‘We are committed to fostering a spirit of loving unity within Quakerism.’
Young Friends General Meeting has been working on gender and inclusion. Here, its trustees explain.
As Young Friends General Meeting (YFGM), we have been aware of, and sometimes troubled by, the growing conversation in Quakerism about trans and non-binary identities. Relative to cis people (whose gender matches the sex they were assigned at birth), trans and non-binary people face unique challenges, ranging from obtaining adequate medical care to navigating social spaces that do not accommodate deviation from traditional views of gender. Too often, these challenges continue in our Meetings, where – generally driven more by a lack of information and understanding than a desire to hurt – Friends don’t always succeed in being inclusive.
Last year several Meetings hosted events by ‘gender critical’ groups, which use the position that gender is solely a social construct to argue for the exclusion of trans people, particularly women, all too often through fear and misinformation. But questions of when Meetings should take bookings are secondary to asking what our testimony to equality means in the context of trans rights.
Last May, YFGM affirmed the right of everyone to selfidentify their gender, recognising all genders as valid and real.
Young Friends’ powerful and emotive ministry made it clear we still had work to do. This February, YFGM adopted the values statement below. We offer it to the Society with excitement and hope, noting our joy as a community to affirm our love and inclusion of all Friends of diverse genders.
This is not YFGM’s last word on the subject. We are committed to fostering a spirit of loving unity within Quakerism. We want to support all Friends in learning about gender diversity, build intergenerational conversations, and make the events we run inclusive of everyone, trans or cis, binary or non-binary.
We believe that each person has the right to determine for themselves what gender identities and expressions are most comfortable and authentic for them. We recognise that each member of our community has a unique and deeply personal experience of gender, and that the expression of this is a form of living truthfully and of witness.
As Friends – both trans and cis, binary and non-binary – we affirm that there is no conflict between trans inclusion, feminism, and liberation from gender roles and stereotypes. We do not support the use of meeting houses to host events which claim otherwise, and we hope that Meetings will decide not to host these events in future.
The Society of Friends should be welcoming and affirming of trans and non-binary people. We commit to fostering change to this effect and to bringing YFGM and the Society of Friends closer to this ideal.
We encourage Friends engaging in this conversation going forwards to consider the message of Advices & queries 22: ‘Respect the wide diversity among us in our lives and relationships. Refrain from making prejudiced judgments about the life journeys of others. Do you foster the spirit of mutual understanding and forgiveness which our discipleship asks of us? Remember that each one of us is unique, precious, a child of God.’
Alexandra Boliver-Brown, Jane Booth, Samuel Cooper, James Davies, Cáit Gould, Jaz Higgs, Rici Marshall Cross, Grace Roberts and Tim Rouse.
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