It has been more than 100 years since women got the vote. We’ve had two female prime ministers. The #MeToo movement has been and gone. And yet people are still suspicious of what women say. Has the battle for equality been won? I’m not convinced.
In the last few weeks we have seen: a best-selling author’s books set on fire after she was branded a ‘Terf’; a Ted talks series for females change the word women to ‘womxn’; the Irish health service remove references to ‘women’ on its information page on cervical smears; the Lib Dems devising a definition of ‘transphobia’ that effectively silences women who have the wrong opinions about ‘gender identity’; and a writer told that the word ‘female’ – which she had used in her book reviews – has ‘pejorative connotations’.
Does this happen to men? As far as I can tell, man hasn’t been changed to mxn; ‘people with a penis’ has not been used on posters about prostate cancer; and no one says the word male might be ‘pejorative’.
Britain’s best politics newsletters
You get two free articles each week when you sign up to The Spectator’s emails.
Already a subscriber? Log in
Comments
Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just $5 for 3 monthsAlready a subscriber? Log in