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‘Politicians are using trans women as scapegoats for society’s failures – don’t let them get away with it’

Published 16:32 23 Apr 2025 BST

Updated 12:36 24 Apr 2025 BST

Sarah McKenna Barry

‘Politicians are using trans women as scapegoats for society’s failures – don’t let them get away with it’

Don't be fooled - the recent UK Supreme Court ruling has nothing to do with women's safety.

Last week, the UK Supreme Court ruled that the legal definition of a woman is based on biological sex, a move that was celebrated as some sort of victory for women's safety by vocal opponents to the trans community.

This ruling - which will exclude trans women from single-sex spaces - is not about women's safety. I urge you to look beyond the scapegoating and see this move for what it really is - a flimsy bid to secure power, entirely grounded in moral panic.

According to a 2021 census for England and Wales, trans people account for less than 0.5% of the population. By all accounts, they are a minority, and a vulnerable one at that. For the last 10 years or so, however, a vocal group of online commentators have become entrenched in toxic rhetoric, villainising the trans community to an obsessive level.

With the UK Supreme Court ruling, politicians are pandering to this hate. By pinning the blame on a vulnerable minority, they're distracting the masses from the concrete societal issues that affect us all. Why? Because it's much easier to punish a small group, than it is to take responsibility for the numerous ways society fails women.

Writing transphobia into law won't make the world a better place for women, cis, trans or otherwise. It won't address the gender pay gap. It won't combat toxic masculinity. It won't provide more resources for survivors of sexual violence and domestic abuse. It won't improve women's healthcare.

Crucially, the Supreme Court ruling will do nothing to address the epidemic of violence against women and girls.

The idea that trans women pose any risk to cis women's safety is a dangerous myth. Research from the US' William's Institute has shown that trans people are four times more likely than cisgender people to be victims of violent crime. EU data, meanwhile, has shown that transgender people are more likely to experience violence than cisgender lesbian, gay or bisexual people. And yet, the powers that be are perfectly happy to legitimise this myth through legislation.

Transphobia may be rampant both online, and in the political classes of the US and the UK, and Ireland is not immune. As our trans and non-binary siblings come under attack, it's important that we stand by them and refuse to allow them to become political scapegoats.

Feature image via Unsplash