Judith Butler, the Definition of "Woman," and That Oxford Panel
Howdy, everyone. Here with a newsletter that was always on the docket but is a little too timely for my taste. This is going to be a long one, so I'm going to get the events/announcements done early:
- In Every Era: Lesbian Histories of Care @ Common Press Books, Thursday 24 April @ 19:00 - This event is for Lesbian Visibility Week and we'll be celebrating lesbian chosen families, like resistance groups and mentorships.
- In Conversation with Antonia Hodgson, author of Raven Scholar @ Waterstones Canterbury, Tuesday 27 May @ 18:30 - Raven Scholar was one of my favorite books last year (I read an early copy ;)) and I admire Antonia Hodgson's craft immensely because of it, so I'm excited to pick her brain.
- License to Write with V. Castro @ Cymera Festival in Edinburgh, Saturday June 7 @ 17:15 - Join us live or on livestream as we talk about writing licensed IP projects, specifically Ambessa and Rebel Moon.
- In Conversation with [TBC], about Fate's Bane!!! @ Toppings Edinburgh, Tuesday 4 November @ 19:00 - My first event for the autumn release season is officially booked! And I'm thrilled to be headed back to Edinburgh because I love that city and I love all the bookstores there. Also, if you book an early bird ticket, it's a bit cheaper and either way, you can get the book with it.
- Related--if you can preorder my books or book early to events, it helps publisher and bookstores suss out the demand, and they respond accordingly by offering more support to the books they think will do best. So if you're in the position to, it helps immensely. Other ways you can help: set up book clubs (and preorder the book as a club), ask your bookstore to carry them, ask your bookstore to invite me as a speaker (in person or virtually), and just generally spread the word.
- Also, some of you may have noticed I've gone quiet on socials. For now, this is the best place to reach me and hear my dulcet tones.
Now.
As some of you may know, the UK Supreme Court just passed judgement on a case declaring a biological definition for woman, specifically relating to sex-based discrimination protections. Though this theoretically doesn't change the protections of trans people regarding discrimination de jure, the potential de facto ramifications in other areas down the road legally and socially are quite clear. That's why, more than ever, it's important to educate those you can to prevent the anti-trans fearmongering of news outlets and others who claim to protect women and girls.
It is, frankly, bullshit. And I will not be debating this. However, there will be links and resources provided below for you to learn if you don't understand why this is bullshit.
However, this does not mean that no one should debate this. There is a manner of thought among progressives that amounts to avoiding anywhere that people we disagree with exist. I think that does our struggles a great disservice, because the regressives are not cloistering themselves--they are taking every opportunity to speak, and to anyone willing to give even half an ear or less. And those people, whether they realise it or not, only have to think, "Oh, right, protecting women and girls is good, this must make sense," without fully understanding the context of a regressive's talking point. That's by design. Context, knowledge, 10 more seconds of critical thought--that's the enemy of the regressive. And when there is no one nearby to counter the regressive's point (and here, "nearby" is something of a metaphor, I mean any countering voice in the bystanders life, not just a literal single event), it makes it that much easier for the bystander to carry this shallow idea onward and grave it deeper on their psyche with every exposure.
I know, I know. Then we're dignifying their positions with a response! Surprise--their position, based in fact or not, is destroying lives, cis and trans, legally, financially, socially, privately, publicly. It's too late to pretend that ignoring it will smother it.
This is also why I decided to go to the Oxford Literary Festival this year, despite them also inviting known anti-trans figures, Julie Bindel and Helen Joyce, who make their livings writing and speaking against trans people. There were many who pulled out of their events in protest (most of them seemed unrelated directly to queer topics, but I could be wrong). I respect their decisions, but I can't help but think that it was a missed opportunity for each of those speakers to call attention to what was being done at the festival and in the world. The audiences might not have overlapped with the Bindel/Joyce audience, but you never know. And besides, there could be someone in your audience that needs to hear the counter-context. And my assigned panel on Queer Fantasy and Science Fiction seemed like one of the few opportunities in the festival to counter the narrative that Bindel/Joyce brought, even on the barest level of programming.
There were other issues, of course--no panels or conversations directly challenging the anti-trans perspective, no transwomen (to my knowledge?) invited to speak, no major opponents of "gender critical" bs, things like that. But to me, abandoning the platform I did have, such as it was, wasn't going to make OLF rethink their choice. If anything, it would only leave room for more people who didn't care or worse, were actively hostile. The anti-trans talk was a sold out event, which is their incentive.
That said, I do think they did not know how to handle our panel. Our moderator was Matthew Stadlen, who I admittedly know nothing about except that he knew little about fantasy and especially about queer fantasy. It strayed from the topic of the panel in a few ways, and there were a few uncomfortable moments, but bad panels happen. Awkward panels happen. It was enough to accept, though, that the Oxford Literary Festival wasn't properly invested in setting up their queer events and their queer guests up for success. I don't anticipate attending again unless something drastic changes.
Judith Butler, the preeminent scholar of gender studies, is one of the chief among those who are suitable and prepared to deal with these conversations. They are eloquent and easy to understand in their lectures and conversations, and they handle hecklers and bad faith moments with grace that many of us can only dream of maintaining while under fire. I admired them very much for their performance or behavior--what would you call it?--when I attended the London conversation led by Ash Sarkar in March at Southbank.
It was an excellent talk about a lot of the points of "debate" that the regressives bring up. A few highlights (though if you'd like to learn more/hear more, some of their talks are on Youtube):
- Trans people in sports: Butler spoke specifically about elite sports, but also addressed recreational, namely that recreational sports don't need to be gender segregated because the point is recreation, especially as children--things like sportsmanship, movement, teamwork, and joy are the priority, not someone's junk. I agree with this assessment; I spent too much time watching my parents' co-ed softball games and playing co-ed soccer and--gasp! recess to think otherwise. And if you think your cis daughter is going to be damaged playing with a young trans girl, ask yourself why before you vote to keep a trans child from all that sport can offer--that feeling of acceptance and friendship of a team, the joy of their body's exertion, learning how to win and lose with dignity. And if it's because you think it's unfair...well, I have a lot of things to say but I'll leave it at this: tough shit. Sometimes you lose. And 99.9999% of the time, it won't be to a trans person.
- What is a woman: Especially relevant to this week, but what they said stuck with me and is worth you trying to find in full if you can. They said run away from trying to define womanhood. That we should, as feminists, resist all attempts to circumscribe it within a narrow box or a single definition. There are myriad reasons for it, not least the way everyone who does not fit that definition will be persecuted. Black women, transwomen, intersex people, transmen, butch women, women who can't have children or don't want them, lesbians, disabled women, fat women, menopausal women--these are just a few of the groups of people that strict ideas about womanhood have harmed and will continue to harm.
- Hyper-identification of (usually but not always) young queers with hyperspecific categories: I think this goes a bit with the above, specifically with regards to divisiveness. It was not one of their most popular statements, but I will confess that it was a relief to hear my own thoughts echoed. There's a trend to divide queer identities into smaller and smaller categories, and while it may feel good to feel like you have an exact word for the things you feel, it does a few things that can be damaging. The first of which, is that it creates a cop-like mentality. People get too hung up on a specific definition and use it to start keeping people out (and this isn't limited to neolabels but even classics like butch, femme, top, bottom): "That's not how X are, they're only like this," "Ys don't dress like that," "Zs don't do that in bed." It's annoying, first off. Second, it's simply impossible to categorize every single behavior into its own label, and it limits the vast range of queer expression. The second point of damage is related: not only does it limit queers as a whole, destroying the whole point of the movement, which is freedom from artificial strictures, but it limits individuals. Making one label your entire self, your personality, all that you amount to, keeps you from feeling that you can change. It keeps you from experiencing growth and maturing into a complex, seasoned being. It keeps you from exploring. It also makes you feel threatened by anyone who claims the label differently than you, leading to that policing behavior above. I can't even count how many non-dramas have happened online in the last few months because a very online lesbian ended up dating a guy or an avowed aromantic person said they fell in love. We are wild and mutable creatures and none of us knows what's in store--some things really may feel fixed in our stars! But that's not all we are, and we don't need to build our own cages just because it feels safe.
- Youth dealing with feelings of transness: Another one where Butler did not give the response the crowd wanted, I think, though I very much agreed. Someone sitting near me (way up in the stands), when the question was broached, screamed, "Believe them!" and it was really annoying, as annoying as the heckler, don't be that guy. Butler's response was much more nuanced, which I appreciated. A child does not always know what they want to do for the rest of their lives and so shouldn't necessarily get to make unilateral irrevocable decisions. It's the hope that, just like the child who wants to be a professional athlete or an astronaut, the child who wants to explore their gender has adults nearby who are equipped and loving enough (or loving enough to become equipped) to help them experiment, offering them the tools (including but not limited to puberty blockers, clothing, and hairstyles) and the backup (against social pressures and bullying in particular, including use of chosen names) to safely and joyfully do so. This should go without saying, but this does not mean their feelings are a phase or that their feelings are less real even if they are temporary. Believe that they are curious and respect their self-actualisation, but accept that it may indeed be transient--the important thing is that children should be free to explore and learn about themselves without reprisal. Then, when they're old enough to understand the consequences of the choice, we respect that decision, too.
These are just a few of the points that really stuck out to me. I picked up a copy of their most recent book which might be a good place for you to go if you'd like to learn more about all this "gender stuff" and don't mind reading (if you do mind reading, learn to not mind it, you're leaving a lot on the table).
Other articles and podcasts that might be easier to start with:
- HRC: Transgender and Non-binary People FAQ - if you want to be an ally but you're new to all of this, start here
- Maintenance Phase Podcast: "Rapid-Onset Gender Dysphoria" Pt 1+2: The Cooties Theory of Transgender Identity
- ACLU: "Four Myths About Transgender Athletes, Debunked"
- PRA: "Combating Anti-transgender Disinformation" - if you, like me, end up in a conversation with family or co-workers and just don't know what to say, you can practice some of these responses.
ICYMI
- I got a new keyboard. Hope this explains any typos above. I'm getting better.
- Catch me talking about creating complicated character relationships with the Story Engine folks, and then watch me make a new messy couple ON THE SPOT!
- Catch a two-part interview/masterclass with SFF Addicts where I talk about Ambessa: Chosen of the Wolf and then about "training" your characters and body writing.
- Read more about me and my girl Ambessa in this Pixigonal interview.
Anyway, that's enough of me for now.
Stay sharp,
CL