Category: Feminists in Struggle (FIST)

FIST Endorses HR 1015 and SB 1147

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Feminists in Struggle has voted to endorse two bills in the U.S. Congress: HR 1015, the Prison Rape Prevention Act of 2025, and S1147, the Defining Male and Female Act of 2025. Both of these bills, though brought by Republicans, Congresswoman Nancy Mace and Senator Roger Marshall respectively, conform to FIST’s principles of working to preserve separate spaces for women, and ending the conflation of gender ‘identity’ and sex.

Female prisoners are suffering greatly in states run by Democrats, like California, Washington, and Illinois, which have allowed male inmates, many of whom are sex offenders, to self-ID their way into the women’s prisons. These men are raping, impregnating, and brutalizing the women, and it is the women who are the ones being disciplined if they lodge complaints. This outrageous injustice must end.

We ask anyone who cares about the rights of women and who acknowledges the scientific, material reality of sex to urge their representatives to support both HR 1015 and S 1147. We cannot allow the cruel and unusual punishment of women in our jails or the pernicious sex denialism of gender ideology to continue to rob women and girls of their identity as an immutable sex class. Femaleness is not a costume. It is a biological, unchangeable fact.

For more information, see Keep Prisons Single Sex and Kara Dansky’s The Abolition of Sex.

Equal Means Equal v. Donald J. Trump

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Equal Means Equal has been steadfastly pursuing validation of the Equal Rights Amendment, and most recently filed a lawsuit against the Trump Administration. The reason for the lawsuit is in response to a case brought by a man in California who is attempting to use the ERA to force women to register for the draft. He is arguing that the ERA is valid, but does not challenge the level of judicial review, which if it remains at the intermediate level, keeps women in second-class status. The entire purpose of the ERA is to give women strict scrutiny, the gold standard of judicial review, which other ‘suspect’ classes receive. Without this, every case at every level of the judicial system can allow for a great deal of discrimination when rulings are applied to women. We at FIST support EME’s case and have signed on as a signatory to the amicus brief. For more information about the case and the amicus brief, see EME’s post.

SPECIAL FORUM JUNE 28th ON THE UK SUPREME COURT VICTORY UPHOLDING SEX-BASED RIGHTS

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TICKETS ARE  ON SALE NOW for the Saturday June 28th FIST forum entitled WHEN SEX MEANS SEX: THE UK SUPREME COURT DECISION ON SINGLE SEX SPACES. The forum features SALLY WAINWRIGHT, the architect of the lesbian intervention in the For Women Scotland case that resulted in a Supreme Court ruling that women-only spaces and programs are protected under the UK’s Equality Act.  Forum begins at 12:30 p.m. Pacific time/3:30 Eastern. 

GET TICKETS:

Many feminists around the globe have celebrated the victory in the UK Supreme Court in the For Women Scotland case that ruled that sex means sex, and that single sex spaces for lesbians and women as a whole are protected under the UK’s Equality Act.

We are excited about presenting a first hand account of how this struggle unfolded, and an analysis of the UK decision, and beginning a discussion of how this decision impacts women in the UK, and internationally. How can we create similar victories here in the United States?

SPEAKERS:

SALLY WAINWRIGHT was the architect of the lesbian intervention in the For Women Scotland case in the UK Supreme Court, which determined that sex is biological – at least for the purposes of the Equality Act. She is a lesbian activist, co-founder of Lesbian Persistence, and a serial creator of women’s spaces. Sally co-edited Women’s Rights, Gender Wrongs: the global impact of gender-identity ideology, and contributed a chapter to The Women Who Wouldn’t Wheesht, discussing the attempt by transactivists to shut down the Audacious Women Festival which she founded.

ANN MENASCHE is a co-founder and co-coordinator of Feminists in Struggle, and a lesbian feminist and socialist who has worked for decades to create and defend women only and lesbian only spaces, programs and organizations in the U.S.

THIS IS A WOMEN-ONLY EVENT.

AS ALL FIST EVENTS IT IS INTERACTIVE WITH PLENTY OF TIME FOR QUESTIONS AND DISCUSSION.ZOOM LINK WILL BE PROVIDED TO ALL REGISTRANTS BY EMAIL.

 

EXCITING FORUM MAY 10th ON PERSPECTIVES & STRATEGIES FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF THE EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT

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Tickets on sale now for forum on the ERA with well-known feminist leaders and activists. 

PERSPECTIVES & STRATEGIES FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF THE ERA

Feminists in Struggle is honored to have three amazing guest speakers who have been in the forefront of the fight to register the already ratified Equal Rights Amendment into the Constitution. This is a strategic discussion not to be missed!

This will be a remote event on Zoom. A link will be sent to everyone who registers. REGISTER

WENDY MURPHY is an adjunct professor of Sexual Violence and Law Reform at New England Law | Boston where she also co-directs the Women’s and Children’s Advocacy Project (WCAP) under the Center for Law and Social Responsibility. WCAP runs the Judicial Language Project, and the Hate Crimes Against Women project, WCAP also files amicus briefs and engages in public interest litigation to advance the rights of women and children. On January 7, 2020, WCAP filed a first-in-the-nation federal lawsuit to validate the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) in Massachusetts federal court.

Wendy was a Visiting Scholar at Harvard Law School from 2002-03 and served as the Mary Joe Frug Assistant Professor of Law at New England Law | Boston from 2001-2002. She is a former child abuse and sex crimes prosecutor and founded the first organization in the nation to provide pro bono legal services to victims of violence involved in the criminal justice system. Wendy is an impact litigator who practices in state and federal courts and specializes in advancing the constitutional and civil rights of women and children.

Wendy has authored numerous scholarly articles including a landmark piece explaining the legal relationship between sexual assault on campus and Title IX. Wendy filed many impact litigation cases involving Title IX and campus sexual assault resulting in groundbreaking victories and leading to widespread awareness and reforms, including the well-known April 2011, Dear Colleague Letter. Her most recent law review article is a feminist critical reexamination of the history of women’s struggle for equality and is entitled, “Unequal Protection of the Laws for Women is Constitutional Terrorism, So How Come Nobody Knows about It?”

She has also appeared on television as a legal analyst for many years and has worked for NBC, CBS, CNN, and Fox News and has provided legal analysis for print and television media. She is the author of two books, “And Justice For Some,” published by Penguin/Sentinel in 2007 and “Oh No He Didn’t, Brilliant Women and the Men Who Took Credit for Their Work,” published by Cynren Press in 2024..

KAMALA LOPEZ, is a founder and President of Equal Means Equal, filmaker, activist & President of Heroica Films,.Kamala Lopez, launched the movement and documentary film Equal Means Equal, to educate Americans about the importance of equal rights under federal law for women and complete the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

JEAN SWEENEY graduated from the College of the Holy Cross as part of the third class of women and is a New York attorney who spent 15 years on Wall Street as counsel to the money managers. In 2001 she joined the litigation practice of Maloof and Browne LLC as a managing attorney. For the last 12 years she has had the privilege of following her passion of getting women to be honored and respected as equal citizens. She was one of the activists working to get the last 3 States to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment and has worked for the last 5 years on getting our Constitution published with the ERA by leading the National ERA Publication Task Force. She is also an award- winning photographer, Kripalu-trained yoga teacher, writer, speaker, and founder of Rethinking Eve LLC, a business focused on uplifting women.

This is a woman-only event and is interactive, with plenty of time for questions and discussion from participants.

 

FEMINISTS IN STRUGGLE MEMBERS VOTE TO ENDORSE CALIFORNIA LEGISLATION ADVANCING WOMEN’S AND CHILDREN’S RIGHTS

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By a 78% vote of its membership, Feminists in Struggle voted to endorse three important pieces of proposed California legislation that would curb the extremist policies of sex denying gender identity ideologues that have dominated California’s state government.  The bills, if approved, would go a long way to securing the rights of women and girls and those of children of both sexes that have been compromised as a result of this reactionary, misogynistic and homophobic ideology.

The proposed legislation is the following:

Yaeli’s Bill: This bill  would end the despicable practice under current law of removing custody from non-abusive parents, even forcing a child into foster care, merely because a parent refuses to agree to “transition” their child.  “Transition” of minors, often involving removal of healthy body parts, and high risk of sterilization, and other permanent harms to a child’s developing body, is an unproven practice that is increasingly being rejected by the UK and Scandinavian countries that have conducted comprehensive reviews.  See the Cass Review, available for download here. [ARCHIVED CONTENT] Final Report – Cass Review  If this bill is approved, it would no longer be deemed  child abuse to refuse to socially or medically transition your child, and the refusal to transition your child will no longer be considered in custody disputes.

RN 25 03490 This bill allows parents to Opt-Out of all instructions related to transgender.  This ideology is heavily promoted in schools, teaching children tthe unscientific view that sex doesn’t exist or is a spectrum, and that some children are born in the “wrong” body and need medicalization to be themselves. The group most vulnerable to this message are children who don’t conform to sex stereotypes, most of whom are likely, if left alone, to grow up to be lesbian or gay.  Also vulnerable are autistic children who have problems fitting in and children, especially girls, who have experienced sexual abuse or other forms of male violence.

Repeal of Education Code 221.5: The proposed legislation would repeal the California law that permits students to decide changing facilities/sports teams based upon Gender Identity (all grades and college) rather than sex.  Female only sports teams are needed for fair competition and to provide equal opportunity for women and girls to develop themselves and receive equal recognition and scholarships for their athletic achievements.   Separate changing rooms for women and girls based on sex are necessary to respect their privacy and safety needs in a world where male voyeurism, exhibitionism, sexual harassment and rape are pervasive problems.  There is no evidence that males who transition are less prone to anti-woman violence than any other male.

FIST fights for a world free of male violence where women’s rights to equality, dignity, reproductive choice, and equal opportunity are respected; children’s health is protected from experimental treatments; there is no longer a stigma against same sex love; and everyone is free to dress and express themselves as they like without the sexist strait-jacket of “masculine” and “feminine” sex roles and stereotypes imposed on people based on their sex.  In other words, women’s liberation.

As we work toward such a world, we urge all our supporters to get behind these bills.

 

JOIN US FOR FORUM SAT. SEPT. 14th ON CASS REVIEW: EXPOSING LIES BEHIND CHILD TRANSITION

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Feminists in Struggle presents a forum on the independent Cass Review that is blowing holes in the rationalization for the medical transitioning of gender non- conforming children and youth.

This event will take place  on Zoom on SATURDAY, SEPT. 14th at 11:00 a.m. Pacific time, 2:00 p.m. Eastern.

Tickets on sale now on Eventbrite:  https://www.eventbrite.com/e/cass-review-exposing-the-lies-behind-child-transition-tickets-1001755045307?aff=oddtdtcreator

Dr. Cass conducted an independent systematic review of existing evidence on behalf of the NHS in the U.K. She documented the poor quality of the published studies, and the weak evidence supporting use of puberty suppression and cross sex hormones along with their unknown long-term effects.

Join us for the discussion of Dr. Cass’s findings and recommendations and how to get the word out to stop this harmful sterilizing experiment on children who are different, including future generations of gays and lesbians.

SPEAKERS:

Aaron Kimberly is a Canadian woman born with a rare ovotesticular intersex condition who took testosterone as an adult and lived almost 20 years as a transman. She is a mental health nurse who first blew the whistle on pediatric gender medicine in 2019. In 2001 she cofounded the Gender Dysphoria Alliance to educate about different types of gender dysphoria. In 2023 she cofounded the LGBT Courage coalition with the Missouri whistleblower Jamie Reed, to support other whistleblowers and to protect gender nonconforming children, most of whom are gay/lesbian, from medical harm.

Ann Menasche is a lesbian, radical feminist and socialist, and a life-long activist who is a co-founder and co-coordinator of Feminists in Struggle (FIST). FIST is committed to spreading the word about the Cass Review and challenging the myths used to promote so-called “gender affirming care.” This issue is also personal for Ann. As a girl who aspired to the freedom and privileges of men, she would have likely succumbed to an ideology that said her body was “wrong” and in need of medicalization, were she growing up today.

This forum is a women-only event. It will be video-taped. Men who wish to view it can watch it later for free on FIST’s YouTube channel. Our Forums are interactive events with plenty of time for questions or comments from the audience. Women should check in 10 minutes before the event. Participants are free to close their camera or change their name after they have checked in.

The Zoom link will be sent by email to registrants prior to the event.

FIRST NATIONAL FIST CONFERENCE BOOST TO GRASS ROOTS FEMINIST ORGANIZING

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Thirty-five women representing  a range of ages and backgrounds,  participated in the first national conference of Feminists In Struggle July 5th through 7th.  The beautiful relaxed indoor/outdoor setting with gardens and walkways, and a comfortable breezy conference space, allowed for women to get to know each other face-to-face and to actively participate in growing a multi-issue radical feminist democratically run membership organization.

Aptly named, “Our Radical Roots”, A women’s Liberation Organizing Conference,” both plenaries and workshops provided for plenty of time for  everyone to share questions, thoughts and ideas with the group.  We heard from Ann Menasche, Thistle Pettersen, Christy Hammer, and Denice Traina, women who have been targeted for witch-hunting for their refusal to deny the material reality and importance of sex.  We heard Feminist historian Max Dashu, and Kathie Sarachild, one of the founders of Second Wave feminism, speak  about the radical Leftist roots of the Second Wave; listened to ERA lawyer Wendy Murphy explain the importance of the ERA that would place strong sex based rights in the Constitution and advance the status of women across the board; and held an interactive discussion with Merle Hoffman, founder of the earliest abortion clinics and author of a new book, Choices: A Port-Roe Abortion Rights Manifesto” where she argued that we must learn to love the struggle even in the face of setbacks.   Hilla Kerner from Vancouver Rape Relief shared her perspective on defending women’s spaces and working collectively to build the movement.

Workshops included strategizing on working in mainstream feminist groups such as NOW where many are not yet gender critical, and a discussion led by Arianne of LGB Alliance and Carol, a de-transitioner, on the homophobia of gender affirming care.

A membership meeting was convened Saturday afternoon in which FIST members discussed and voted to approve an action  plan to grow FIST through developing local chapters, planning actions that can gain national media attention, improving our internal functioning, and expanding our coalition work with other feminists.  Areas of focus for the future work of FIST that members approved include participating in the Final Impact Campaign to demand that the Biden Administration instruct the archivist to publish the duly ratified E.R.A. into the U.S. Constitution, promoting the Cass Review in opposition to so-called “gender affirming care” for minors; and defense of women’s spaces including women in prison.

Saturday night we were treated to the feminist folk music of Thistle Pettersen and hilarious stand-up comedy of Francesca de la Pense.  One memorable line from her routine on those who don’t seem to know what a woman is because they are not “biologists”, was: “I don’t know what a brain is, I’m not a neurologist!”

Kathie Sarachild coined the slogan “Sisterhood is Powerful” many decades ago.  Those of us who were fortunate enough to attend FIST’s conference knew what she meant.

 

 

 

 

SISTERHOOD IS POWERFUL!

Check the Feminists In Struggle You-tube channel for videos of portions of the Conference that should be posted soon.

FIST issues statement supporting Missouri Senate bill 843 banning child transition

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On March 25, 2023, FIST sent a statement to the Missouri legislature supporting a bill that would ban medicalized transition for children under 18.  The letter declared in part, “Child transition involving puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgeries that remove or modify healthy body parts are extremely sexist and homophobic practices.  They disproportionately harm a growing number of girls, most of whom are same sex attracted, i.e., are likely to become lesbians, and girls that don’t fit in with sex stereotypes of traditional “femininity” imposed on them by a sexist society.

Medical transition is experimental, cosmetic, and doesn’t cure anything.  Instead, it results in sterilization, prevents proper development of brains and bones, and causes other permanent physical disabilities and shortened life spans.  No child is born in the wrong body! As feminists solidly on the Left, we call for saving the tomboys and future lesbians and feminists as well as all children struggling with being different from these permanent medical harms.”

The bill passed the Missouri Senate and is now pending in the House. If it passes, it will join a number of other states that have passed similar laws. According to ABC News, “At least 11 states — Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, South Dakota, Tennessee and Utah — have passed laws or policies that restrict gender-affirming care for people under the age of legal majority, which is the threshold for legal adulthood.”

FIST is highly appreciative of the work of Scott/Kellie Newgent who has been traveling all over the country working on bills to protect children and who encouraged our participation in this campaign.  Please support her work at trevoices.org.

SAN DIEGO FIST MEMBERS PARTICIPATE IN INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY EVENT IN SAN DIEGO

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Dozens of women and their male supporters including FIST members helped organize a candlelight vigil and rally on March 8th 2023 for International Women’s Day in downtown San Diego. The demonstration highlighted women’s demands for restoration of women’s right to abortion nationally, the registration of the ERA into the Constitution that has already been ratified by 38 states and is being held up by the Biden administration, and an end to male violence against women and girls.

Ann Menasche. a co-coordinator of FIST, spoke at the rally urging that women should utilize their own voices and mobilize in the streets, rather than rely on politicians or judges.  Menasche said, “We have the power to change the world, sisters, and there is no better time than now”, and led the crowd in a chant made popular by Iranian feminists, “Woman, life, freedom.”

Andrea Gabay a grassroots feminist activist and organizer for Femme Fight Club, also spoke and was interviewed by a local TV station.

The coalition of local feminist groups plan to organize other protests in defense of women’s rights in San Diego.

FIST Speaks at Abortion Rights March in San Diego

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On January 22, 2023, the 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, Ann Menasche, member of the Coordinating Committee of FIST, spoke at a San Diego rally for abortion rights.  Ann framed the abortion issue as one of women’s rights, called for the restoration of abortion rights in all 50 states and that women rely on ourselves and not the politicians to win back our rights.   She was well received by the crowd. The spirited demonstration of a few hundred was organized quickly by grassroots feminist activists when the Women’s March failed to organize anything locally. FIST also distributed 60 half page flyers with our statement on abortion rights on one side and our thirteen principles on the other.  The rally was followed by a march through downtown San Diego.   San Diego FIST members and supporters look forward to future local feminist work.