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→‎Trans activist Dana Rivers commits triple homicide: Not sure if adopted, one of them could be the biological mother.
(→‎Trans activist Dana Rivers commits triple homicide: Not sure if adopted, one of them could be the biological mother.)
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The word was invented as an acronym for ''Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminist'', where the "trans-exclusionary" part referred to those holding roughly the position that transwomen should not be included under a feminist definition of womanhood, and the "radical feminist" part was meant neutrally, i.e. for people who would indeed describe themselves as [[Radical feminism|radical feminists]] in the true sense.
The word was invented as an acronym for ''Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminist'', where the "trans-exclusionary" part referred to those holding roughly the position that transwomen should not be included under a feminist definition of womanhood, and the "radical feminist" part was meant neutrally, i.e. for people who would indeed describe themselves as [[Radical feminism|radical feminists]] in the true sense.


Over time, the acronym pretty much became a [[Wikipedia:Four-letter word|four-letter word]].  Nowadays the capitalization is frequently omitted, and the already ambiguous original meaning ignored entirely.  Still, users of the term tend to claim that it's a neutral description.  The "trans-exclusionary" part may now refer to anyone who thinks transwomen should not have unfettered access to all female-only spaces (e.g. changing rooms), should not partake in women's sports where they have [[Transwomen in women's sports|unfair advantages]], should not be considered a natural part of the lesbian dating pool, etc.  Although most members of the public would see these as rather sensible positions, considering a "transwoman" may have intact male anatomy, transgender activists nevertheless see all of these types of "exclusion" as unacceptable.
Over time, the acronym pretty much became a [[Wikipedia:Four-letter word|four-letter word]].  Nowadays the capitalization is frequently omitted, and the already ambiguous original meaning ignored entirely.  Still, users of the term tend to claim that it's a neutral description.  The "trans-exclusionary" part may now refer to anyone who thinks transwomen should not have unfettered access to all female-only spaces (e.g. changing rooms), should not partake in women's sports where they have [[Transwomen in women's sports|unfair advantages]], should not be considered a natural part of the lesbian dating pool, etc.  Although most members of the public would see these as rather sensible positions (especially when considering that a "transwoman" may have intact male anatomy), transgender activists nevertheless see all of these types of "exclusion" as unacceptable.


A closely associated term is ''SWERF'', which is supposed to stand for ''Sex-Worker-Exclusionary Radical Feminist'' and is used for those who see the sex industry (prostitution, pornography, etc.) as highly exploitative and sexist.  Like ''TERF'', the term is almost always applied as a slur, and to misrepresent the political position of the person it's used against.  Ironically, some of those who have to face the term most commonly are women who worked in prostitution and became anti-prostitution activists as a result of their own experiences as so-called sex workers.
A closely associated term is ''SWERF'', which is supposed to stand for ''Sex-Worker-Exclusionary Radical Feminist'' and is used for those who see the sex industry (prostitution, pornography, etc.) as highly exploitative and sexist.  Like ''TERF'', the term is almost always applied as a slur, and to misrepresent the political position of the person it's used against.  Ironically, some of those who have to face the term most commonly are women who worked in prostitution and became anti-prostitution activists as a result of their own experiences as so-called sex workers.
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=== Political justification of physical violence ===
=== Political justification of physical violence ===


In May 2020, a blog post was published on Medium.com equating so-called TERFs with Nazis in a credible-sounding tone and explaining how various methods such as infiltration, censorship, property damage, and physical violence should be used against them.<ref name=medium-izaguirre/>  The account posting the article was suspended from Medium.com on the same day and the content re-uploaded on WordPress soon after.<ref name=wp-izaguirre/>  (Still online as of February 20th, 2021)
In May 2020, a blog post was published on Medium.com equating so-called TERFs with Nazis in a credible-sounding tone and explaining how various methods such as infiltration, censorship, property damage, and physical violence should be used against them.<ref name=medium-izaguirre/>  The account posting the article was suspended from Medium.com on the same day and the content re-uploaded on WordPress.com soon after.<ref name=wp-izaguirre/>  (Still online as of February 20th, 2021)


=== Not even pretending that this isn't a witch hunt? ===
=== Not even pretending that this isn't a witch hunt? ===


[[File:Spain-witch-puppet.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Witch-like puppet of [[Wikipedia:Carmen Calvo|Carmen Calvo]] hanging from a tree.]]
[[File:Spain-witch-puppet.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Effigy of [[Wikipedia:Carmen Calvo|Carmen Calvo]] hanging from a tree.]]


In February 2021, Spanish news reported about the appearance of a puppet looking like a stereotypical "witch" figure, with its face made to resemble female politician, author, and vice president [[Wikipedia:Carmen Calvo|Carmen Calvo]] of the Socialist Workers' Party.<ref name=elcomun-calvo/>  Calvo had come under fire from trans activists for her opposition to a proposed [[gender self-identification]] law.  The puppet was hanging from a tree in Plaza 8 de Marzo in Santiago de Compostela, with a sign hanging from its neck saying "Me he perdido…por dónde queda el patriarcado" which could be translated as "I'm lost... where's the patriarchy again?" referring clearly to trans activist claim that it's not them who uphold patriarchal norms, but rather the feminists who oppose them.
In February 2021, Spanish news reported about the appearance of a puppet hanging from a tree, with its face made to resemble female politician, author, and vice president [[Wikipedia:Carmen Calvo|Carmen Calvo]] of the Socialist Workers' Party.<ref name=elcomun-calvo/>  Calvo had come under fire from trans activists for her opposition to a proposed [[gender self-identification]] law.  The puppet was hanging from a tree in Plaza 8 de Marzo in Santiago de Compostela, with a sign hanging from its neck saying "Me he perdido…por dónde queda el patriarcado" which could be translated as "I'm lost... where's the patriarchy again?" referring clearly to trans activist claim that it's not them who uphold patriarchal norms, but rather the feminists who oppose them.


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=== Trans activist Dana Rivers commits triple homicide ===
=== Trans activist Dana Rivers commits triple homicide ===


In 2018, transgender activist Dana Rivers was on trial for triple murder.<ref name=rivers/>  The victims were a lesbian couple and their adoptive son.  Rivers stabbed and shot the victims, before trying to set their house on fire, in November 2016.  It remains unclear whether Rivers was motivated by the hatred against feminists and lesbians promulgated by transgender activists.  Rivers was, however, a member of the group [[Wikipedia:Camp Trans|Camp Trans]], which was created to protest the women-only rule of the Michigan Womyn's Music Festival (aka MichFest).<ref name=camptrans/>  Autostraddle described Rivers as a "very well-known transgender activist."<ref name=autostraddle/>
In 2018, transgender activist Dana Rivers was on trial for triple murder.<ref name=rivers/>  The victims were a lesbian couple and their son.  Rivers stabbed and shot the victims, before trying to set their house on fire, in November 2016.  It remains unclear whether Rivers was motivated by the hatred against feminists and lesbians promulgated by transgender activists.  Rivers was, however, a member of the group [[Wikipedia:Camp Trans|Camp Trans]], which was created to protest the women-only rule of the Michigan Womyn's Music Festival (aka MichFest).<ref name=camptrans/>  Autostraddle described Rivers as a "very well-known transgender activist."<ref name=autostraddle/>


=== Trans activist lashes at Julie Bindel after speech ===
=== Trans activist lashes at Julie Bindel after speech ===