A Week in the War on Women: Monday 8th January - Sunday 14th January GOOD NEWS SUPPLEMENT

What a busy start to the new year. Here are some of good news stories from the gender beat this week. Enjoy!

Justice Is Served

Surely the best news of the week. Social worker, Rachel Meade, who took legal action after being suspended from her job amid allegations of ‘transphobia’, has won her case in a ‘landmark’ victory.

Rachel Meade worked in the health and social care sector for over 20 years. She was investigated and given a one-year warning by Social Work England (SWE), following a complaint about posts that she had shared or ‘liked’ on social media. (These were posts defending women’s rights within the context of proposed GRA reform.)

Following Meade’s sanctioning by SWE, she was suspended from her job by her employer, Westminster Council, who began disciplinary proceedings against her and warned that she could be dismissed. She consequently brought legal action against SWE and Westminster Council, taking her case to an employment tribunal.

This week Rachel Meade won her case; an employment tribunal found that she had suffered harassment by Westminster Council and Social Work England (SWE).

As Joan Smith wrote in Unherd, “The judgment has far-reaching implications for freedom of speech… It’s a stunning vindication for Meade and a warning to other organisations that take accusations of transphobia at face value”. 

Rachel Meade’s solicitor, Shazia Khan, commented, “This is a landmark victory for common sense and free speech in the culture war on gender issues… This judgment sounds an alarm for all regulators — and all employers of regulated professionals — that they must not let their processes be weaponised by activists bent on silencing the debate on freedom of speech on gender”.

Leaving Them Kids Alone

Ohio’s House of Representatives voted this week to override Governor Mike DeWine’s veto of the bill that bans medical interventions for gender-confused minors.

The Ohio House overrode the governor’s veto with a vote of 65-28 on Wednesday. House Bill 68, also known as the Saving Adolescents From Experimentation (SAFE) bill, was previously passed by the State Senate with more than a three-fifths majority. Fingers crossed the senate votes again to pass this law and protect Ohio’s children.

They See Her Rowling

Despite the best efforts of gender zealots to nobble it, the biggest-selling video game of 2023 was JK Rowling’s Harry Potter adventure, Hogwarts Legacy. It sold over 22 million copies.

James Kirkup wrote about the game’s huge success in The Times:

“Several major gaming sites and titles refused to review or write about it. Wired magazine told readers not to buy it. Numerous influencers said they wouldn’t talk about the game. One major discussion forum banned all mention of it. And the game-buying public responded to all this by… buying it by the truckload.”

Geddon A Globe

In similar news, Ricky Gervais, who is so frequently in the cross-hairs of trans activists due to his mockery of gender ideology, has won a Golden Globe.

He won the ceremony's first-ever award for Best Performance in Stand-Up Comedy on Television for his Netflix show, Armageddon.

Reem is the Queen

UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women and Girls, Reem Alsalem, has written to the World Health Organisation (WHO) over its plan to develop ‘a guideline on the health of trans and gender diverse people’.

Reem Alsalem’s brilliant letter challenges the short time frame WHO allowed for comments, the biased ‘guideline development group’ it has assembled and its approach to the self-declaration of ‘gender identity’.

Cherry on the Cake

The redoubtable Joanna Cherry MP has been elected Chair of the UK Parliament Human Rights Committee.

Huge congratulations on this most richly deserved appointment, Joanna.

Glinner of Hope

Don’t miss Our Graham speaking to journalist and author, Adam B Coleman, on his Speaking Wrong at the Right Time podcast.

And writing in Spiked this week: An open letter to Armando Iannucci.

And Finally…