Category Archives: Tools to Fight Back

Feminist Amendments to the Equality Act – Support FIST Campaign

By Tina Minkowitz

Feminists In Struggle, a U.S. radical feminist network, has developed a model bill to illustrate how the rights of gender nonconforming (including transgender) people and lesbians, gay men and bisexuals, can be protected while strengthening the rights of women as a sex. The model bill is a feminist response to the Equality Act, a bill introduced in the US Congress that would amend civil rights legislation to include under the category of ‘sex’, subcategories including ‘a sex stereotype,’ ‘gender identity’ and ‘sexual orientation’. By proposing feminist amendments to that bill, FIST hopes to advance the debate about how to resolve conflicts between women’s rights and claims regarding subjective gender identity.

List of sex stereotypes The central feature of the FAEA is that it protects everyone against sex stereotyping, broadly defined to include ‘the expectation that individuals will manifest behaviors, appearance, dress, grooming, interests and personality stereotypically associated with their sex and refrain from manifesting those associated with the other sex. Discrimination based on an individual’s nonconformity with such expectations constitutes sex-stereotyping discrimination. Sex stereotyping also includes the notion that sexual orientation will be heterosexual for both sexes (i.e. part of the stereotype of masculinity is being attracted to women, and part of the stereotype of femininity is being attracted to men).’

The definition of sex stereotyping is at the same time narrowed to prevent sex classification itself from being treated as a pernicious stereotype. ‘Sex stereotyping discrimination does not include merely recognizing or referring, accurately or in good faith, to the biological sex of an individual, or seeking to ascertain an individual’s biological sex for legitimate reasons consistent with this Act, irrespective of whether that person holds a deeply personal sense of identity that conflicts with or denies their biological sex.”’

boy and girl stereotypic shoes The FAEA model bill defines sex as being female or male, based on reproductive structure and function, with the potential to adjust determinations made about intersex persons. It contains findings that address the systemic nature of sex-based discrimination and the need for sex classification ‘in order to separate biological differences from socially assigned stereotypes and to name, reject, and ultimately dismantle the system of disadvantage and advantage, domination and inequality of power and resources that society has created with respect to these biological differences…. Affirmative recognition of the different biology of females and males is furthermore necessary to combat discrimination against women, since male-dominated institutions have routinely failed to adequately take account of women’s biology on an equal basis with that of men when formulating policy and practice that deals with the human body, in areas such as health care, design of goods and services, provision of adequate sanitary facilities, and competition in some sports. When doing so, the ultimate goal should be equalizing power and resources between women and men.’

Furthermore, specific rules of construction are included that preserve single-sex spaces and programs for women and girls, for reasons of privacy and safety and also for advancement and development.

Finally, the FAEA agrees with the original bill that claims or defenses under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act cannot be raised against civil rights law obligations. FAEA also agrees with the original bill that discrimination based on pregnancy and related conditions should be included under ‘sex’, and FAEA adds ‘lactation’.

Here are my slides for a presentation on the FAEA that provide more detail related to the explanation here.

The full FAEA and related materials, including a comparison summary and a tracked changes version, can be downloaded from the FIST website.

Please contact FIST to support the FAEA and otherwise become involved.

FIST Fights for Women With Equality Act Rewrite

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By Jeanne Neath

Good news can be hard to come by in the U.S. fight against trans domination. But, it is time to celebrate! Radical feminists and gender critical allies just made a quantum leap forward!

On October 2, 2019 Feminists in Struggle (FIST) finished preparing and adopted their own feminist version of the U.S. Equality Act. The Equality Act (U.S. Senate Bill 788) currently in Congress enshrines transgender ideology and will take away critical women’s rights. This bill is supposed to be legislation to protect Lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, and transgender people from discrimination. The Equality Act was passed by the House on May 20th, 2019, but is unlikely, at this time, to pass the Senate (and would surely be vetoed by Trump). Nonetheless, the Equality Act is headed toward becoming law and, if passed in anything resembling its current form, will be a disaster for Lesbians, women and girls.

Over the past year I started seriously worrying about the Equality Act, but when I went to the Internet to try and find out what exactly the legislation included, I discovered that the Equality Act involves a rewriting of federal Civil Rights laws, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964. If your eyes just glazed over at mention of such complicated and important legal documents, you are following in my footsteps. I quickly realized that, not being a lawyer, coming to an understanding of the Equality Act on my own would be too large an undertaking. I didn’t even know how to go about finding a copy of the current bill! There was simply no way I had the time or enough motivation to overcome these obstacles. My worries about the Equality Act multiplied, but all I could do was wait and hope that other U.S. feminists would take the Equality Act on. And, thank the goddess for Feminists in Struggle and their legal team, we now have the “Proposed Model U.S. Equality Act Incorporating Feminist Amendments,” a detailed and truly feminist rewrite of the Equality Act (hereafter referred to as the FIST feminist Equality Act).

The U.S. House of Representatives passed the so-called Equality Act on May 20, 2019. Note the LGB rainbow on the left and the equal size transgender rainbow on the right in the graphic. The version of the Equality Act passed in the House gives transgender people rights at the expense of Lesbians, women and girls.

And what a rewrite! I found it to be a fascinating document, even with all the (necessary) legal language. Tina Minkowitz, a member of the FIST legal team, explains that one of FIST’s primary aims was to “articulate a feminist position that addresses challenges to women’s political existence and rights, as a result of gender identity ideology.” Despite all the discussions I’ve participated in about female erasure, I had not put it together before hearing Tina’s statement that our legal existence as women is at stake with the Equality Act. When the law ensures that gender identity trumps sex, transitioned males become women legally, and the legal category of women as biological females is disappeared. I was impressed at how the FIST authors were able to take essential ideas from radical feminist critiques of transideology, then hone those ideas down into simple premises that then became the bases of the FIST feminist Equality Act.

FIST Conjures Up an Equality Act That Lives Up To Its Name

Let’s look at one example of how FIST’s legal team transformed the Equality Act. The Senate bill explicitly defines sex to include gender identity and finds that discrimination can occur “on the basis of the sex, sexual orientation, gender identity … of an individual, as well as because of sex-based stereotypes” and then goes on to say that each of these factors “is a form of sex discrimination.” Here is where women are erased! Gender identity is made synonymous with sex and discrimination for both gender identity and sex are considered to be sex discrimination. Over and over again, when the Senate’s version of the Equality Act mentions “sex” it uses the phrase “sex (including ‘sexual orientation’ and ‘gender identity’).” FIST points out that when ‘sex’ and ‘gender identity’ are defined as synonymous terms, this eliminates “female only spaces by allowing access based on gender identity.” The Senate’s Equality Act explicitly states that there can be no female only private personal spaces: “[A]n individual shall not be denied access to a shared facility, including a restroom, a locker room, and a dressing room, that is in accordance with the individual’s gender identity.”

I couldn’t find images on Google that supported a feminist Equality Act, so I created a simple one. We’ll need many more of these!

FIST’s feminist Equality Act takes an entirely different approach that protects women, LGB, and transgender people by creating two new protected classes – sexual orientation and sex stereotypes. These are in addition to and separate from protections based on sex, allowing each of the three classes clear and uncomplicated protection. FIST eliminated all mention of gender identity from their document, but still addressed the legitimate claims of transgender people by providing protection from discrimination on the basis of sex stereotypes. By focusing on sex stereotypes, gender non-conforming people who are not transgender, including Lesbians and gay men, are also protected when they do not comply with sex role norms (demands).

The FIST feminist Equality Act includes the stated purpose of strengthening “sex-based rights for women and girls,” ensures that classification by sex remains legal and explicitly protects female only spaces. FIST explicitly states that the various laws being modified should not be construed “to prohibit places of public accommodation, schools, government entities or employers or other covered programs, services, establishments and activities, from establishing or utilizing female-only facilities, programs, or services such as transportation services, multi-stall toilets, locker rooms, changing rooms, communal showers, battered women’s shelters, refuges, homeless shelters, rape crisis centers, jail cells, bedrooms in residential facilities, hospital rooms, facilities providing intimate services such as massage or intimate grooming, or other places where women are sharing private facilities or are in states of undress and/or where their privacy may be compromised and.or their safety may be at risk from male-pattern violence against females.” (p. 17, FIST feminist Equality Act) FIST likewise explicitly protects female-only programs, services and activities that advance women’s status, development and well-being, including sports programs, scholarship programs, clubs, political programs and more.

The concept of gender identity made it possible for a M2T person to claim, not just his identity as a transgender person, but the identity of a woman. If we want to go to the root of the problem (and that is what radical feminists usually strive to do), then invalidating and eliminating the concept of gender identity is our goal.

When I heard that FIST was working on a feminist version of the Equality Act, my biggest hope was that they would find a way to eliminate all protections based on gender identity. I wanted transgender people to be safe from discrimination in hiring and housing practices and so on, but I was aware that existing laws protecting gender identity often gave M2T (male to transgender) persons access to women-only and girl-only spaces, such as school locker rooms. The concept of gender identity made it possible for a M2T person to claim, not just his identity as a transgender person, but the identity of a woman. If we want to go to the root of the problem (and that is what radical feminists usually strive to do), then invalidating and eliminating the concept of gender identity is our goal. I could go on and on about gender identity because it is such a serious problem, but I’ve moved most of those thoughts into a follow up to be published here soon. I celebrate FIST’s decision to keep gender identity out of their feminist Equality Act, while still protecting transgender people from discrimination on the basis of sex stereotypes.

Grassroots Campaigning for FIST’s Feminist Equality Act

There is much of interest to radical feminists and gender critical people in the FIST feminist Equality Act and I recommend reading through it, as well as the various supporting documents, available on the FIST website. We also have materials available on the XX Amazons site. I also recommend endorsing FIST’s feminist Equality Act.

FIST has done an outstanding piece of feminist work. Now it is our turn! Get involved with FIST to find out and support their strategies for advancing their Equality Act. We can also each unleash our own creativity in starting or getting involved with grassroots campaigns on every level, small and large. Even the simple graphic I created (above) is one small step toward an Equality Act that does what we need it to. (Feminist artists! Send copies of your feminist Equality Act graphics to XX Amazons and we’ll put them on display on this web site and make them available for grassroots campaigns. FIST may well be interested as well. XX Amazons can also display copies of your letters to the editor and other campaign materials that you’d like to make available.) The Equality Act is a federal law and that means that radical feminists and gender critical allies all over the U.S. can have a common goal of promoting FIST’s feminist Equality Act and sending the Senate’s (in)Equality Act straight to the trash bin.

Resources

View or download the PDF document containing FIST’s “Proposed Model Equality Act with Feminist Amendments”

View or download FIST’s PDF document “Comparison of Original Equality Act (SB 788) and Proposed Model Act Incorporating Feminist Amendments”

View or download a slideshow presentation prepared by Tina Minkowitz that highlights key points about the “FIST Model Equality Act: Feminist Amendments to HR5/S788.” Available as a Powerpoint presentation or as PDF file.

Coming soon on XX Amazons! Watch for the blog on the “Feminist Amendments to the Equality Act” written by Tina Minkowitz, one of the members of the FIST legal team.

Quiz for Liberals

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By Jeanne Neath

XX Amazons is setting out to snare liberals. Much of the power of the transgender movement comes from the support of liberals. Some of this liberal support is from liberal trans allies who are deeply immersed in the transactivist version of reality. But, many of the liberals supporting the transgender movement are barely informed about transgender ideology and have no knowledge whatsoever of what radical feminists and other gender critical folks have to say. Let’s call them “No Know Libs.” The No Know Libs don’t want to think through this difficult question. They just want to do the “right thing” and give their support to every minority group. They have been taken in by the line, “everybody knows transgender people are more victimized and oppressed than anyone else.”

Here’s where XX Amazons’ new quiz, “Do You Discriminate Against Transgender People,” comes in. Our quiz asks whether the respondent agrees with seven simple statements that almost anyone who is not a hard core transactivist or over-the-top trans ally would agree with. For example, the first question, written for heterosexual males states, “I am a heterosexual male and I have never dated and would rather not date ‘transwomen,’ especially if they still have male genitalia.” (See the graphics in this blog for more of the quiz questions or view a downloadable PDF file of the entire quiz.)

Questions 1 and 2 from the Do You Discriminate Against Transgender People? Quiz

The vast majority of people taking our quiz are going to agree with at least one of the quiz questions. When they find out (and they do find out because we tell them) that the transgender movement considers their belief(s) to be discriminatory, most people will experience emotional distress and a realization that there is either a problem with what the transgender movement is saying or with their own belief system.

Some could decide that their own beliefs are problematic and go the way of the devoted trans ally. That would be unfortunate. We believe that many quiz takers will be jarred into a willingness to start thinking more deeply about the problems with claims made by the transgender movement.

At the end of the quiz we do our best to lead No Know Libs into this questioning state of mind. We ask “What’s the score?” and say, “If you checked yes on any of these questions, then the transgender movement would say you are discriminating against transgender people. But is this really discrimination?” We point out that there is a conflict of rights between women and the transgender movement. We invite respondents to the XX Amazons’ website to find out more about the unexpected consequences of claims made by the transgender movement. We have enlightening explanations of the radical feminist viewpoint for each of the questions that should dispell any concerns they have about discrimination.

Questions 3 and 4 from the Do You Discriminate Against Transgender People? Quiz

Can we transform No Know Libs into the well-informed and questioning people we need them to be? These liberals are victims of the transactivist campaign to silence radical feminists and other gender critics. The “Do You Discriminate Against Transgender People?” quiz can help us help them begin to do some much needed questioning.

Here are some things you can do to help this educational process along. They don’t require very much effort or risk, but should get important thinking and conversation going. Start by acquainting yourself more with the quiz and give some thought to the explanations of the quiz questions. If you want, use this graphic or this smaller graphic to help spread the word about the quiz on Facebook or other social media.

Download the PDF file of the quiz and print copies. If you don’t want people to associate you with the quiz, casually put copies of the quiz out at locations like your public library, health food store or anywhere that has a place to set out literature. If you can risk people associating you with the quiz, give it to your friends or pass it out at events. People have a hard time resisting the chance to take a quiz. Use this quiz as a conversation opener and you can do your own educating about what is happening to women, girls and lesbians.

Postscript: XX Amazons is very interested in knowing about what kinds of responses you encounter when you distribute the quiz. Please let us know how it goes. We always like hearing from you and your feedback about the quiz will be very helpful. Thank you!

Questions 5 thru 7 of the Do You Discriminate Against Transgender People? Quiz