New Delhi: Oxfam International, the British-founded confederation of charitable organisations, has apologised for featuring a cartoon woman wearing a ‘Terf’ badge, in its new Pride video.
‘Terf’ is an acronym that stands for trans-exclusionary radical feminist. It is a label applied to feminists who believe “transgender women are not true women because they cannot have the same experiences as people who are born as women”.
The Oxfam video — a part of which is now deleted — came under scanner after several social media users also alleged that the cartoon woman, with reddish-brown hair and wearing a ‘Terf’ badge, resembled Harry Potter author J. K. Rowling. Rowling has been labelled the term by critics in the past for her controversial comments on transgender people.
In a statement, the international charity said they have “made a mistake” in their efforts to make a point about how “real harm” is caused by transphobia. Oxfam also stated that it has edited the video and had “no intention” of portraying any individual in particular.
“We fully support both an individual’s rights to hold their philosophical beliefs and a person’s right to have their identity respected, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and sex characteristics,” it said.
This development comes days after transgender activists interrupted a talk by gender-critical feminist Kathleen Stock at Oxford Union last month.
Sharing a screenshot of the Oxfam video, Stock tweeted saying, “This has shocked me… a still from an Oxfam video, made in support of Pride month.”
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