Since a man who believes he is a woman is indistinguishable from a man who pretends to be one, the appeal to the need of transwomen to enter women’s spaces—bathrooms, lockerrooms, prisons—sacrifices the security of women on the altar of ideology. It is moreover an expression of the misogyny that sees the needs of men (transwomen are, as an objective matter, men) as paramount. The practice comes at the expense of women, ignoring the reality that women are at particular risk of sexual violence.
The rape statistics over the last five years make it clear that, with respect to sexual violence, the perpetrators are overwhelmingly male and the victims overwhelmingly female.
I saw a clip of a comedian yesterday that spoke directly to this issue. She asked a man to imagine his worst nightmare on a first date. His answer was that he worried he might spill food on his clothes. The comedian then asked a woman the same question. The audience knew what was coming. The woman said her worst nightmare was that she might be murdered or raped. This is not to say that most men would murder and rape a woman on their first date. But it does reflect the statistical reality that, while it is highly improbable for a man to experience such an outcome, sexual violence is experienced by many women.
It is worth recalling that prisons, for example, were originally sex-segregated primarily to protect women from sexual exploitation by male inmates and staff. Placing men who believe or pretend to be women in women’s prisons presumes the truth of the lie that humans can change gender. Therefore, beyond the safety concerns, the practice is a component of an ideological project to which the vast majority of the population does not subscribe. Most transwomen are housed in male-only facilities. However, there are at least several dozen who are housed with women. One is too many.
freedom and reason 