We have some good news from Ireland today so I thought I’d start with a great female figure in the recent history of Ireland. The wonderful Irish women’s rights group, The Countess, are named after Countess Constance Markievicz. They often use the slogan: ‘The Countess didn’t fight for this.’ The founder and director of The Countess, Laoise de Brún, referred to Countess Markievicz at the beginning of her speech at Let Women Speak in Dublin. See my report on this here:
https://dustymasterson.substack.com/p/abolish-hate-crime
The Irish nationalist, socialist and suffragette Constance Markievicz was born in 1868. She was the eldest child of the philanthropist and explorer Sir Henry Gore-Booth and had a privileged upbringing between London and the family estate, Lissadell House, in Co. Sligo. Although her parents were opposed to her artistic ambitions, she attended the Slade School of Art, where she first became politically active and joined the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies. While continuing her studies in Paris, she met the Polish Count Casimir Markievicz, whom she married in 1900.
Countess Markievicz was a lifelong advocate for women’s suffrage and, at a time when women were largely excluded from political life, an activist dedicated to the rights of Irish nationalism. In 1908 she joined Sinn Féin and the radical women’s group Inghinidhe na hÉireann (Daughters of Ireland), which later merged with Cumann na mBan in 1914. She was sentenced to death for her role in the Easter Rising in 1916, but the sentence was commuted and she was released the following year. In 1918 she became the first woman elected to the British parliament, although, in line with Sinn Féin’s policy, did not take her seat in Westminster. She joined the newly founded Fianna Fáil party in 1926 and was elected in the Irish general election in June 1927, but died the following month.
For more information about the organisation, The Countess please go to their website:
Irish Constitution
Good news that the referendum on the Constitution concerning the Irish Government’s proposals to remove the words ‘mother’ and ‘woman’ has been put back. The report below is from the Irish state broadcaster, RTE, which is extremely captured. The headline is completely misleading and I have only quoted a small amount of the report due to the bias involved.
For a proper analysis (if I say so myself 😎) go to my previous reports here:
https://dustymasterson.substack.com/p/sound-the-alarm-irish-constitutional
and here:
https://dustymasterson.substack.com/p/a-letter-to-the-taoiseach
By the way, I got an acknowledgement to my letter to the Taoiseach’s Office but nothing further. There’s a surprise!
Mary Regan for RTE ( Referendum on 'women's duties in the home' postponed 25 September) reports:
Minister for Children Roderic O'Gorman has said a proposed referendum to replace the constitutional reference to women's duties in the home will not take place this year.
A November referendum had been promised by the Government earlier this year, following a recommendation from a Citizens' Assembly on gender equality.
But speaking on RTÉ's The Week in Politics, Minister O'Gorman said: "I think it is most likely that it will be early next year."
He said the Government is "close to the final wording" of the two proposed amendments - on gender equality and to ensure care is valued by the State.
Californian Bill
Thanks to Feminist Legal Clinic for directing me to this report.
Adam Creighton in The Australian (California’s governor has vetoed a controversial transgender bill 24 September) reports:
California governor Gavin Newsom has once again fuelled speculation he might run for president next year after vetoing a controversial bill that would have required courts to consider, when ruling on custody, whether parents would ‘affirm’ the gender identity of their children.
In a rare use of his executive veto, Mr Newsom on Friday night local time (Saturday AEST) torpedoed California bill AB957 which had the overwhelming support of the Democratic Party in the biggest US state, passing its Democrat-controlled assembly 57 to 16 earlier this month.
Yet the potential law had drawn harsh criticism, including from X-owner Elon Musk, at a time transgender rights have emerged as a hot political issue nationally. “What it actually means is that if you disagree with the other parent about sterilising your child, you lose custody,” Mr Musk said on X earlier this month.
Mr Newsom’s surprise move outraged transgender rights activists but gave the second term governor an opportunity to present himself in a more conservative light should President Joe Biden, 80, ultimately not run for re-election in 2024, an eventuality increasingly canvassed by the party’s supporters.
“I urge caution when the Executive and Legislative branches of state government attempt to dictate – in prescriptive terms that single out one characteristic – legal standards for the Judicial branch to apply,” Mr Newsom said in a statement.
“Moreover, a court, under existing law, is required to consider a child‘s health, safety, and welfare when determining the best interests of a child in these proceedings, including the parent’s affirmation of the child’s gender identity,“ he added.
Despite the governor’s denials of any plans to run, and public support for Mr Biden and Vice President and fellow Californian Kamala Harris, Mr Newsom remains the third most likely individual to become the next president, behind Joe Biden and Donald Trump, according to political betting market PredictIt.
The Equality Act
Here is the latest from the Sex Matters website on the campaign to amend the Equality Act to make it clear that ‘sex’ in the Act refers to biological sex..
What next? (22 September)
We are getting ready to launch the next stage of the campaign in order to keep the pressure on the government to take action, ideally before the next election. It needs to act with urgency.
We got started at an event on freedom of speech at the House of Lords on 20th September.
Mr Menno was there
We are now working on a campaign pack that our supporters can use to start even more conversations, to speak to their MP and to get as many others as possible to speak up to say: “I support single-sex services.” We will also be sharing materials with Women’s Rights Network and other groups that want to be involved (get in touch with info@sex-matters.org).
Will you support us?
Donate today to help get the campaign pack into production.
Donate £10 today to help kickstart production of our campaign pack, and you’ll be one of the first to receive it when it’s finished – we’re hoping to include posters, conversation cards and wristbands.
Donate more and help support Sex Matters:
further develop the technical proposal and legal analysis
brief ministers and officials
work with grass-roots campaigners to demonstrate public support for single-sex services
get stories and comment into the media
inform and engage with experts about the legislative proposal and the human rights involved.
Women’s Angling
Martha McHardy in The Independent (England ladies’ angling team protest over trans teammate 25 September) reports:
© Cornwall Live
Members of the England women‘s angling team have refused to compete in the world championship after the inclusion of a transgender teammate in the squad.
Becky Lee Birtwhistle Hodges, a trans woman, was selected to compete for the team at the championships in Italy, but some members of the squad have claimed that allowing transgender women to compete in the tournament is “unfair”.
The protest comes after the team’s former captain Heather Lindfield quit earlier this year over the issue. Members of the squad also previously pulled out of the Home Nations shore angling championship due to Hodges’ selection.
The sport’s governing body, the Angling Trust, has denied that transgender women have an advantage.
Ms Lindfield told the Mail on Sunday other teams reacted negatively to Ms Hodges’ inclusion in the squad after she won a bronze medal at the 2018 world championships
“All the other countries wouldn’t speak to us. When we went up to collect our medal, nobody clapped and people walked out,” she said.
“Although Becky Lee would be an asset to my team, it’s unfair. If you win, you can’t enjoy the victory because it feels like you’ve cheated. It’s a shame. Other girls would have applied for the world championships if Becky Lee hadn’t been involved.”
Shame on the Angling Trust. Well done, the English women.
Cat Cattinson
I have featured the wonderful Whistle and Cat before - see, for example:
https://dustymasterson.substack.com/p/being-a-woman
Some of you guys may have already done this but I have only just put it together that Cat is a well known American detransitioner. She speaks at 21.35 of LWS San Francisco (Part 2):
Her website is here:
https://www.youtube.com/c/CatCattinson
You’re a hero, Cat 😎
And finally…
Go, Canada! Let kids be kids!
Thanks for all the interesting history on the Countess Dusty.
Amazing scenes in Canada, there’s hope even there.