Wagga’s Ray Goodlass has pushed back at conservative critics of gender diversity. Photo: Oliver Jacques.
Wagga LGBTQ+ advocates have hit back at recent comments by Opposition Leader Angus Taylor and One Nation leader Pauline Hanson pushing to change Australia’s laws on sex and gender, saying the political debate is making people feel unsafe.
Mr Taylor has vowed to change the Sex Discrimination Act to define biological sex, following the Federal Court’s decision in a case involving women-only social media app Giggle, which was found to have unlawfully discriminated against a transgender woman it excluded.
“A man is a man. A woman is a woman. We will not allow the ideologues and activists to deny the truth. Under a Coalition government I lead, we will end this lunacy and change and correct the law to reflect biological reality,” Mr Taylor recently posted on social media.
Senator Hanson has been campaigning for similar changes, including removing gender identity from the act’s protected attributes and defining men and women by biological sex.
“There are only two sexes: male and female. That’s all,” she has said.
But Wagga activist Ray Goodlass, who has advocated for LGBTQ+ rights for more than 50 years, said these comments were “nonsense”.
“There aren’t only two genders, gender is a fluid thing. There are three sexes: male, female and intersex,” he said.
He said he was deeply concerned by the rise of right-wing populists and the manosphere attacking transgender rights.
“It’s really important to come back against the assertions of One Nation,” he said.
“In the 1970s we thought we were going forward, we were going to change the world, and we did.
“But now it feels like things are sliding backwards.
“That’s why need events like Pride in the Paddock to show we are here, we are queer and we are not going anywhere.”
The comments came as Wagga hosted its first Pride in the Paddock last Saturday, bringing the local LGBTQ+ community and allies together for a day of music, performances, food and activities.
Ari Jada, Vickie Burkinshaw and Ray Goodlass promote Wagga’s Pride in the Paddock. Photo: Oliver Jacques.
Some feminists, however, argue the push to recognise biological sex is about protecting gains made by women over decades.
British feminist and author J.K. Rowling has argued that women’s rights include access to single-sex spaces such as toilets, changing rooms, refuges and prisons, as well as female sporting categories.
Mr Goodlass said he understood these concerns but did not believe they were legitimate.
“I would hope those sort of women can take joy in the fact that people who were formally men could join their sisterhood,” he said.
“I don’t think they need to feel threatened by transwomen. Making a fuss about sharing bathrooms is just scaremongering. It’s like saying we haven’t got houses because of immigration.”
For Wagga Women’s Health Centre chief executive Vickie Burkinshaw, the political debate is having consequences beyond parliament.
“The comments by Angus Taylor are appalling, they take us back decades and we should call them out,” she said.
“Just as the Voice Referendum gave people licence to be racist, these comments have created a space for homophobia.
“They take us backwards and they’re trying to appeal to a very small and noisy demographic.”
Ms Burkinshaw said some transgender people now felt uncomfortable simply going about their daily lives.
“It shouldn’t be an act of activism to leave your house,” she said.
“But that’s how some trans people now feel.”
