Thousands protest in London over Supreme Court’s ruling on definition of a woman
Trans rights activists defaced a statue of Millicent Fawcett during a protest against the Supreme Court’s ruling on the definition of a woman.
The Parliament Square statue of the suffragist, a prominent campaigner for women’s rights in the 19th century, was daubed with graffiti reading “f– rights” on Saturday.
It happened as thousands of protesters marched through central London in an “emergency demonstration” against Wednesday’s decision that only biological women are women.
The landmark Supreme Court ruling, which has caused many public bodies to review their gender policies, stated that laws against sex-based discrimination should only apply to biological women.
The Metropolitan Police confirmed that it was investigating criminal damage to seven statues in Westminster during the protest.
Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, told The Telegraph: “This is a reminder that the Supreme Court ruling is not the end of the story. The trans activist fanatics who have threatened and intimidated the women and men who disagree with them will not give up.
“This is why we need robust enforcement of the law, and the least the Labour Government can do is defend common sense from these violent thugs and extremists instead of hiding away on this issue.”
Protesters chanted calls for trans liberation, blocked traffic and held up placards that read “no feminism without trans women” and “biology is not binary”.
The Met will face questions about why the statue of Fawcett was not fenced off during the protest, as had been done with Winston Churchill’s statue prior to Black Lives Matter marches in 2020.
But a force spokesman said statues were not fenced off “unless there is prior intelligence that they may be damaged during a protest”.
The statue of Fawcett was unveiled in 2018 in a ceremony attended by Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, and Theresa May, then the prime minister.
From a young age, Fawcett campaigned tirelessly to get women the vote. In 1866, when she was 19, she helped collect signatures for the first suffrage petition.
She was involved with the push for women’s votes for more than five decades, and led the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies, although her commitment to peaceful tactics led to a split between her moderate movement and more radical suffragettes.
She also campaigned for women’s rights in many other areas, including access to university. She died in 1929, a year after women achieved full equality at the ballot box.
Maya Forstater, the chief executive of the human rights charity Sex Matters, told The Telegraph: “Yet again, the trans rights activists show us who they are. This is not a peaceful request for the right of a marginalised group to live quietly and with dignity – it’s a violent anti-women mob.
“They’ve defaced the statue of Millicent Fawcett, who represents women’s suffrage, to make their point that they will not respect women’s boundaries, even when the law requires it. Once again, they prove why women need male-free spaces and services – to keep men like this out.”
Joanna Cherry KC, a former SNP MP who opposed the party’s trans policy, posted on X: “Anyone doubting the appalling misogyny of trans activists need only look at this evidence. The handmaidens should hang their heads in shame.”
Kate Barker, the chief executive of the campaign group LGB Alliance, added: “The defacement of this legendary figure with an anti-LGB slur is a stunningly public example of the kind of vitriol that trans activists have thrown at us for over a decade.
“Following the complete rejection of gender identity ideology by the Supreme Court, we hope we’re seeing the last throes of this misguided and often vicious movement.”
The feminist campaign group For Women Scotland, which raised the Supreme Court case against the Scottish Government, also criticised the vandalism. The group posted on X: “No doubt the organisation which bears her name will condemn this”.
The post referred to the Fawcett Society, a charity campaigning for gender equality and women’s rights, of which Harriet Harman, the Labour peer, is chairman. Both the Fawcett Society and Baroness Harman have been contacted for comment by The Telegraph.
Protesters on the march argued that the Supreme Court’s decision was little more than a distraction and had little to do with female safety.
Avery Greatorex, who co-chairs Pride in Labour, said: “Not a single trans person or trans organisation was represented in that case, and so we weren’t given an opportunity to have a seat at the table, which is obviously a very concerning thing for our community when decisions are being made without us.
“So the protest was organised to put pressure on the Government by the public to act. To be able to secure the rights of transgender people and to secure those protections, we need legislative power and we need lobbying power.”
A Met Police spokesman said: “Officers were in the area policing a protest in Parliament Square, but did not witness the criminal damage take place as the area was densely populated with thousands of protesters and it was not reported at the time.
“The damage has subsequently been seen, and officers are investigating this as criminal damage. No arrests have been made. The Met is working with the local authority, who are responsible for cleaning this, and has requested it is removed as soon as possible.”
Chief Supt Stuart Bell, who was leading the policing operation for the protest, said: “It is very disappointing to see damage to seven statues and property in the vicinity of the protest today.
“We support the public’s right to protest, but criminality like this is completely unacceptable.”
Source: The Telegraph