Leroy N. Soetoro
14 days ago
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The United Kingdoms highest court ruled that the legal definition of
woman excludes trans women, in a case with sweeping consequences for how
equality laws are applied.
Britains Supreme Court ruled unanimously that the definition of a woman
in equality legislation refers to a biological woman and biological sex,
sparking celebrations outside court among gender-critical campaigners but
warnings it was a worrying development for transgender people.
The case centered on whether trans women with a gender recognition
certificate (GRC) which offers legal recognition of someones female sex
are protected from discrimination as a woman under the nations Equality
Act 2010.
A group of campaigners in Scotland brought a challenge in 2018, arguing
that those rights should only safeguard those assigned as women at birth.
But the Scottish government said that a trans woman with a GRC is legally
a woman and should therefore be afforded the same legal protections.
Even though the case stems from a dispute over Scottish laws designed to
increase the number of women sitting on boards, the outcome on Wednesday
will shape the increasingly fractious and polarizing debate over
transgender rights across the UK.
The UKs ruling Labour party said the ruling brought clarity and
confidence while the opposition Conservatives called it a clear victory
for common sense, urging the government to amend existing guidance.
The five judges ruled in favor of For Women Scotland (FWS) which
proposed that not linking the legal definition of gender to biological sex
would have repercussions on designated single-sex services, including
changing rooms, hostels and communal accommodation.
The terms woman and sex in the Equality Act 2010 refer to a biological
woman and biological sex, Lord Patrick Hodge told the court in London.
The provisions relating to sex discrimination can only be interpreted as
referring to biological sex, he added.
Interpreting sex as certificated sex would cut across the definitions
of man and woman and thus the protected characteristic of sex in an
incoherent way, a summary of the ruling said, which added that
transgender women could be excluded from same-sex facilities such as
changing rooms if proportionate.
If transgender women with a GRC were afforded the same protected
characteristic as biological women under the Equality Act, Hodge said,
they would possess greater rights than those who do not, citing
provisions relating to pregnancy and maternity leave.
The justice insisted that the courts interpretation of the Equality Act
2010 does not remove protection from trans people, with or without a GRC
document. A trans woman could claim discrimination on the grounds of
gender reassignment, and because she is perceived to be a woman, added
Hodge.
Britains government has always supported the protection of single-sex
spaces based on biological sex, a spokesperson said, following the
ruling.
This ruling brings clarity and confidence, for women and service
providers such as hospitals, refuges, and sports clubs, the spokesperson
added. Single-sex spaces are protected in law and will always be
protected by this Government.
A watershed for women
Despite Lord Hodge saying that the ruling should not be read as a triumph
for one or more groups in our society at the expense of another it is
not, gender-critical campaigners are celebrating it as a major victory.
The court has given the right answer: the protected characteristic of sex
male and female refers to reality, not paperwork, said the group Sex
Matters.
Another charity, the LGB Alliance, which made arguments in the case,
called it a watershed for women.
Former Scottish National Party MP Joanna Cherry, a longtime campaigner on
the issue, told PA Media outside court she felt hugely vindicated by the
ruling, adding that it was now over to the politicians to make sure that
the law is obeyed.
Trans activists across the globe warn that the fierce public debate over
their private lives has chipped away at protection for the marginalized
and regularly vilified community in recent years.
In the UK, hate crimes on the basis of sexual identity rose by 112% in
2023, according to government figures the same year a young trans girl,
Brianna Ghey, was murdered by two schoolchildren in a park in central
England.
And in the US, with the advent of the Trump administration, rights groups
sounded the alarm over escalating attacks on the rights of transgender and
nonbinary Americans.
Amnesty International, which backed the Scottish government, previously
urged lawmakers to update existing legislation, so that trans communities
have a right to privacy, to marry, to family life and health, without
invasive bureaucratic measures.
On Wednesday, the NGO said that the ruling could have potentially
concerning consequences for trans people, but it is important to stress
that the court has been clear that trans people are protected under the
Equality Act against discrimination and harassment.
LGBTQ charity Stonewall said the UK Supreme Courts decision was
incredibly worrying for the trans community.
After the ruling, Ella Morgan, a British trans advocate, told CNN she was
deeply fearful over how the outcome would impact mine and other
transgender womens futures.
I had a feeling these changes would be implemented in the UK following
the US news, I hoped that deep down I would be wrong. Today for the first
time, I am scared about walking out of my front door, she said in a
statement on Wednesday.
This story has been updated.
--
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