When Keir Starmer sought to address the Labour Party’s stance on sex and gender, he took a unique approach. Instead of delivering a standard speech or hosting a press conference, the leader of Britain’s main opposition party opted for a quieter strategy. He allowed Anneliese Dodds, a shadow minister with less public visibility, to announce the change in a concise opinion column published in The Guardian. In just over 800 words, Dodds made three significant declarations.
Firstly, she stated that “sex and gender are different.” Secondly, while Labour still believes in the right for individuals to change their legal gender, Dodds emphasized the need for safeguards to protect women and girls from potential predators who could exploit the current system. Lastly, Labour announced that it would no longer support self-identification, which allows individuals to change their legal gender through a simple online declaration. Instead, Labour will maintain the requirement for a medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria.
Dodds supplemented her article with a few explanatory tweets but did not appear on television to reiterate the message. The following day, Labour declined to provide a spokesperson for comment on a prominent BBC radio news show. This approach gave the impression of Starmer casually tossing a hand grenade and walking away nonchalantly.
To those unfamiliar with the contentious and intricate debate taking place in Britain, Dodds’ statements may appear uncontroversial. However, they are far from it. Since 2015, when the Conservative politician Maria Miller first proposed self-identification in the UK, LGBTQ campaigners have dismissed concerns about potential abuse of the system as a transphobic myth. They argue that requests for single-sex sports teams, locker rooms, and prisons are exclusionary, likening them to the segregationist policies of apartheid and Jim Crow. Labour, as the leading left-wing party in Britain, has now refuted these arguments, and internal dissent has been remarkably subdued.
This shift in stance carries broader implications, particularly in the United States, where activists on both sides of the gender debate closely follow developments in Britain. Queer activists in the US often refer to the UK dismissively as “TERF Island.” Labour’s new position demonstrates how the left can acknowledge the needs of transgender minorities, acknowledge the importance of biological sex in public policy, and seek political and social compromises. While questions remain about the practical implementation of Labour’s proposals and whether its Welsh and Scottish branches will align, the party has signaled the start of a meaningful democratic conversation, a departure from years of accepting the activist assertion that no debate is permissible.
As the leader of a left-wing party, Starmer has sent a significant message by distancing himself from the radical postmodern idea that the distinction between males and females is purely a social construct, detached from the historical oppression of women. Labour’s new position represents a substantial ideological shift, although it was not explicitly framed as such. This approach aligns with Starmer’s character—unassuming yet determined. Unlike many American politicians across the spectrum, Starmer has actively sought a position that reduces the inflammatory nature of the debate and appeals to a broader cross-section of the population instead of solely catering to his activist base.
While the Conservative Party dropped their support for self-identification three years ago, some of their politicians have eagerly embraced gender as a culture-war issue with potential electoral benefits. Over the same period, Starmer and his ministers have struggled to articulate their positions on defining a woman, often venturing into esoteric discussions that fail to resonate with the general public. Labour politicians’ commitment to adhering to a progressive line has led to perplexing statements like “A child is born without sex” and reacting defensively to interviewers broaching the topic. These avoidances and convoluted responses have only drawn more attention and detracted from discussing pressing issues such as housing crises, rising energy costs, crumbling infrastructure, weak economic growth, and high inflation.
However, this era could potentially be coming to an end, provided rank-and-file Labour politicians desire it. Two days after Dodds’ column was published, Starmer provided a simple definition of a woman when asked: “An adult female.” If this answer gains acceptance within left-wing circles, interviewers will no longer have an easy “gotcha” question, enabling Labour to refocus on economic matters and appealing to the median voter.
In an effort to protect the interests of transgender individuals and avoid aligning with explicit bigots, some left-wing figures have refrained from expressing reservations about policies like self-identification. Over the past decade, Labour activists have vilified feminist commentators who dared to raise concerns. Starmer has expanded the boundaries of discussion by introducing a more nuanced approach. Medical associations across Europe now recommend caution regarding affirmative models of gender care for minors. Professionals are now discussing the possibility of social contagion influencing teenagers’ professed identities and the belief that puberty itself can potentially resolve gender dysphoria in some cases. The lack of evidence regarding the safety and efficacy of puberty blockers is now up for debate.
Notably, international sports bodies have started undoing previous policies that allowed transgender women to compete against cisgender women. British Rowing, for instance, has restricted women’s events to individuals assigned female at birth while accommodating transgender participation through separate categories. Similarly, cycling’s world governing body, the Union Cycliste Internationale, has restricted the female category to those assigned female at birth who have never taken testosterone while creating an “open” competition for individuals who have experienced male puberty or used male hormones.
In the United States, however, political polarization has halted productive discussions on this matter. One frustrating aspect of this discourse is that many liberals are unaware of their own ignorance. Punitive bans in conservative states paired with overtly anti-LGBTQ rhetoric from Republicans have caused Democrats to instinctively defend puberty blockers and gender-affirming surgeries for minors. This occurs despite increasing caution expressed by European experts. The lack of an evidence-based debate on child transitions in America can be attributed to medical groups’ adherence to the affirmative model, despite reservations voiced by their international counterparts. The American Academy of Pediatrics recently voted unanimously to continue supporting the affirmative approach, hindering a proper discussion based on evidence.
Clearly, a vast middle ground exists. Late last year, polling indicated that approximately 75% of Americans opposed discrimination against transgender people in areas such as housing, colleges, workplaces, and accessing health insurance. However, more than 60% of American adults believe that trans women and girls should not participate in female sports at any level, with solid majority opposition to hormone interventions for those under 18. Among transgender adults themselves, the same poll found that 30% supported sex-based restrictions in sports, while an equal number found it inappropriate for young children to receive puberty blockers. This nuanced position, which supports transgender individuals in daily life while acknowledging a difference between trans women and cisgender women, remains largely unarticulated among leaders on both sides of the debate. Writer Lisa Selin Davis describes this issue as an example of tribalism and extremism stemming from the two-party system and exacerbated by social media.
Davis’s involvement in the gender debate began as a parent of a gender-nonconforming child. When she shared her experience in The New York Times, she received letters urging her to let her child transition and warning of the risk of suicide otherwise. While she still considers herself on the left, Davis believes that her natural allies might vilify her for her nuanced perspective.
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