The real reason why radical feminists are wary of trans women

In the cold war of contemporary identity politics, it might seem strange that the only flash of heat has come in the battle over the rights of transgender women. Clashes between trans activists and radical feminists have been violent – metaphorically and literally. At Speakers’ Corner in Hyde Park last fall, in an unprovoked attack, a trans activist jumped and beat a feminist – I know, because I was present and recorded the footage of the attack that went viral. More recently, in Channel 4’s Genderquake: The Debate aggressive feminist hecklers threw vicious insults at the trans women speakers in the panel.

The animosity and emotional investment in the debate are on a level so high that it effectively prevents any real discussion, and rather increases animosity between two groups who will inevitably at some point have to accept each other and be reconciled. The derailing of the discussion through emotional over-investment is recognised as problematic often enough, at least by the more sober participants, but a real confrontation of it is lacking.