AIMEE WALSH: Supreme Court trans ruling made me sick – we should be allies to trans girls
The Supreme Court’s ruling in 2025 that being a woman only refers to biological sex was a blight on the feminist movement. Standing against violence against trans and cis women alike should be our uniting force
A protester waves a transgender pride flag as she walks down Regent Streets during a march in support of “trans rights” in central London on May 25, 2025(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Let’s start with this: I am, and always will be, an ally to the trans community.
To my mind, this is not a controversial statement, though I know, from having delved into the comments underneath my columns, that this is an opinion that brings out vitriol on a huge scale.
It’s been one year since the devastating ruling on the Equality Act – where the UK Supreme Court ruled on April 16 2025 passed down a judgement that the term ‘woman’ refers to only biological sex. The UK Supreme Court sided in favour of so-called ‘gender critical’ volunteer organisation For Women Scotland in their appeal against the Scottish Government’s usage of the term ‘woman’.
There were jubilant images of the For Women Scotland women on the steps of the court, celebrating their win. It was sickening to me as a feminist cis-gendered woman to witness this flagrant back-patting.
And for what? This ruling did no good for cis or trans women. It ushered in an incredibly reductive and harmful view on women’s roles with the world. It reduces women to reproductive organs, chromosomes and hormones. And isn’t that terrifying?
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I have one question: have we reached a feminist utopia in the wake of this ruling? If you listen quietly: you may hear my laughter. We are living in a hellscape, far from a feminist dreamland where equality reigns supreme.
Violence against women and girls is so prevalent that in 2024 a statement from the Metropolitan Police read: “Violence against women and girls is endemic, systemic and a threat to society on the same scale as terrorism.” That same year, police chiefs declared VAWG a “national emergency”.
Refuge, the domestic violence charity, reports that 20% of all recorded crime in England and Wales is related to Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG). In 2024, 91.3% of defendants in domestic abuse prosecutions were male.
That threat increases ever more sharply for the trans community, with an increase in hate crimes against the Trans Community in the UK over the last five years. Stonewall UK also reports that two in five trans people (41%) have experienced a hate crime or incident because of their gender identity.
But yet, ‘debates’ – or hate-speech, as it should be called – centres around which door a trans person goes through when they need to use a changing room or go to the loo. Even, if they can compete in competitions if they, the minority, are in a further minority of being an internationally recognised elite sports-person.
The internalised misogyny at play here is astounding. Mental gymnastics are working overtime to blame not the perpetrators of murder and threats against women. Instead, it is ordinary trans women trying to live their lives who are vilified with so-called trans-exclusionary radical feminists.
This is not feminism. Not in my name.
I am a cis-gender woman, and along with Kate Nash, Denise Welch and 100,000 other signatories of the Not in Our Name petition, I stand with the trans community, for their safety, happiness and privacy to live their lives.
NION (Not in Our Name) Women is a collective of women in support of the trans community. A statement released by NION reads: “Within hours of the ruling, a familiar story was being told: that this was a ‘win’ for cis* women. However, as women who believe in the acceptance and inclusion of our trans+ siblings, we did not feel that way.
“What happened next surprised even us. Women who had stayed out of this conversation – because it had become so toxic and polarised that engagement felt impossible – started signing.
“Mothers, teachers, nurses, and friends, ordinary women who had watched the debate from a distance and who had felt increasingly uncomfortable with what was being said and done, but had nowhere to put that discomfort – until our open letter gave them an outlet.”
I am a signatory of this petition because exclusionary feminism is not feminism. Taking rights away from anybody is not, and never will be, equality. The Supreme Court ruling last year was a blight on the feminist movement. A shame on us all.
Where somebody pees or gets changed is not the issue here. Women’s safety is a uniting force. It effects, and kills, cis and trans women alike. Any split in the feminist movement only serves to entrench extreme right misogynistic views, that reduces all people down to the essentialist gender roles.
Where men are the alpha provider, while women are cast as the home- and baby-makers. It could be lifted straight out of Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale.
Allyship is the bare minimum in a society that prioritises equality. TransActual has guidelines on how to be a good ally. These include being kind, inclusive, and informed but most importantly, be vocal. Speak up when you see hatred spouted online or in person. All women have skin in the game for equality; let it unite us.
If you are a woman and you agree with this sentiment and wish to show your support for the trans+ community, please add your signature to the Not In Our Name letter here.
