Previous Meetings
03 December 2024, Scottish Parliament
27 November 2024, House of Lords, London
A briefing for peers and MPs following our appeal hearing in the UK Supreme Court on the definition of “sex” in the Equality Act.
01 November 2024, German Consulate, Edinburgh
Women gathered at the German Consulate in Edinburgh today to protest, alongside many others in cities across the world, the introduction of the German Self-Determination Act. From today, the law abolishes “sex” and replaces it with “gender identity” and any man can declare himself a woman, with no restrictions.
19-20 October 2024, Battle of Ideas Festival
Including hosting The Women Who Wouldn’t Wheesht event with fellow contributors to the book Joanna Cherry and Gillian Philip.
23 August 2024, In Conversation with the Women Who Wouldn’t Wheesht, Edinburgh
Marion Calder and Tess White MSP hosted a conversation with Susan Dalgety and Lucy Hunter Blackburn who described the book’s development and its importance in chronicling an important episode in Scotland’s recent political history, followed by a Q and A session.
13 April 2024, Silencing Scottish Women. Hurt, hatred, facts and feelings. The Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021
23 March 2024, Alloa Women’s Festival
01-02 March 2024, Scottish Conservatives Conference, Aberdeen
We had a stand at the conference and a fringe event on the future of women’s rights and the upcoming bill to ban conversion practices.
24 February 2024, Forth Valley Feminists Gaithering, Falkirk
28-29 October 2023, Battle of Ideas Festival, London
FWS had a stall at the event and Marion Calder spoke on the panel “Scotland’s ‘Progressive Agenda’: A Warning?”.
13-15 October 2023, FiLiA, Glasgow
Susan Smith spoke on the panel “The Importance of Listening to Evidence and Women’s Voices” alongside Alison Weir for FWS Sport, Margaret McCartney, Johann Lamont, Mariam Ahmed from Amina and Lucy Hunter Blackburn from MurrayBlackburnMackenzie.
Search the #FiLiA2023 for many more posts and photos.
28-29 April 2023, Scottish Conservatives Conference, Glasgow
We had a stand at the conference with Keep Prisons Single Sex and spoke at a panel discussion hosted by Pam Gosal MSP and Russell Findlay MSP.
25 February 2023, Alba Women’s Conference, Edinburgh
09 February 2023, No Males in Female Jails Demonstration, Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh
See our page here for videos of the speeches, links to media coverage, and photographs.
04 February 2023, Forth Valley Feminists Women’s Festival
21 December 2022, Say No To Self-ID Demonstration, Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh
See our page here for videos of the speeches, links to media coverage, and photographs.
05 November 2022, Battle of Ideas Festival, Buxton
06 October 2022, Scottish Women’s Rally, Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh
See our page here for the text of some of the speeches, links to media coverage, and photographs.
24 September 2022, German Consulate, Edinburgh
Members of FWS and Scottish Feminist Network protested outside the German Consulate in Edinburgh. Sending solidarity to our sisters in Berlin attending #ForOurSistersDemo.
01 April 2022, The Claimants, London
Marion Calder attended “The Claimants” on behalf of FWS to talk about our judicial review win against the Scottish Government. Others talking about their legal cases on sex-based rights include Maya Forstater, Raquel Rosario Sanchez, Nicola Williams and James Esses – further info on the cases is here.
18-19 March 2022, Scottish Conservatives Conference, Aberdeen
We had a stand at the conference and spoke at a panel discussion hosted by Murdo Fraser MSP, alongside Lucy Hunter Blackburn (MurrayBlackburnMackenzie), Malcolm Clark (LGB Alliance) and Sinead Watson (@ImWatson91).
Lucy’s speech was mentioned in the Scottish Express article “Nicola Sturgeon’s controversial gender self ID law blasted as example of ‘bad lawmaking'”.
Sinead’s speech was mentioned in the Times article “Lawsuits will blame NHS, warns woman who detransitioned”
08 March 2022, Witches’ Well, Edinburgh
On International Women’s Day, Scottish women lit candles to remember those who fell victim to the witchcraze which swept Scotland. We find it ironic that the First Minister today apologised to those who are safely dead, but said nothing about the ongoing campaigns against women, including women in her own party, who defend women and women’s rights today.
Somewhere in the region of 84% of the accused were women, victims of a patriarchal society in which women often had to turn on their sisters to survive. We must never forget that madness and violence are not yet behind us. Nor are superstition, cruelty and hate. As we remember the women who died here in Scotland, we also think of those who continue to face persecution at home and abroad. We urge women in parliament to stand up for the most vulnerable today and to commit to ensuring that women are never again made scapegoats to serve the imposition of ideology.
The Critic published Elaine Miller’s reflection on witches: “Women won’t wheesht”
Gatherings were also held at the Witches Well, Paisley and at the Gallus Quines street art to the witches in Aberdeen.
05 March 2022, Women’s Festival, Alloa
See Forth Valley Feminist’s Youtube channel for videos of other speakers including Caroline McAllister, Elaine Miller, Alison Weir and Eva Comrie.
06 December 2021, Bowmar Community Centre, Alloa: The Implications of Self-ID in Scotland’s Schools and Prisons
02 September 2021, Women’s Rights Demonstration, Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh
See our page here for the text of some of the speeches, links to media coverage, and photographs.
20 July 2021, Demonstration, Glasgow Green
02 August 2020, Speakers’ Corner, The Mound, Edinburgh
07 March 2020, Demonstration, Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh
Speeches:
Shereen Benjamin: pdf
Nicole Jones: pdf
Lucy Hunter Blackburn: pdf
Photographs: Our thanks and all credit to Jamie Hunter for the photographs:
29 February 2020, Central Library, Edinburgh, 1pm – 3pm.
28 February 2020, New venue announced on the day: Mercure Hotel (Glasgow Women’s Library cancelled our booking), 3pm – 5pm.
Two women-only meetings to discuss the impact of the proposed reform of the Gender Recognition Act on women, and to provide support in responding to the government’s consultation:
16 January 2020, Radisson Blu Hotel, The Royal Mile, Edinburgh
A transcript of Nicola William’s speech is available here.
05 June 2019, University of Edinburgh, Moray House School of Education:
Women’s Sex-Based Rights: What does (and should) the future hold?
A brilliant panel of feminist scholars and activists addressed a packed meeting at the University of Edinburgh. The audience, which included activists, policy-makers, students, academics, MSPs, were privileged to hear from:
- Julie Bindel
- Professor Rosa Freedman
- Claire Heuchan
- Lucy Hunter Blackburn
- Dr Louise Moody
- Professor Sarah Pedersen
You can watch the video of the event here:
You can also read some of the texts of the speeches:
- Rosa Freedman (speech in video is slightly shorter due to time constraints)
- Lucy Hunter Blackburn
- Louise Moody
- Sarah Pedersen
24 May 2019, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow: Lessons from Canada
Our live tweets from our @ForwomenScot Twitter account give a comprehensive account of the meeting – they’ve been compiled here.
Photo credit: Jamie Hunter
space
space
31 January 2019, Apex Hotel, Edinburgh
The written notes from our guest speakers are available here:
- Professor Rosa Freedman
- Maggie Mellon (Also available on Maggie’s site here.)
- Susan Smith
Photo credit: Bryndis Blackadder
