No. We are discussing men. I cannot grasp why it's such a struggle to understand this! The issue is laws that would allow men, not trans women, men, to enter women's spaces.
If I say that I'm a woman, right now, how do you know if I am or not? Do you just have to "believe" it?
What if, as I write this paragraph, I change my mind, and I'm now a man again. Did my penis change from a woman's penis back to a man's penis?
Whoops! I think I just changed back into a woman again. Whew! What a ride! And by the definition of "woman" you seem to be supporting, there's not a thing you can say that refutes my claim to be a woman...no wait a man. Nope a woman again. Nope a man. Okay, now I'm a woman. Can I come into your changing room and get naked with you now please?
I'm not claiming to have all the answers. I think we'd agree that requiring gender confirming surgery for trans women to be recognised as women isn't right. Demanding somebody gets potentially dangerous surgery before they can live as they want to is too far. But the point I'm making is that simply saying "I'm a woman," is not far enough.
I don't think Rowling has ever advocated to deny trans people healthcare. Please show me evidence if I'm wrong. I'm certainly not advocating for that. There have been a few, fairly high profile examples of gender clinics being literally criminally irresponsible about how they treat trans kids. I'm against that. But I'm completely for removing barriers for trans people to medically transition if they choose to, as long as reasonable steps have been taken to ensure they can give informed consent.
As I said in the article, I don't see this as a zero-sum game. I care about trans people, I care about women, and I see that there are a few places where their rights and needs intersect. I'd just like to see more trans people and trans "allies" give serious thought to how to accommodate and respect the comfort of women who are uncomfortable being around male bodies. Instead, these women's feelings are simply mischaracterised as hatred to justify ignoring them.
