The founder of a crowdfunding campaign to bar transgender women from all-women shortlists has been suspended from the Labour Party after her name appeared on a “secret hit list” submitted to party officials.
Jennifer James, 51, a Labour activist, set up the campaign this month to fund a legal challenge to the decision to open all-women shortlists up to “all self- defining women” regardless of their legal gender. She says that she supports greater representation of transgender people but that that should not mean fewer places for those born female.
Two days after setting up the group, the names of Ms James, a former physics teacher from Liverpool, and dozens of other supporters appeared on a list compiled by members of a closed Facebook group called Labour Against Transphobia. The group is run by Aisling Musson, a political science student at the University of York and disabled students officer at the university’s students union. Its members include Angela Rayner, the shadow education secretary, and Wes Streeting, Labour MP for Ilford North.
In a post seen by The Times, Ms Musson explained to members that the “intention of the spreadsheet was only ever created to hold evidence of transphobia, which could be emailed to compliance to get people kicked out of the party”. The evidence included links to social media posts and invitations to public meetings to discuss proposals to change gender identity laws.
Within 11 days of the list’s circulation Ms James received notification from Labour officials that she had been suspended from the party, which she joined in 1990. At least two of the women on the list have reported the matter to police. One said that she was expecting “a brick through the window any minute”.
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Lily Madigan, a women’s officer for the party, who is transgender, admitted being “vaguely aware of a list” but screenshots seen by The Times show her discussing it in detail with other members of the group.
Ms James said: “Labour has, essentially, a secret police group with a hit list, picking off crowdfunder women signatories one at a time. I have been suspended for saying women don’t have penises and men don’t have vaginas.”
Emma Salmon, 51, whose Labour membership number was also shared among the group, called it “a vigilante witch-hunt to collate evidence on those who were trying to stand up for women’s rights, [which is] seemingly endorsed by the party I was a member of”.
Helena Wojtczak, 59, who has never been a Labour member, found herself on the list, having supported the crowdfunder. She said she felt “great empathy for trans women”, who she felt were being used as a “political football” by misogynists to launch a covert attack on women.
The list includes many other campaigners who have raised concerns over the implications of allowing people to self-declare their gender.
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Ms Musson declined to respond to questions about the list. Ms Rayner could not be reached for comment.
Mr Streeting said he joined the group “because a group against transphobia sounds like a good group to be part of” but said he did not condone the “tactic” behind the list.
The Labour Party refused to say whether its officials were aware of the list, or what they planned to do with the information. A party spokeswoman said: “The Labour Party takes all complaints seriously, which are investigated in line with party procedures.”