A fictional ‘transgender toddler’ who ignores his parents’ wishes is a hero of Stonewall’s new children’s reading list. The Telegraph has the story.
The charity has drawn up an LGBT+ book catalogue for two to four-year-olds, one section of which contains five works on trans inclusion.
One, titled “10,000 Dresses” by Marcus Ewert, an American writer, is about parents who insist their child Bailey is a boy, despite the youngster’s insistence on being a girl.
Safeguarding campaigners said last night it was “disgusting” that the U.K.’s biggest LGBT+ charity could be urging children to go “behind parents’ backs”.
Despite dreaming of dresses every night, Bailey’s mother says in the morning: “Bailey, what are you talking about? You’re a boy. Boys don’t wear dresses!”
When Bailey insists “I don’t feel like a boy”, the mother says, “well you are one, Bailey, and that’s that” – though the author uses she/her pronouns for Bailey throughout.
Following another dream about wearing different dresses, Bailey runs away from home and meets an older girl, a stranger named Laurel at another house, where they make two dresses and try them on as friends.
The plot ends when “Bailey’s dreams come true”, with visions of 10,000 dresses which “show us ourselves”, living as a girl instead of a boy.
Meanwhile, transgender rights activists have forced the cancellation of a screening of a gender-critical film on a university campus after they stormed a lecture theatre to prevent the event going ahead. From the Telegraph:
A showing of Adult Human Female, a documentary which challenges transgender ideology and examines opposition to it in the U.K., had been organised by the University of Edinburgh’s Academics for Academic Freedom group.
The university had defied calls to cancel the event from the University College Union and the student Pride Society, which had condemned the film as “transphobic” and claimed showing it “endangers trans people on campus and beyond”.
The 439-year-old institution, known as one of the homes of the Scottish Enlightenment, insisted it was committed to allowing discussion of “controversial topics” and freedom of speech.
However, around 10 activists “occupied” a lecture theatre at George Square, preventing the screening from taking place there.
When organisers attempted to move the event to an alternative venue on campus, other opponents to the screening entered another building.
Eventually the screening was cancelled, amid angry exchanges between the activists and people who had tickets for the event.
Marion Calder, a director with the For Women Scotland campaign group, called for the university to take disciplinary action against any students who had been involved in closing down the showing.
“This was not free speech – it was a bunch of spoiled children who were upset that they hadn’t got their way,” Ms. Calder, who was at the event, said.
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