Green Party Women EGM on discrimination against gender-critical Greens

The Green Party suspended my membership for two years, 2021 to 2023, for alleged transphobia and anti-semitism. All the charges were dismissed in April 2023. (For more see flimsy-evidence and vindicated-at-last and Cancel-culture-Green-Party.)

Green Party Women convened an EGM on 1 August 2023, part of which was to hear stories from members about discrimination for having gender-critical views. Here is what I said to the EGM.

I have been a member of the Green Party for nearly 20 years. Here are two examples of how I have been discriminated against for having gender-critical (GC) views.

Deletion of my Gender Critical Green Space

I set up a ‘Gender Critical Green Space’ on ‘Green Spaces’ (GPEW’s internal discussion forum) in 2020. It was abruptly deleted in January 2021 by staff at head office for alleged breaches of code of conduct. When I asked what the breaches were, they could not tell me because they had deleted the entire Green Space. As far as I know, no other Green Space has been deleted in such a way (although something similar happened to the Women’s Green Space in about 2021, when it was taken down for a while).

My two years on ‘no-fault suspension’

In February 2021 Green Party Regional Council (GPRC) placed me on ‘no-fault suspension’ (NFS) for alleged transphobia. Here is why I think this was discrimination for holding Gender Critical views.

Firstly, timing. It was imposed just before Spring 2021 Conference, where I had put forward a motion opposing routine use of puberty blockers on gender non-conforming children.

Next is the fact that NFS is reserved for the worst offences, but when it came to the hearing of my case in April 2023, the Disciplinary Committee (DC) panel dismissed all the charges. There was no case to answer all along.

Thirdly, there was GPRC’s refusal to consider my defence to the no-fault suspension at any of its reviews of my case for two years. If a judicial body does not listen to both sides, that is a breach of the right to a fair trial under the Human Rights Act. Inasmuch as NFS is used against GC members like me more than other members, this amounts to discrimination.

Last but not least, half way through my NFS, in July 2022, Maya Forstater won her appeal that GC views were ‘protected beliefs’ under the Equality Act 2010. I pointed out to DC and GPRC that the ruling applied to membership situations like the Green Party as well as employment cases like Maya Forstater’s. But they ignored this and kept me on NFS for another nine months until my hearing in April 2023. That amounts to discrimination for holding ‘protected beliefs’ under the Equality Act.

Note: Green Declaration for Women’s Sex-Based Rights

The Green Declaration for Women’s Sex-Based Rights was published on 4 August 2023 by members and supporters of the Green Party of England and Wales (GPEW) and I was a co-signatory. You can follow Green Women’s Declaration on Twitter: @GWDeclaration and read and sign the declaration here: https://greenwomensdeclaration.uk. You don’t have to be a member of the Green Party to sign the declaration.

The Declaration was initiated by GPEW members who believe that the right of women to advocate for women as a biological sex, is being eroded within GPEW, as elsewhere in society, and that the ‘No Debate’ mantra is being used to curb freedom of speech.