Proud lesbians share defiant photos after LGB Alliance bizarrely claims they’re ‘going extinct’
Proud lesbians have been sharing photos of themselves after a bizarre claim from anti-trans lobby group LGB Alliance that lesbians are going to “become extinct”.
The LGB Alliance launched in October 2019 and promptly faced a blistering backlash from the wider LGBT+ community for its position on trans rights. It strongly denies it is transphobic.
The assertion was made in a Telegraph article headlined “Lesbians facing ‘extinction’ as transgenderism becomes pervasive, campaigners warn”, but has been dismissed online by lesbians using the “How it started vs How it’s going” meme.
It began when Lou Englefield, director of UK organisation Pride Sports, shared photos of herself in 1998 and 2020 with the hashtag “Not Extinct Lesbian”.
How it started How it’s going#notextinctlesbian pic.twitter.com/fJhC5SOOLY
— Lou Englefield (@LouEnglefield) December 27, 2020
Other lesbians joining in online included Gaydio presenter Roisin Murray and ITV sports reporter Beth Fisher.
https://twitter.com/RoisinMurray81/status/1343278864194277376?s=20
How it started How it’s going#notextinctlesbian pic.twitter.com/RVFYG7rZli— Beth Fisher (@BethFisherSport) December 27, 2020
LGB Alliance founders Bev Harris and Kate Jackson told the Telegraph: “We are both convinced, had we been growing up now, that we would have transitioned.”
Harris added: “Is lesbianism going to become extinct? Yes. It’s deeply uncool. At school, in university, it is so uncommon, it is the bottom of the heap. Becoming trans is now considered the brave option.”
The LGB Alliance has also faced heavy criticism for refusing to denounce its neo-Nazi and homophobe supporters, for backing founder Malcom Clark’s view that schools should not have LGBT+ clubs because of “predatory gay teachers”, and for standing by founder Bev Jackson’s comments defending working with ultra-conservative anti-LGBT+ think-tank the Heritage Foundation.
Seemingly in response to the LGB Alliance’s bizarre claim, lesbians added the trans-supportive “L with the T” hashtag to their photos.
Thanks for tweeting @SportsMediaLGBT #notextinctlesbian #lwiththet 🏳️🌈🏳️⚧️ pic.twitter.com/njfjxpiw0Q— Jo Bailey (@jobaileymusic1) December 27, 2020
How it started How it’s going
(1988) (2020)#notextinctlesbian #lwiththet pic.twitter.com/gt1dLuQ9Xg— Aggie (@30ShadesOfCray) December 27, 2020
How it started How it’s going
(1983) (2020)#notextinctlesbian #lwiththet https://t.co/3BUwR8JlfY pic.twitter.com/kAs0mcRebn— Sheena (@SheenBlogsStuff) December 27, 2020
And Sports Media LGBT+ praised those sharing photos, adding: “We’re very much here for the Twitter roll call of #notextinctlesbian – great idea Lou! – as with extinction reportedly looming large according to the (checks notes) ‘News Website of the Year’, we must cherish these last few days before the metaphorical trans asteroid hits.”
We’re very much here for the Twitter roll call of #notextinctlesbian – great idea Lou! ? – as with extinction reportedly looming large according to the (checks notes) ‘News Website of the Year’, we must cherish these last few days before the metaphorical trans asteroid hits ☄️? https://t.co/Zb8iAeZOPY pic.twitter.com/nWuVQzTCbm
— Sports Media LGBT+ (@SportsMediaLGBT) December 27, 2020
The Telegraph article quoting the LGB Alliance was followed, three days later, by a piece in the Spectator, headlined “Where have all the lesbians gone?”
“I miss lesbians,” wrote gay blogger Andrew Sullivan. “It is true that most homosexual men don’t have too many integrated in our lives, but most of us have a few. And we need them.
“They check our sometimes tenuous grasp of reality, they roll their eyes at our hedonism, they show us how marriages can last, and take care of us when we get sick.”
And once again, lesbians shared photos of themselves online to point out that they’ve gone nowhere.
How it started How it’s going#notextinctlesbian pic.twitter.com/X3aYVTmyxf— Jen Watts (she/her) (@JenWattsDesign) December 28, 2020
How it started ……. (Circa 1990)
How it's going……..#notextinctlesbian pic.twitter.com/ssRJUcQEg9— Michelle Daltry She / Her (@MichelleDaltry) December 27, 2020
#notextinctlesbian pic.twitter.com/RGqol7XSFb— Allie Heppell (@axlsgirl) December 27, 2020