Kellie Turtle
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kellieturtle.bsky.social
Kellie Turtle
@kellieturtle.bsky.social
1.2K followers 710 following 190 posts
Policy influencer. Trade unionist. Equality & rights. Health & social care. Faith & abortion. Reproductive Justice. Antiracist community-building. Trans rights. Free Palestine. Opinions expressed in a personal not professional capacity. she/her
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kellieturtle.bsky.social
In the year of our lord 2022 the sanctimonious institution & churches of PCI were still protecting abusers. They should have no power or influence at any level of society. They have proven themselves unworthy of telling anyone how to live their lives.
#ChurchToo
presbyterianireland.org/news/-2
Screenshot of a section of the article outlining the nature of the safeguarding failings. The text reads “The failures identified to date include: situations where we failed to make referrals to statutory authorities when these were required situations where we did not respond adequately to concerns expressed to us about individuals in congregations situations where we have failed to respond to people who, having suffered harm, have sought our help situations where some offenders returning to worship in Church, following referrals to us by statutory bodies, were inadequately monitored.
November 12, 2025 at 11:36 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
I savoured every second of my first listen to West End Girl by #LilyAllen because the world is full of men like Harbour and women telling on them is utterly delicious. The way that a generation of women have found their voices through art and podcasts and friendship gives me pure feminist joy ✊♥️
Image of Lily Allen taken from her album artwork. Text at the top reads 'Lily Allen's West End Girl is a brutal, tell-all masterpiece. 5 stars.'
October 26, 2025 at 3:23 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
Breaking news: Unbelievably, the ICC conference centre has tried to censor content relating to Palestine at @unisonni.bsky.social Regional Council meeting, specifically the use of the word genocide. We have obviously walked out.
October 24, 2025 at 9:46 AM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
History makes so much more sense to me now.
The meme from The Office where two pictures are held out for an employee to view with the caption 'Corporate needs you to find the differences between this picture and this picture' Underneath is an image of the employee smiling with the caption 'They're the same picture'. In this version, the first picture is The Duke of Windsor and his wife meeting Hitler in 1937. The second picture is Donald and Melania Trump meeting Prince William and Kate today.
September 17, 2025 at 9:32 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
Also in the Bel Tel/Sunday Life today, maybe those brave men in Cloughfern organising anti-immigration protests should look a bit closer to home as Newtownabbey native Steve Carter, who was literally employed to keep kids safe outside school, becomes the latest white man to be outed as a paedophile.
September 7, 2025 at 8:33 AM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
Some key quotes from Hamill in the pics below with alt text included:
Before sentencing Gracey, who had contested the charges, he hit out at the decision not to have the case sent to the Crown Court, where the maximum sentence for the offences is 14 years, not the two years he was constrained by. He said: “I am incensed at the decision to prosecute this case at the Magistrates Court level. “I want to express my outrage that this is being prosecuted at the Magistrates Court. “That is entirely the decision of the prosecuting body, and this against a background where we are meant to be taking violence against women and girls seriously. Seriously?” After Gracey had been taken down to the cells, Judge Hamill said: “Every week I now come across Magistrates Court cases involving non-fatal strangulation. “Who decides the venue? The PPS and only the PPS, a district judge has no say, the complainant has no say. Throttling a woman? It had to go to the Crown Court, there were no ifs or buts about it. Is there such a thing as non-serious non-fatal strangulation? Can you be slightly strangled? Of course you can’t. “The Assembly, laudably, takes violence against women and girls seriously, but it is cheaper and quicker to prosecute at the Magistrates Court.”
August 28, 2025 at 9:06 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
Some thoughts on the news that 48% of those arrested over Belfast race riots had been reported to police for domestic violence. With McGr*g*r losing his appeal & definitively found to be a rapist in a court of law it is important we call out the hypocrisy at the heart of the far right movement.
August 9, 2025 at 11:04 AM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
I always thought trees can't grow on mountains because the Mournes & Sperrins are so barren. But then you visit other countries where they grow all the way to the top and realise that we actually just destroyed our mountain forests with generations of overgrazing. Pic is Verdon Gorge Southern France
Photo of a beautiful jade coloured river flowing through high mountains covered in rich vegetation and trees. The location is the Verdon Gorge in the south of France.
August 3, 2025 at 1:15 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
Beautiful. Here is a cow on an island off an island in the Atlantic (Omey). Taken last week.
July 17, 2025 at 7:40 AM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
The talks for #Feile2025 seem pretty engaging but then there's this steaming turd. Can someone please explain human rights to the organisers before they start asking women, LGBTQ ppl and ethnic minority communities to 'rise above' what they're calling 'political and cultural differences'. 🤢
CAN WE DEBATE WELL AND ENSURE CULTURE WARS DON’T WEAKEN THE IRISH UNITY PROJECT? ST. MARY’S UNIVERSITY COLLEGE, FALLS ROAD From immigration to Trans Rights. From ‘Cancel Culture’ to Pro-life/Pro-choice or Free Speech. Could Culture Wars weaken the Unity project? Or, can we debate well? Can United Irelanders no matter their persuasion, rise above political and cultural differences with generosity and keep focused on the prize of Unity? Free event. No booking required. Organised by Irish Border Poll
July 16, 2025 at 9:36 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
This is what a community response to violence against women looks like. Not a racist mob terrorising people. My heart breaks for Sarah's family as it has for all the families that have been through this trauma before. I still believe in a future where this ends 💔
A photo of a crowd of a few hundred people gathered in the street in Donaghadee at a vigil for Sarah Montgomery who was murdered a few days ago. Many of them are wearing purple, a colour traditionally used to raise awareness of violence against women and girls.
July 2, 2025 at 9:42 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
The last 3 women's sector lobbyists all in the same place! We're listening to fantastic speeches on motions at #BDC25 committing the trade union movement to ending violence against women and girls. Looking forward to @jacksonkatz.bsky.social addressing conference shortly.
Photo of Kellie Turtle, Rachel Doran and Elaine Cory.
July 2, 2025 at 2:19 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
New job!
Just spent my first day as policy officer for @unisonni.bsky.social at an inspiring session of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions #BDC25 Delighted to be joining team UNISON & can't wait to get stuck into helping the TU movement shape policy that serves workers, their families & communities.
Selfie of Kellie holding up her pass for the ICTU Biennial Delegate Conference
July 1, 2025 at 5:47 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
I'm not saying policing is easy but this does not strike me as being either human rights compliant or trauma-informed. The impact of police standing by & letting terrorist mobs destroy people's homes is catastrophic for human rights, equality, personal safety & dignity. @policeserviceni.bsky.social
June 17, 2025 at 4:44 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
I don't even know where to start with this one 😬😱🤦‍♀️
Maybe the AK tattoo. Let's start there cause that seems like the first red flag...
A photo of a racist holding a sign with a bunch of xenophobic nonsense under the title 'Keep our daughters safe'. He looks like a man I'd like to be kept safe from.
June 13, 2025 at 9:04 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
It's #WorldTurtleDay which is a day to reflect on the wonder of Turtles and all the beauty we contribute to the world. So can I just offer a big 'you're welcome' to all who celebrate.

Also this:
A cartoon turtle with a trans flag behind it. The text reads 'Turtles for trans rights' I don't know the artist but if anyone does please let me know and I'll credit.
May 23, 2025 at 12:45 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
Checked the bird app y'day for *reasons* and had to laugh at this imaginary story from a prolific troll. How pathetic it is to have a fantasy version of yourself that has the courage to tell women to fuck off in real life rather than spew bile anonymously on the internet. What a sad little man.
May 11, 2025 at 7:35 AM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
And finally, all eyes on the Equality Commission for this paragraph 👀👀
Therefore, insofar as the FWS interpretation of the Equality Act 2010 conflicts with EU law, Northern Ireland is obligated by the UK Parliament to ignore the judgment. Consequently, assertions that courts and tribunals in the jurisdiction might find FWS ‘persuasive’ are puzzling. When such a significant part of the anti-discrimination law framework which is operative in Northern Ireland derives from EU law and remains tied to EU law, and this law covers discrimination against trans people on the basis of their acquired sex, it would risk considerable confusion to not rely on this approach across relevant elements of Northern Ireland’s anti-discrimination law.
April 30, 2025 at 7:16 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
This is an important paragraph. The SC has ignored the fact that gender reassignment discrimination is a form of sex discrimination. Any reinterpretation of the Sex Discrimination (NI) Order that makes that same mistake would breach EU law.
The CJEU does not make ‘obiter’ observations – they do not exist as a matter of EU law – and as such, they find in this case that gender reassignment discrimination is essentially, if not exclusively, a form of sex discrimination. This precludes the separation between ‘gender reassignment’ and ‘sex’ that the UKSC read into the Equality Act 2010, where they are treated two wholly distinct protected characteristics.
April 30, 2025 at 7:14 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
Saw this placard in the racist gathering today in Belfast and you really have to marvel at the mental gymnastics involved in believing the 3.4% of people in NI who aren't white are taking over. I don't think they'd ever be happy unless they saw no black or brown faces in their communities.
Hand painted sign on cardboard reads 'demographic replacement is genocide no one voted for mass immigration'
March 23, 2025 at 9:41 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
"Bo'oh'o'wo'er"
February 28, 2025 at 10:02 AM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
What a joy to receive my copy of this gorgeous book today! Thanks to eds @karenod.bsky.social & @clairewtheology.bsky.social for allowing me to participate in this important volume of work & to my writing partner @noirinmac.bsky.social for being a theory genius! Available from @scmpress.bsky.social
Book cover. Title is 'Pregnancy and Birth Critical Theological Conceptions. Edited by Karen O'Donnell and Claire Williams'. The cover image is abstract using shapes and lines in shades of orange, blue, pink and black. A photo of the first page of our chapter. The title reads 'Abortion and Theology: The Power Effects of the Abstract'
February 1, 2025 at 6:57 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
The contradictions in this recent front page shows everything that's wrong with the approach to VAWG here in Northern Ireland. What use are research & strategies if a judge can still let a repeat violent offender off to 'prove himself'? Prove he's capable of worse more like.
Belfast Telegraph front page with 2 contradictory headlines: No jail time for thug who beat and choked partner, and New report on domestic violence is a wake up call. Close up of story with sub heading, Judge grants violent offender 'opportunity to prove himself'
January 2, 2025 at 9:31 AM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
We did Deck the Halls tonight. Went down well enough but as with most movies from the early 2000s, some scenes have not aged well 😬🤦‍♀️
December 21, 2024 at 11:58 PM
kellieturtle.bsky.social
Posted last year by @karenod.bsky.social and well worth another shout:
Meme with the title 'Mary, watching churches everywhere quote the Magnificat' Underneath are two photos of Captain Ray Holt (character from the police comedy show Brooklyn 99) with the captions 'Why is no one casting down the mighty?' 'I specifically requested it'
December 16, 2024 at 6:42 PM