THIS WEEK the Equality & Human Rights Commission (EHRC), Great Britain’s national equality body, advised the Minister for Women & Equalities on clarifying the definition of the protected characteristic of 'sex' in the Equality Act.

Queer trans human rights lawyer Grey Collier, a former Legal Director of the EHRC, wrote this response:

Nonsense on stilts

The proposed change in the law is legally illiterate, unworkable and is just another way of using trans people’s actual lives as a pawn in the culture wars.

It would overturn some of the purposes of the Gender Recognition Act and make it possible to discriminate against trans people in a whole range of circumstances where it is currently outlawed.

It’s pure transphobia

It’s based on misleading unevidenced transphobic assumptions, e.g. the notion that a trans man is an appropriate employee where there is an occupational requirement for a woman to do a job is offensive both to the trans man and to the service users.

#LGBwiththeT

The idea that LGB associations would particularly benefit from this proposed change is vile. Only one small LGB organisation wishes to do this, and it is entirely unrepresentative of the vast majority of LGBT organisations and people who are united in support of trans rights.

Appeasement of a hate group

The proposals do not address problems that arise in real life – only in the minds of some fanatics who have decided to dedicate their lives to destroying the lives of a tiny proportion of the population.

The law currently defines the limited circumstances in which discrimination against a trans person is permitted, in appropriately narrow terms. There is no evidence at all that the law is not working.

It’s unutterably cruel

No trans person, however long since they transitioned, whatever their anatomy, would be assured of being treated as the correct gender. There are trans people in their 80s who have been accessing correctly gendered services for decades. Leave them be.

It’s unworkable

It is impossible to know what is envisaged in real terms, but it is certainly the case that any checks would heavily and intrusively impact cisgender women, both in law and in practice, particularly those who don’t fit societal norms of femininity.

It’s dangerous, even life-threatening

Due to the hostility whipped up by a few vocal anti-trans activists, and most mainstream media outlets, many trans people already live in fear of being attacked just going about our daily lives.

We have other serious problems to contend with, like access to healthcare which is catastrophically bad for our communities across the UK. These proposals will make a bad situation immeasurably worse for us, and likely lead directly to violent harassment.

Exclusion from day to day life

Trans people go about life using toilets and changing rooms, and health and welfare services, and book clubs, and all manner of normal things without causing any trouble to anyone. We’ve been doing so for decades. See 14 facts about trans lives and trans rights by TransActual.

This proposal, if enacted, would devastate our lives

If you are a trans ally, now is the time to speak up.

Both main parties in Westminster think this is a vote winner. It isn’t. Tell them that.

This continuous demonisation of trans people has to stop.

Sign the petition calling on the UK Government to commit to not amending the Equality Act's definition of sex.

First published on Twitter. Republished with permission.