The essence of personal identity is the mind. Shouldn’t we talk about people’s identity rather than their sex or gender? Not what people “identify as” but what their true identity is. People’s true identity is not their outward appearance but what the mind involuntarily dictates.
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You’re conflating two things. Someone’s gender identity is who they are (Julia Serano calls it Subconscious Sex). Self identity is paperwork. The self bit means you do the work yourself, like self assessment.
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In this case, “self identity” is really about statutory declarations. And like self assessment it’s not arbitrary. You can’t, as some claim “just decide to be a woman today” just as you can’t “just decide to pay no taxes this year”.
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I’m sorry if I’m not being clear but I’m agreeing with you 100%. I totally understand “self indentity” is about a statutory declaration that isn’t arbitrary. I’m just asking if the term is potentially confusing in allowing critics to suggest you could keep changing your mind.
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But people do change their minds.
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Which is of course NOT what I said. I said KEEP changing their minds - that is the criticism, that people can dip in and out at will. That will not be possible. Making a terrible and genuine mistake is possible.
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Indeed. A gender recognition statutory declaration is a serious undertaking and there are penalties in law for making a false one. And even with the changes envisaged, there would likely still be a significant wait. And it still only changes your birth certificate.
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When were you last pregnant, have a miscarriage, forced into prostitution? When were you last groped on the tube, sexually assaulted at work, told you deserved it because of your skirt? Never. Sex matters. Gender doesn't.
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When were you last a prominent member of the dominant in-group? That's right. Always. Middle-aged men in decent suits need to butt out of women's rights if you can't support us.
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As a Parliamentarian, to “butt out” is not an option, however much you and I would prefer it. Unless you want me to blindly follow the instructions of my whip.
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True, but men need to stop trying to dictate this, every way we look. I appreciate you bringing this up and trying to understand it more. At the moment, parliament seems so open-minded, it's brains have fallen out. Only on this issue, though. Why? Because it is cheap, short-term.
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Self-ID does not impact on men the way it does women. Transmen will not be as strong as bio men. They either remain intact women or get a penis that doesn't work so well. They can't change the way sport sees make achievements or override the rights men have struggled for.
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Men are not threatened by transmen, as transmen who remain intact women are still more vulnerable to rape, still need cervical smears, still must hide in some way, as male violence is always a possibility. Intact males who self-id as women are stronger, use make violence tactics
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You are talking utter nonsense. The only truth about a person is their biology. 'Identity' is just a modern version of religious notions of the soul. Expecting anyone to collude with the self-beliefs of others, esp. if they defy scientific truth, is like making atheism illegal.
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Furthermore, the idea that identity is the truth about someone is dangerous and facilitates oppression. It's the thinking behind Kanye West suggesting that slavery must've been a choice. Because if identity is truth then surely all oppressed & enslaved people are choosing it?!
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Finally, your notion of a 'true identity' that 'the mind dictates' is a total oxymoron. The mind DOES dictate identity - which is why identity cannot represent an absolute truth. It's all created by socialisation, culture, life experiences, etc. No-one can escape this - NO-ONE.
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Our outward appearance and beliefs can change drastically throughout the course of our lives. Our biological sex doesn't. Which is why having laws based on reality the only sensible thing to do.
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
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Again, the problem for many women is that 'their' recognition comes at the cost of our right to privacy. That is as wrong as denying their right to recognition.
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Our rights to privacy, dignity, protecting our children, female only sports, prisons, hospital wards, crime statistics, job quotas.. but any concerns are marked as "transphobic" and women and children's rights are
#HateSpeech
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