospitals, to mental health services. But the international evidence shows that the medicine this law supports is itself conversion practice: Instead of leaving children who don’t fit male or female stereotypes – for instance, a girl who wants to have short hair or a boy who wants to wear pink – to develop naturally, it is suggested to them that they might, in fact, be the opposite sex.
By enshrining in law the ideological concepts of “gender identity” and “gender expression”, which are wilfully conflated with the biological reality of a person’s sex, the new Act is endorsing a deeply homophobic medical model.
In the UK, Sweden and Finland, clinicians have already turned decisively away from this harmful approach: the NHS has quietly changed its guidance for children confused over their biological sex, Sweden has made a u-turn on “gender transitioning”, and Finland has tightened its guidelines for treatment.
LAVA rejects any legislation that is based on “gender identity ideology“ and will continue to work until this harmful law is repealed.
A small enclave of reason: Simon Bridges, Simeon Brown, Melissa Lee, Todd McClay, Simon O'Connor, Chris Penk, Michael Woodhouse and Dr Shane Reti - the eight Members of Parliament who voted against the Conversion Practices Prohibition Bill.
February 2022
“The woke warriors have claimed another scalp”
Sadly, this fabulous line is not ours, but journalist Ben Fordham commenting on the woke brigade’s latest Girl Guide victim. This time in Western Australia.
by Sabine Schneider
© Karyn Lisignoli/Facebook
The quote describes the situation adequately. Remember Helen Watts? The British Girl Guide leader was expelled from the UK Girl Guides in the most extraordinary fashion. In 2018, she voiced some safeguarding concerns after finding out that boys who want to be girls could not just join the Guides, but also share tents and shower facilities. Furthermore, male Guide leaders who pretended to be women were allowed to supervise young girls on trips away. The unsavoury kind of men this job attracts can be seen here.
Now, a similar story has unfolded in Australia. Karyn Lisignoli was sacked as CEO of the Girl Guides Western Australia because she tweeted her concern the organisation might have fallen prey to “gender identity ideology” to none other than Save Women’s Sport’s Catherine Deves. Chris Kenny who interviewed Karyn Lisignoli for Sky News says, “most parents are blissfully unaware that Girl Guides Western Australia is not a single-sex organisation”.
The offending tweet
For New Zealanders, this should all be an old hat. According to this almost three year old Stuff article, “women's refuges, many girls' schools and Girl Guides already accept trans girls and women”. So nothing new here. Or is it?
February 2022
This Valentine’s Day, #ShowYourLove to the Women in Block 13 of the Kakuma Refugee Camp.
Read FiLiA’s article and download their Campaign Pack.
February 2022
TT Exulansic banned from Youtube
by Sabine Schneider
“…incited violence”. Come on, Youtube, go and have a look at channels that really incite violence and stop censoring important content.
This is what happens when you tell the truth (backed up by evidence) about “Trans” on Youtube - eventually you will get banned from the platform. Watch out, terven! Lesbian Youtuber TT Exulansic had already been banned from Twitter. Now, her videos disappeared from Youtube and paid subscribers were told they could get their money back. All the while, Neo Nazi organisations, hoards of incels, white supremacists, violent (child)porn channels, pedophiles, women-haters, paramilitary and anti-semitic hate groups can peddle their wares and twisted content unhindered by Youtube’s so-called safeguarding policies. If it wasn’t so horrific, we could be done with saying, shame on Youtube! But the unfettered censorship these large internet platforms practice is truly frightening. Thank goodness, her videos are still available on Odysee. Solidarity on Youtube was swift with and everybody who is anybody in the movement was present: Exulansic herself, A Slightly Twisted Female, Karen Davis, Vanessa Vokey, Lisa Michele, to name but a very few.
We’re not sure if petitions will help, but there’s no harm in trying. Both petitions are on Change.org:
February 2022
Conversion Practices Prohibition Bill leaves counsellors, social workers and teachers in a vulnerable position
As you might recall, the (in)famous Select Committee on the Conversion Practices Prohibition Bill has attracted a record number of more than 100,000 submissions. Making use of Catherine Karena’s Youtube channel in particular, we have compiled links to some of the more memorable submissions to refresh your memory. The Bill sought “to prevent harm caused by…practices…that seek to change or suppress a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression”. Yesterday, a summary of the findings was released. Read the Bill and the summary here. LAVA has issued a press release.
Oral submissions to the Conversion Practices Prohibition Bill:
LAVA
February 2022
Maiming them with kindness
by Sabine SchneiderWe’re so used to politicians and journalists lying to us that many of us have become a tad cynical when it comes to promises and assertions. Yeah, right, we believe it when we see it. But what about teachers, therapists, doctors? Until very recently many adults relied on their good judgement - and young people did, too. But can they? Should we?
February 2022
Chest reconstruction, top surgery, masculinizing chest surgery
What do we even think these terms mean? Typing “chest reconstruction” into Google, one could imagine all sorts of websites popping up. How about “Boston Children’s Hospital”?
by Sabine Schneider
London-based gay writer, singer and performer, Mr Menno, put up a video this week that hit home the message: What, in the name of “gender identity ideology”, are we doing? Have we lost our collective minds to believe slicing off the healthy breasts of 12, 13, 14 year olds is acceptable?
Mr Menno
January 2022
WrongsideOUT
Using “male-bodied” for a man apparently “offensive and shocking”
by Sabine Schneider
The year is barely a month old, and already the Free Speech Union had to defend the use of appropriate and truthful language. Besides the galling attempts to normalise nonsensical terms, of particular concern for lesbians is the constant repetition of “transwomen are women so lesbians need to include them in their communities” - as described in the FSU’s letter. LAVA’s answer to this is clear: No, we don’t have to and we won’t.
Free Speech Union’s Spokesperson Jonathan Ayling writes in the organisation’s latest newsletter:
“In something you would almost think is out of George Orwell's 1984, a member of the Free Speech Union received a scathing and bullying letter from a very senior ministry official for having the audacity to refer to transgender women as 'male-bodied'.
This advisor, who works in a ministry and sits three tiers below the senior public servant, attended a presentation by LGBTQIA+ activist group InsideOUT and raised a question at the end with the presenter.
After the presentation, this advisor was understandably concerned when they received a letter from the Deputy Chief Executive of the organisation, claiming that they had been 'offended and shocked' along with others for using the term 'male-bodied'. That is despite the Human Rights Commission using the term in its description of transwomen. The advisor reached out to us to see if we thought these comments were appropriate, and to get help in defending their right to speech.
Last week, I sat down with the Deputy Chief Executive of the particular ministry, along with a senior ministry HR advisor, and the employee (member of the Free Speech Union).
Unfortunately, the Deputy Chief Executive was intransigent, insisting that they had the right to control the language that is used in the ministry and that this didn't undermine free speech in any way. Somehow, in their mind, their stated desire to have a diverse workplace that celebrates different opinions is consistent with no one being allowed to offend anyone else. (It's interesting the Public Service Association never seems to come out on these issues. If you're in the public service and looking for a Union that has your back, you should join up with us.)
This is how censorship occurs. This is what having speech controlled looks like. Rarely is it a blatant ban. It's just a threatening letter here, a slap on the wrist there, a disapproving comment or review from a superior.
[…]
Here at the Free Speech Union, we say that in no circumstance is it acceptable for a senior public servant to exercise their influence to bully staff to silence them or limit their speech.
There is a maxim in the public servance not to let 'politics get in the way of their job, or their job in the way of politics'. This isn't one of those cases - political transgender/language issues have absolutely nothing to do with the functions of this particular ministry.”
LAVA categorically rejects the demands of men to be included in lesbian communities. LAVA will not use nonsensical language whose sole aim is to confuse the perfectly clear categories of male and female. LAVA will always defend the right of women and girls to be in the company they choose. LAVA rejects compelled speech.
Read the LAVA media statement here.
Free Speech Union’s letter to the ministry