MASSEY UNIVERSITY UNDER ATTACK FROM RAINBOW TICK

Ani O'Brien 

Rainbow Tick says that Massey University may have its 'Rainbow Tick' accreditation withdrawn if it allows Feminism 2020 to take place in one its venues.  Ani O'Brien, spokeswoman for Speak Up for Women, says the claims being made against it are both false and malicious. She says that 'a ‘rainbow tick’ that is conditional on you silencing lesbians is a pretty meaningless concept..'

THE DECISION TO ALLOW Women Speak up for Women to hold  Feminism 2020 at a Massey University owned venue in Wellington has come under attack from Rainbow Tick. It says that Massey University is in danger of losing its 'Rainbow Tick' accreditation if allows the event to take place. The 'Rainbow Tick' is the certification an organisation receives if it is deemed to encourage gender diversity in the workplace.

Speak Up for Women says that it furious that Rainbow Tick is harassing Massey University to suppress its democratic right to free speech.

'Accusations of transphobia, hate speech, and worse have been spread by activists with an interest in making sure these women aren’t able to speak. These unfounded denunciations have been presented without proof and repeated without verification by the media and Massey University where the Wellington event is to be held.

What the media, Massey University, and activists have neglected to mention is that half of the speaking panel are lesbians including the spokeswoman of the group. There are a number of lesbians and bisexual women in Speak Up For Women and many more in women’s groups like them around the world.'

It also says that the reasons why lesbians are over-representated in groups like Speak Up for Women is that is that they are being failed by the LGBT and ‘rainbow’ organisations that are meant to advocate for them.

“As a lesbian I am appalled and hurt by statements made by Massey University, the Rainbow Tick organisation, and the media that demonstrate that in their eyes we aren’t the ‘right’ kind of rainbow,” says Speak Up For Women Spokeswoman, Ani O’Brien. “Activists who do not want us to be able to gather and speak about our concerns as lesbians and women are deliberately pitting us against what should be our own community.”

O'Brien says that the claims that Speak Up for Women and the Feminism 2020 speakers are 'transphobic' are both false and malicious.

'This is not hate; it is women attempting to assert our rights in what should be a democratic society. Instead, we are being silenced by activists and lobby groups who bully businesses and institutions with threats of withdrawal of ‘rainbow capital’. Well, a ‘rainbow tick’ that is conditional on you silencing lesbians is a pretty meaningless concept, in my opinion.'