The devastating breadth of male violence against women and transwomen alike is under-reported and under-acknowledged, and the violence perpetrated by transwomen against women is flat out denied. Much of the venom some transwomen feel towards the lives and beliefs of women is visible within the war that rages on the internet, and increasingly in the real Read More …
The Power of Silence
Writing this is an act of contradiction. Every act of writing creates an opportunity for betrayal. In letting loose my thoughts, I betray my sense of self and I betray others’ sense of me. I invite criticism, disappointment, scorn, and even anger. Every honest admission comes with a cost. It is a cost I willingly Read More …
Woman Pride
A woman is an adult human female. Here is what we know about any given woman: She has, at some point, experienced the physical reality of a female reproductive system. She has, at some point, encountered sexism. She has, at some point, been made to feel shame about #1 and #2. She has claim to Read More …
Radical Feminism and Intellectual Consistency
Last week, Miranda published a barnstorming piece on the problems with the transgender movement, and offered ideas to fix those problems. In response, I offer 10 points of intellectual inconsistency I see from my own side, as a radical feminist. I have prepared these for the women who are rejecting male-centered feminism and looking for something Read More …
Gender Apostates Weekly Round-up 4 July 2015
It’s time for another exciting installment of the weekly-round up. We at the Gender Apostates collaborative want to thank you for reading, sharing, and commenting on our essays. We’re thrilled to see conversation, discussion, and debate arise around on about our writing. So often the topics we choose to discuss are those too many willfully ignore. Having Read More …
Feminism & Transwomen: A Bullet Point Overview
For screencaps and links to back up each point, see The New Backlash. Preface: a note on the word “gender” People outside of academia commonly use the word “gender” to mean “sex class of male or female” (in contrast with the act of sexual intercourse.) Feminist theorists, however, use the word “gender” to refer to Read More …
Pride and Privilege: How Cox, Jenner, and Mock can be Real Leaders
A few days before pride weekend, I find myself on a bench at 28th Street and the Hudson River. The sun shines beneath a patchwork sky. It is gorgeous. Two benches down sits a young transwoman of color with honey-blond extensions looking for all the world like a young Laverne Cox, I assume by design. Read More …
The Trojan Horse of Transgender Identity Politics
Trans activists should not be allowed to dictate the language women can use to describe their bodies and lives. (This is a cross-post of my piece from the Morning Star newspaper of 30 June 2015). On Saturday 6 June in Sheffield, myself and RadFem Collective, a radical feminist women’s group, hosted an open talk and Read More …
Gender Apostates weekly round-up 26 June 2015
Welcome to the first Gender Apostates weekly round-up. The Gender Apostates collaborative blog opened for business on Friday 19 June, with Sass’s piece addressing the fear and disgust that motivates social justice warriors to lie to themselves and the world about feminine men, and later on Diana offered a deeply personal confessional of the internal conflict felt over the Read More …
First in a series: feminist writings that have influenced us
From Sass: The Transformation of Silence into Language and Action Audre Lorde 1977 “I am not only a casualty, I am also a warrior.” This was the sentence, written by a black lesbian poet, that set the heart of this straight white girl on fire as a college student first reading this essay some 20 years ago. The perfect encapsulation Read More …