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Oh We Have More Emilys

The Emilys are on a roll.

Photo by Manny Becerra / Unsplash

Yvonne van Dongen
Veteran NZ journo incredulous gender ideology escaped the lab. Won’t rest until reality makes a comeback.

Being terminally woke, they have a lot to be worried about right now. And the Emilys who write are doing just that, penning laments about the lurking dangers of our increasingly unwoke times. I know this since I tangled with one Emily last week and read about the views of another yesterday.

Progressive Emilys are alarmed by the voter landslide for Donald Trump in the United States and his executive orders, especially the one dismantling gender ideology. The Emilys care about this because they care about pregnant people. Women not so much.

Closer to home, another Emily lamented the democratically elected coalition government, who apparently represent a risk to abortion rights even when they have expressly denied any intention of meddling in this sphere. The Emily called Emily Writes built an elaborate case against one young white male MP, Simeon Brown, in her substack. A fan posted it on Fb, as an example of excellent writing, which is where I saw it. Upon investigation I discovered this Emily has a large, loyal audience. Can they all be woke? If so, they’re in for a bumpy ride and, god love them, eventually a rude awakening.

Anyway, back to Brown. The spiky haired, fresh-faced chap looks youthful because he is. He’s only 33 but he’s been an active pro-lifer since he was 18, as president of the Auckland University Pro-Life Club and spokesperson with Stop Family Planning. He also organised and led marches with the group Stop Family Planning and, of course, he voted against removing abortion from the Crimes Act in 2020.

Being pro-choice myself, I do not support his actions but unless he and the prime minister are barefaced liars, I also don’t think abortion rights are at risk of being rescinded. Following his appointment as the minister of health in January this year, Brown said there would be no changes to abortion rights or access to services under his leadership. “Every politician has views but what I’m saying is my personal views have been on the public record but we’re not changing the legislation.” This echoes the stance of pro-life Prime Minister Christopher Luxon who has stated the National Party will not pursue changes to current abortion laws.

But I guess when you’re on the left and woke is in retreat, maybe all you’ve got is innuendo and doomy predictions to fight this new reality. As an erstwhile lefty, I recognise this as a familiar tactic, along with guilt by association and ad hominem attacks. Works a treat most of the time, since lefties are keen to be seen as morally superior. In this instance, the spectre of change and/or the removal of funding for Sexual Wellbeing Aotearoa (SWA) were conjured up as distinct possibilites.

SWA was formerly Family Planning. A quick look at their website reveals that SWA is well and truly captured. Apart from the mandatory Manglish (women are never pregnant, they are hapū) and also the proud acknowledgement they are run by and for straight and queer people, in other words, obedient adherents to the church of gender.

We must be vigilant, warned Dame Margaret Sparrow, the 89-year-old sexual and reproductive health trailblazer.

Fair cop. Sex realists know something about the need to be vigilant given the erosion of women’s rights courtesy the men’s rights movement that is gender ideology.

Also Brown is an easy target. Young, ‘arrogant’ (according to Sparrow), white and male. The worst. And now he’s the minister of health. Eek.

But the previous minister of health, Shane Reti, also voted against the Abortion Legislation Act in 2020 and participated in multiple votes concerning specific provisions of the bill. Why didn’t Emily build a case against him? He has not been as active in the pro-life sphere as Brown but Reti is definitely pro-life and held the same position of power. Could it be that her failure to do so is an example of the soft bigotry of low expectations? Because he is Māori, he is not as threatening or effective as the white sleeper agent opposing abortion perhaps? Or could it be that because he is Māori, he is exempt from criticism?

More likely, it’s the case that any self-respecting progressive knows there’s no better antagonist in the lefty firmament than a young white male. Simeon Brown fits the bill perfectly – and of course, he’s arrogant. Goes without saying.

What Emily doesn’t see is that, outside that bubble, the rest of us are heartily sick of that tactic. We see it as the chimera that it is. A phony straw man, an empty insult.

Also we know there are real demons out there. Real villains. Real evil. I don’t know who could be more Satanic than the doctors, politicians, academics and, yes, media Emilys, who advocate for the chemical and surgical mutilation of children in the name of trans.

I started this story stating the Emilys are on a roll. That’s not quite true. Given that they will be on the wrong side of history very soon, I should have said the Emilys are latching onto anything they can find to remain relevant.

Once dismantled, gender ideology will not return. Like Gloriavale, this quasi religious cult will disintegrate now that it has come out from behind the shadows and into the light of critical examination. People see that it is too absurd and cruel and nonsensical to take centre-stage ever again.

I know the Emilys believe in doing right by people and fighting the good fight so I invite them to come and join us. I can’t honestly say that trans activists are worthy adversaries but I swear that fighting to protect women and girls from the clutches of the gender machine is most definitely a worthy cause.

This article was originally published on the author’s Substack.

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