by Emily Lyndon, Camden and Haringey Socialist Party
20,000 people gathered in Parliament Square on Saturday afternoon to express their outrage at the Supreme Court’s recent decision. The message from the wide spectrum of society at the protest was: this decision is an attack on everyone’s rights, including other women, and we will not stand by while the trans community continues to be scapegoated by the capitalist elite. “There is a real fear that the UK government is headed in the same direction as the United States in regard to rolling back the rights of all marginalised groups”, one attendee told Socialist Party members.
Photo: Emily Lyndon
Socialist Students members discussed the outcome on campus where the majority of young people have offered their support and solidarity to the trans community. Queen Mary Socialist Students recently won their campaign for the university to provide gender-neutral changing facilities on campus.
At this demonstration it was clear to see the cross section of anger at the Labour government’s commitment to austerity, repeals of the rights of already oppressed groups and the continuation of funding to weapons, war and genocide. Many people bought copies of the Socialist and there was interest in upcoming Socialist Party meetings on trans rights.
The turnout and mood of participants showed the scale of opposition to the attacks on the trans community. If 20,000 people are able to mobilise on such short notice in London alone, imagine the impact of a trade-union backed movement to oppose all attacks under this government and defend trans rights – a movement spanning across the country to support workers of all identities ensuring that they are both represented and protected in workplaces and the wider community.
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