Today (the 16th of April 2025), the Supreme Court ruled that the definition of a woman is defined solely on biological sex. I feel nothing but genuine disgust. Research by Pace, a LGBTQ+ charity, highlighted in 2014 that 48% of trans people under 26 stated they had attempted suicide, and a further 30% said they had done so in the past year; in addition, 59% said they had at least considered taking their own lives.
So, whilst the backwards and bigoted JK Rowling can celebrate comfortably in her million-pound mansion with no Supreme Court trying to challenge her identity, transgender women and transgender children are dying. That is the reality. But let’s be real, if Kemi Badenoch or JK Rowling are calling anything a ‘victory’, we all know this is certainly untrue, because this ruling represents a decline concerning basic human rights. This ruling merely serves to impress right-wing bigots who want to attack and revoke the rights of all women.
Although the Supreme Court claimed that their ruling would not change discrimination laws against the trans community, LGBTQ+ charity Stonewall stated to The Guardian that there is “deep concern at the widespread implications” of the court ruling, which is “incredibly worrying for the trans community”.
This is no victory for women, this is a step backwards; without true intersectionality and the liberation of all women, this is not feminism, this is anti-feminist. Trans exclusionary feminism weakens feminism for all, as without the protection of trans rights, the rights of every woman are under attack. As real, inclusionary feminists, now is the time we stand up and speak out against the exclusion of trans women within our society, because real feminists support all women. Trans women are pushed by their mere existence to become advocates and activists for LGBTQ+ rights, and we must not let them stand or feel alone. Trans people’s existence is a struggle, and we have an obligation and a duty to challenge this by advocating for them and alongside them as allies; we need to help make trans lives better.
I frankly don’t care what the UK Supreme Court rules; trans women are women. Five judges ruling unanimously that the legal definition of a woman under the EQUALITY ACT (2010) (where is the equality?) does not include trans women is a shocking, regressive step back; for Scotland, this means that transgender women can no longer sit on public boards in places set for women. These judges, who are all cis-gendered, over the age of 61, either went to private school or grammar school, and were all appointed by the Conservative party, represent a backwards, bigoted, and conservative branch of the UK legislative system – a branch which is supposed to support and uphold human rights – but has today failed us all.
We have seen time and time again that the government doesn’t care about trans youth and the trans community. They deny young people life saving gender affirming care, despite the fact that studies have found less than 1% of individuals to choose to undergo gender affirming care regret doing so (Bustos et al, 2021). They purposefully attack and scapegoat trans people time and time again in order to divide public opinion and push identity politics, as they pit people against one another to further distract the general population from real issues. Issues which are caused by greedy and bigoted men in power, men like Netanyahu, who bomb innocent Palestinian children. Men like Trump who order militant gangs to round up, beat, and deport hard-working migrants who want better lives for their families. And men like Starmer, who sit back and watch the world burn, as he purposely continues austerity cuts and perpetuates further societal inequality and division, all whilst being complicit in supporting war crimes abroad.
So why are we going backwards, and aren’t there bigger issues? Seriously? Never in my entire life has a trans person made me feel unsafe. To be completely honest, I want trans girls in the women’s bathroom. They belong there. I’ll lend you my setting spray and we can bitch together about anything on your mind, because that is what girls do – we support one another.
Trans women are women, and no Supreme Court ruling will change that.