Move Over, TERFs: Men Can Suffer Endometriosis Too!

Women of Portsmouth, I bring you good news. You will no longer have to endure the humiliation of having a real woman educate you about endometriosis. A transgender woman has been named CEO of  Endometriosis South Coast (ESC), a health charity that treats the condition.

Steph Richards, the transgender septuagenarian and trans-rights activist who has accepted the post, says that about "10 per cent of women and trans men suffer from [endometriosis], with some suffering from debilitating pain regularly.” 'She' is correct — it is painful. It can result in heavy periods, excruciating pelvic pain, and infertility, making it very difficult for women to become pregnant. But I only know this because my girlfriend is afflicted with the condition. There are times when she is unable to walk. She has a uterus, a womb, and ovaries; something I, and presumably ‘Ms’ Richards, too, do not have.

Richards’ appointment really shouldn’t come as a surprise. Healthcare is yet another example of institutional capture. According to research by the Policy Exchange think tank, ninety per cent of NHS trusts have signed up for the ‘Rainbow Badge’ initiative. Enrolling in the programme makes you an  "LGBTQ+ ally": The Royal Free Hospital in north London has a banner outside its entrance that suggests staff wearing  LGBTQ+ badges are "safe" places for LGBTQ+ patients to talk about anything medical, according to the study's example. Richards has a colourful history in the field. After the Equality and Human Rights Commission issued a warning regarding changes to conversion therapy, Steph launched a website campaign to have the organisation stripped of its accreditation. ‘She’ has repeatedly clashed with women’s rights advocates, some of whom she has described as “terfs”, and has attacked women for so-called ‘transmisogyny’.

In a quote on their website, ESC notes that it has "not been possible to agree upon a categorical definition of sex.” Allow me to clarify. A woman is an adult human female with XX chromosomes, and a man is an adult human male with XY chromosomes. Women's ovaries produce eggs, while men's testes produce sperm. Regardless of whether he has been bestowed with the hallowed ‘neo-vagina’, Richards does not have the required organs to even enable endometriosis, let alone suffer from it.

No doubt, he is correct that trans-identifying males can suffer from endometriosis. But that is because they are, in all but label, women — they have retained their biological makeup despite changing their ‘gender’. I am undoubtedly transphobic for making this distinction, but I just don't give a damn. Millions now submit to the absurd post-truth ideology of malleable sex, and it can have detrimental effects on health. What about the trans-identifying males Steph mentions? Mightn't they be at risk of missing screenings for ovarian cancer if they are listed in legal medical records as men? What about female-identifying males; are they not at risk of being disbarred from testicular and prostate cancer screenings after being listed as women?

Identitarians and progressives love to talk about representation and inclusion. They say that being served by someone of the same ethnic background is unacceptable and should be corrected. Yet, a man who identifies as a woman educating biological women about a crippling condition he has never experienced; is that progress? I say it’s hypocrisy. Yes, choice is important. Male doctors may treat female patients. But many men will find it more comfortable to discuss their hair loss and erectile dysfunction with a male consultant, and women, under the same brush, may be reluctant to tell a man anything about their private parts, even if that man insists he is a woman. Empathy is important, but it can only go so far. 

Let's face it, there are far more important things for health organisations to do than pander to the minuscule percentage of people who identify as transgender. Women coming to terms with a potentially agonising diagnosis of endometriosis are aware their condition is sex-specific, and so the appointment of a man to the leading position of a charity dealing with women’s issues will come as a bit of a slap in the face. I am a liberal; by all means, let a thousand flowers bloom if you choose to identify as transgender. But for folks like Steph, I will not accept their identity as a passport to the world of women. 

According to the article in the Telegraph, this appointment will not be a one-off. We live in a clown world.