Birmingham community protest in support of trans rights following Supreme Court ruling

This weekend, trans people and their allies gathered in Birmingham to protest the recent Supreme Court ruling and the ongoing attack on the trans community. From 1pm on Saturday 26th April, people came together outside the Council House in Victoria Square for a static protest organised by ‘Not Your Scapegoat'.

Violet Corrigan, Co-Founder of Not Your Scapegoat told Midlands Rainbow: "With the Supreme Court decision that the definition of a woman is based on biological sex, it has become all the more important for us to platform the voices that were never heard during the trial.

"We created Not Your Scapegoat in response, because not one trans person was consulted during the entire trial, and we were sick of our community being spoken about without us. This protest is about giving a voice to the voiceless, and telling the Labour government that we aren't just going to roll over and be shunned out of public life, we will stand strong with other women and be unified"

Later in the day there was also a second rally from 6pm, held in front of the Birmingham HIV and AIDS Memorial in Hurst Street, located in the city centre's Southside District.

The later demonstration was co-organised and supported by over 20 different organisations including Brum Against Hate, the Birmingham LGBT centre, Lichfield Pride, and Trans Pride Birmingham; while trade unions including Unison, the NEU and UCU have also put their weight behind the protest action.

In a press release from the organisers, it was explained that “Following the court's decision last Wednesday (16 April), which has far-reaching implications for transgender people accessing single-sex services and spaces, members of the city's LGBTQ+ community are gathering to show solidarity with those affected by the ruling.”

Brendan McPhillips, one of the organisers of the event, said the city would be presenting a "united front against hatred and discrimination".

"This protest is set against the historic backdrop of the gay panic, the lives lost to the AIDS crisis, and reminiscent of the fights from yesteryear that only yester-queers will fully understand. We have seen this hate before and now we must stand united against it once again.

"We stand in a united front, united with a single, common goal; for the BIPOC, Asian, white, brown, black, Irish traveller and Romani trans, non-binary and intersex voices that have been ignored for too long."

 Salman Mirza, co-founder of Brum Against Hate added: "The trans community is under attack in a culture war no one asked for, it's pure distraction.

"The transgender community has been out and proud for Palestine, I'm out and proud for them and stand with them in their fight for liberation and equality. The establishment is coming for the trans community today, then the gays tomorrow, then migrants, asylum seekers, Muslims, Black people, every minority is being marginalised and pit against each other. We need to stand together in solidarity and protect each other's human rights."

Both protests in Birmingham were well attended in a great show of solidarity from the LGBTQ+ community and allies.

Protests were also held this weekend in Chesterfield, Derbyshire and Coventry, with further protests still to take place including in Leicester on Sunday 4th May.

*Images featuring people's faces were taken and shared with explicit consent*