Content note: Mention of Supreme Court Ruling, discrimination, kept to minimum in body of email. Links may include potentially upsetting content with regards to discrimination and statistics relating to harm.
Dear all
Hope this finds you keeping okay as can be during such a challenging time. We are aware that many of our trans, non-binary and/or intersex community are feeling increasingly anxious and concerned, following the recent ruling by the Supreme Court. We are sending this additional bulletin in the hope it provides a concise summary of sources for information and support options available to you.
As always, we encourage you to prioritise your own well-being and come to engaging with content when feeling able to do so, if at all. Regular breaks from social media and/or news media are encouraged. At times of uncertainty or distress, we encourage you to utilise services listed on our mental health web page, including Samaritans or downloading the app Voda.
We have attached a document which includes options for summarising media coverage, a couple of examples of empowering/informative documentaries and how you can ‘take action’ (e.g. write to your MP) if you wish to do so. If you’d like to add to this you can email beck@clareproject.org.uk
Summary information on recent Supreme Court Ruling:
If you would like to understand what the recent ruling was, please see Gendered Intelligence’s short article here. Please note, as highlighted in the article, there is still much uncertainty among legal professionals about the impact of the ruling, and there is a lot of heightened / inaccurate coverage in the media. If you prefer to read a newspaper article with more legal detail from a legally informed source, some of us found Barrister Sam Fowles Article in the Guardian useful or analysis by Good Law Project.
A few days after the ruling, interim guidance on use of facilities in public space was shared by the Equality Human Rights Committee (EHRC). It is important to note this is non-statutory guidance – which means this is not required by law. The guidance is both ambiguous and unclear, with an increasing number of respected organisations/bodies considering it both harmful and impractical, discriminatory and unlawful.
We understand this guidance is being challenged, and at present we are not aware of any local spaces amending services in order to reflect this non-statutory guidance. If a space or service decides to act on the interim guidance being offered, they need to provide clear rationale for doing so, alongside a consultation and/or implementation plan. We do not expect organisations to act rapidly on this, due to the ambiguity and lack of clarity mentioned above, alongside many organisations expressing concern about the negative impact on our community. If you are unsure, you or a trusted friend can make contact with the business or service directly by requesting their inclusion practices and/or policy. An example of this query being answered from a national pub chain is here.
What is happening to push back on this?
Across the voluntary sector, The Clare Project has received an overwhelming message of support from allied community organisations, professionals and supporters. These have come from a huge variety of organisations across the country, ranging from survivor spaces to homelessness organisations, cancer prevention services and disability rights advocates. These examples are book-ended with over 120+ signatories of allyship on LGBTQ+ Consortium’s joint statement here.
Going forward, there have been a number of legal professionals/organisations responding to the ruling and/or interim guidance, including The Good Law Project who have provided summary and scrutiny on the ruling. In only a couple of days, they have also fundraised over £250,000 to challenge the ruling, alongside community member and retired Judge, Dr Victoria McCloud. You can sign up to Good Law Project’s updates, or follow them on social media.
Where can I go to read reliable updates?
If you are interested in following the legal challenge we recommend following The Good Law Project. Legal professionals such as Dr Victoria McCloud, Lui Asquith and Robin Moira White also post on LinkedIn. You can also check out TransLucent and Trans Legal Project.
If you prefer to engage in news items from community charities, you can check out LGBTQ Consortium, Trans Actual and/or Gendered Intelligence who will continue to share useful updates.
Messages or statements of support from our local services may also be shared in The Clare Project bulletin, although please note we aim to keep coverage to a minimum to avoid over-exposure of potentially triggering content.
We hope you continue to engage in our spaces as opportunities for support and sanctuary during this increasingly difficult time. We continue to send strength and solidarity to you all.
TCP Team x