This is edition 2025/186 of the Ten@10 newsletter.
Hi all,
This is the Ten@10, where I collate and summarise ten news items you generally won't see in the mainstream media.
Enjoy!
1. Wellington Pride taken to Human Rights Tribunal
Ani O'Brien
- 🏳️🌈 Silence in the Media: LAVA, a lesbian group, sues Wellington Pride after being excluded for holding views on sex and gender that Pride deemed unsafe for trans attendees, but the mainstream media has largely ignored the case.
- ⚖️ Legal Battle Over Free Speech: LAVA argues their exclusion is a violation of free speech, political belief, and discrimination laws, while Pride defends their actions as necessary to protect trans individuals.
- 🏳️🦰 Lesbians vs. Trans Ideology: The case centers on whether “inclusion” in Pride events means including only those who adhere to certain beliefs about gender, raising questions about the limits of free expression in the LGBTQ+ community.
- 🔬 Controversial Testimonies: In the tribunal, expert witnesses have faced tough questions, including one about whether trans women should share spaces like hospital changing rooms with cisgender women.
- 📰 Media Bias: Independent outlets have reported on the case’s contradictions, but the mainstream media has remained silent, reflecting a wider ideological divide in how the media covers the trans debate.
- 🔥 Identity Politics Clash: This battle within the “rainbow community” shows how identity politics can lead to internal divisions, with lesbians being excluded for not aligning with gender-identity politics.
- ⚖️ Implications for Law and Rights: The tribunal’s decision could redefine how “gender identity” is protected in New Zealand law and whether gender-critical beliefs can be seen as protected political opinions.
- 🏛️ Future of Inclusion: The outcome will have broad implications, possibly allowing ideological exclusion in the name of inclusion or protecting the right to disagree with prevailing gender ideologies.
