Belief that 'men cannot become women' protected under equality law, rules U.K. court

A U.K. employment tribunal found on Tuesday that researcher Maya Forstater had been discriminated against by her employer for her beliefs about transgender people, meaning she is entitled to pursue damages under the country’s equality laws.

The court found that her objections were not “objectively unreasonable observations to make” in the course of an online debate, that she was entitled to criticize those who held a view opposite to hers, and did not lose her legal protections just because some people might be offended by her comments, reports The Times of London.

Forstater, a tax expert and co-founder of advocacy group Sex Matters, had been mired in a years-long legal battle against the U.S.-based think tank Center for Global Development over 2018 social media posts saying transgender women could not change their biological sex.

In a 2019 employment hearing, she said her contract with CGB’s London office had not been renewed after some colleagues complained about the gender critical comments, The Times reported at the time. She added that she received a review from the organization finding she had used “exclusionary language.”

Forstater lost the case but had the decision overturned in an appeal in 2021 that ruled her “gender critical” beliefs were legally protected under equality legislation as a “philosophical belief.”

In the newest development, the tribunal found that the think tank violated employment law and discriminated against Forstater for her public statements in three ways: not offering her an employment contract, failing to renew her visiting fellowship and removing her from CGB’s website.

Forstater called the latest ruling a victory “for everyone who believes in the importance of truth and free speech.”

“We are all free to believe whatever we wish,” she added.

In a commentary piece in The Times on Wednesday, writer Jawad Iqbal noted the tribunal stood by mocking or satirizing an opposing view is part of the common currency of debate.

“It appears to be lost on employers that they are not free to compel their employees to believe the same thing, or to silence those they don’t agree with, or indeed to force people to say things they don’t believe at peril of losing their jobs,” wrote Iqbal.

“What we are not free to do is compel others to believe the same thing, to silence those who disagree with us or to force others to deny reality.”

Amanda Glassman, chief executive for the Center for Global Development Europe, said they were reviewing the ruling.