LGB Alliance: Myths and Truths
Part 1: What the LGB Alliance say about themselves
On the LGB Alliance website there is a page entitled “Myths & Truths”. On it they seek to put truth to various myths about their organisation and trans rights.
The first claim on this page is that they “follow the International Fact Checking Network’s code of principles. Sounds laudable, but do they? What are the principles they claim to follow? https://www.ifcncodeofprinciples.poynter.org/know-more/the-commitments-of-the-code-of-principles
- A commitment to Non-partisanship and Fairness.
- A commitment to Standards and Transparency of Sources.
- A commitment to Transparency of Funding & Organisation.
- A commitment to Standard and Transparency of Methodology.
- A commitment to an Open & Honest Corrections Policy.
So with these in mind, lets look at LGB Alliance’s “truths” to counter the myths. This first part will examine LGB Alliance’s attempt to “fact check” claims people make about the organisation; as a response this is limited to facts, on occasions
LGB Alliance is a hate group
The LGB Alliance say (after some flowery language) “But we don’t hate people. We don’t practice or advocate hatred, hostility [or] violence towards anyone or any group. If we disagree with someone, it does not mean we hate them or wish to harm them”. But this completely misses what a hate group is.
The Southern Poverty Liberty Center, a respected US NGO civil rights group, defines a hate group as a group which “an organization or collection of individuals that — based on its official statements or principles, the statements of its leaders, or its activities — has beliefs or practices that attack or malign an entire class of people, typically for their immutable characteristics.” (https://www.splcenter.org/20200318/frequently-asked-questions-about-hate-groups#hate%20group)
Given that the LGB Alliance have repeated made comments which many people consider “attack or malign” transgender people, it is reasonable to consider LGB Alliance as such.
LGB Alliance is transphobic and is seeking to erase trans people.
The LGB Alliance say “We fully support trans people in their struggle, for dignity, respect and a life free from bigotry and fear.” Fine words, but words are easy. Do they really?
The LGB Alliance is a signatory to the “Declaration on Women’s Sex Based Rights” created by the founders of Women’s Human Rights Campaign. Sounds a worth organisation and a worth document, yes? Well not really. The organisation and the people behind this document are three people all who have a record for campaigning against transgender rights and inclusion: Maureen O’Hara, Sheila Jeffreys and Heather Brunksell Evans. The declaration was described, by various feminist and women’s rights groups, as a transphobic manifesto when it was proposed to launch it at the Scottish Parliament.
The declaration itself is subtle in ito language but calls for the elimination of recognition of trans women being included in laws to protect women, and calls for the removal of medical interventions for trans youths — something that LGB Alliance themselves call for. The Women’s Human Rights Campaign were more explicit in their submission to the current Women & Equalities Committee inquiry into reforms of the Gender Recognition Act. https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/01/27/womens-human-rights-campaign-gender-recognition-act-inquiry-trans-transphobia/
Now you may say that this organisation being transphobic doesn’t mean that LGB Alliance align with all their views, however LGB Alliance explicitly state that “ we will not forge links with, or accept funding from, any organisation that does not share our values” which suggests that if they align themselves with an organisation they DO share their views.
LGB Alliance want to exclude the T from LGBT+
The LGB Alliance say “LGB Alliance is not the only organisation that campaigns or provides services/support for a specific sub-set of the wider LGBT+ community” but this misses the whole point of the “myth” they are trying to counter. No one says an organisation can’t campaign for, or provide services/support to, a specific sub-set; the difference with the LGB Alliance is that they do that by campaigning against trans people.
They state “Our focus is on the needs and interests of lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals.” No problem there, but what have they actually done for lesbians, gay men and bisexuals?
In an attempt to support their position, they link to Consortium ( https://www.consortium.lgbt/member-directory). This is a group who “support LGBT+ Groups and Organisations for Stronger LGBT+ Communities”.
It is true, as LGB Alliance say, the groups they support are diverse in their focus, but none explicitly exclude trans people and many of them explicitly campaign for the inclusion of trans people. Several have explicitly stood against the LGB Alliance.
Their appeal to authority here falls down when put under a little scrutiny, but this is because they are misrepresenting what the “myth” about their organisation is. No one has suggested that every LGBT+ organisation must explicitly campaign on trans rights; what the LGB Alliance are accused of, and what they don’t address, is that their campaigning is not pro-LGB rights, but anti-trans rights.
They argued against a straw man — an preposition not actually levelled at them — in order to deflect from what they are actually being accused of.
LGB Alliance is funded by the Christian far right
The LGB Alliance say they “ are funded by individual donations”.
While this may be true, at this point there is no evidence to support this. They (correctly) state that “In [their] current status, we have only existed for just over a year”. However there is nothing stopping them publishing interim accounts, especially for the period prior to their incorporation as a company. Their fundraising has all happened via anonymous crowdfunding and there has been evidence (albeit implicit) that other campaigns may have received funding this way which has foreign source.
They also state that they “are currently in the process of applying for registered charity status” but as they appear to have been “applying” since March 2020 its questionable if this is true or wishful thinking on their part.
LGB Alliance isn’t even run by LGB people
Who runs LGB Alliance is a matter of public record. The LGB Alliance company has 4 officers: Malcolm Clark, Katharine Harrison, Beverley Jackson and Ann Sinnott. 3 of those have stated they are either gay or lesbian; but Ann Sinnott is, afaik and as far as she has expressed, a straight woman.
Their page refers readers to the “About Us” page ( https://history.lgballiance.org.uk/about) where, they say, they show their “organisational structure [and] details of our Steering Group”. Neither of these details appear on the linked page. Indeed no names of organisers or contributors to the LGB Alliance are mentioned on their website.
Further, the claim is typically that “LGB Alliance isn’t run by LGB people” the claim is that a large portion, perhaps even the majority, of LGB Alliance’s supporters are not LGB people. The whole “myth” they are attempting to provide the “truth” to is another straw man.
So in summary, while claiming to be exposing the truth and fact checking, they break the principles they claim to be working under.
Far from being non-partisan in their fact checking they seek not to expose the truth of the “myths” and instead push a one sided view. This is even more evident as we move through the myths they seek to correct about not their organisation but wider society.
As witnessed by their linking to Consortium in an attempt to defending themselves from claims they “want to exclude the T from LGBT+” it is evident they don’t hold themselves to the Standards and Transparency of Sources to wit they included a source which doesn’t support the basis of the “myth” they are attempting to fact check.
Two of the “myths” they attempt to tackle, that of funding and who runs the LGB Alliance, shows that they fail to follow the principle of transparency of funding and organisation.
Arguably their choice of what to “fact check” shows a disregard of transparency of methodology. Their purpose in fact checking (especially we will see in Part 2) is not to better inform the public, but actually to push their ideology.
None of this last section would matter of course, except LGB Alliance set themselves up as fact checkers.
Please note: this should not be considered as an independent fact checking article. By its nature it is absolutely partisan: though I believe my points are accurate I have not attempted to consider “the other side”.
Originally published at http://eloisefreya.wordpress.com on February 4, 2021.
