On April 16, the UK Supreme Court ruled that the definition of “woman” under the Equality Act 2010, as a protected characteristic, excludes transgender women. TransgenderJapan strongly protests this decision.
The Equality Act 2010, in Part 2, Chapter 1, defines nine “protected characteristics” that must be safeguarded from discrimination. The third characteristic is “gender reassignment,” addressing transgender discrimination, and the eighth is “sex,” addressing sex-based discrimination. This ruling specifies that transgender women are not included in the definition of “woman” in the context of the eighth characteristic. This decision completely overlooks the existence of gender-based discrimination. For instance, “woman” in the context of “sexism” typically refers to social gender roles (gender) rather than biological sex (sex).
For transgender individuals, this means that while they are protected from discrimination based on being transgender, they are not protected from discrimination that prevents them from living as transgender women, transgender men, or non-binary individuals.
For cisgender individuals, the lack of protection from discrimination based on social gender roles (gender) makes it difficult to live fully as autonomous individuals. We are concerned that this Supreme Court ruling, by separating the third and eighth characteristics—which should be interpreted in conjunction—undermines the overall significance of the Equality Act 2010.
Nevertheless, we wish to clarify that the Equality Act 2010 explicitly includes “gender reassignment” as a protected characteristic, and this ruling does not exclude transgender individuals from protection. Trans-exclusionary groups worldwide, including For Women Scotland (FWS), are misusing this ruling as judicial endorsement for excluding transgender people, which is a misapplication and abuse of the decision.
Wrong rulings will inevitably be overturned in time. Heeding Scottish Trans’ call to “not panic,” let us fight calmly. TransgenderJapan stands in solidarity with all transgender people living in the UK.
