Tuesday 26 February 2019
1) Gender self-identification has been put on hold
The facts:
An amendment to the Births, Deaths, Marriages and Relationships Registration Bill has been deferred. The amendment would have liberalised the process of declaring gender on birth certificates. The bill would allow for a person to more easily change their gender on a birth certificate through a simple process of self-declaration.
The amendment would also have introduced the option of an "X" gender option, alongside Male and Female. There would also be the option of "parent" on a child's birth certificate, as well as "mother" and "father". NZ first MP and Internal Affairs Minister Tracey Martin has said the bill is currently on hold due to a lack of public consultation over the proposed reforms.
Analysis:
So, why has the liberalisation of gender options and gender identification on birth certificates been put on hold? The reality is that the government has now realised that there is in fact significant opposition to such a move. A cultural war on gender-identity has been bubbling away for the past year in NZ over this question of gender self-identity.
This cultural war is not between the usual suspects of liberals versus conservatives. Instead, this cultural war over gender identity is one predominantly between transgender advocates versus trans exclusionary radical feminists (TERFs)/ gender critical feminists.
Transgender advocates argue that people should be able to easily change their gender legally. The process should come down to self-identification. However, trans exclusionary radical feminists (TERFs)/ gender critical feminists believe that allowing what they see as “biological men” to self-declare as women acts to erase the category of women. Trans exclusionary radical feminists (TERFs)/ gender critical feminists argue that gender-identity reforms amount to a war on women, and an attack on women’s rights.
Expect to see a heating up of this cultural war over the very concept of what it means to be a woman or a man.
2) Muffin Break boss criticises so-called entitled millennials.
The facts:
Muffin Break general manager Natalie Brennan believes that millennials should be prepared to work for free. And she is aghast that young people want to always be paid when working. The Muffin Break boss has said that millennials should be prepared to do unpaid work in the form of internships, and work experience. But according to Brennan, literally no one is walking through her door to ask for an unpaid job.
Analysis:
So, are millennials self-entitled brats? Hardly. What the Muffin Break boss is asking for is for young people to slog their guts out for free, in the process of making profits for her company.
Living costs are at an all-time high in Western countries, and for millennials to survive they must work long hours to pay the bills. Young people just don’t have the option of working for nothing. Even millennials who study full-time generally need at least part-time work to get by. It seems that it is not millennials that are self-entitled, but instead bosses who want to exploit young people.
3) Politics simmered away in the background of this year’s Oscars.
The facts:
Arguments around identity were present at this year’s Oscars, especially with controversial film Green Book winning best picture. The film has been slammed for portraying a “white savour narrative”. Black director Spike Lee was incensed over Green Book winning best film. Lee was recognized by the Oscars with a win for Best Adapted Screenplay for his film BlacKkKlansman.
Analysis:
The Oscars continue being a focus for debates around identity politics, with arguments that the voices of subjugated people continue to be marginalised at the awards. But should art be judged separate from politics? Or should politics be at the heart of art? That is, should artistic endeavours, such as film, be judged and critiqued on the basis of the political message they implicitly or explicitly convey. A question with no clear answer.
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This political roundup by John Moore is an extension on the five-minute breakfast political roundup that John gives on Radio One Dunedin, Monday to Thursday at 9am.
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