On Friday the 15th, Transgender RAHU members and their allies joined https://kolektiva.social/@TransQueerSolidarity and others to stand against dishonest and violent reporting on trans people by the mainstream media. We gathered outside the Channel 7 building in response to their Spotlight episode on “de-transitioning” children.
Common Ground Conversations – a group of far-right agent provocateurs – turned up to disrupt the protest; to misrepresent and harass protesters. This was, per usual, under the guise of “just asking questions”. The political tactics of these guys haven’t evolved since 2014, it seems.
RAHU and other protesters formed a blockade to make Common Ground Conversations’ footage unusable while preventing them from getting too close to the crowd. We, as a union, categorically denounce these culture war attacks that are perpetuated by fascists, capitalists, and neoliberals. They target groups of people that destabilise the hegemonic ideal of what society “should be” and how those within it “should live”.
Channel 7 may issue all the apologies they want but they cannot wash the blood from their hands. Spreading disinformation about vulnerable and marginalised groups has consequences. Trans folk, First Nation people, refugees and immigrants, the poor, and other such groups are all too often used dishonestly by the media. They spin their narratives to create division amongst the working class, including renters.
Make no mistake. This is class warfare. We will not be divided.
#RAHU #TransRights #Solidarity #Melbourne #Australia #Housing #HousingCrisis #RentersRights #Rent #KnowYourRights #YourUnion