Chris(tyn) Parkes
@parkesland.bsky.social
Senior Lecturer in history. Views my own. Historian of US politics and sexuality, especially Sumner Welles. Canadian. Non-binary (they/them). Fabulous.
Post something random or you’ll have an awful December
November 28, 2025 at 6:48 AM
Post something random or you’ll have an awful December
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
Our colleague @fayboundalberti.bsky.social has spent six years interviewing patients and their loved ones, and working with surgeons to understand the history and ethics of face transplants www.theguardian.com/science/2025...
Face transplants promised hope. Patients were put through the unthinkable
Twenty years after the first face transplant, patients are dying, data is missing, and the experimental procedure’s future hangs in the balance
www.theguardian.com
November 27, 2025 at 1:31 PM
Our colleague @fayboundalberti.bsky.social has spent six years interviewing patients and their loved ones, and working with surgeons to understand the history and ethics of face transplants www.theguardian.com/science/2025...
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
“Labour said education would drive economic growth.
Yesterday we saw nothing for FE, and a dog’s dinner for HE.
With 15,000 HE jobs at risk and staff leaving FE, we don’t have the mechanisms needed to deliver growth.” @drjogrady.bsky.social yesterday.
Yesterday we saw nothing for FE, and a dog’s dinner for HE.
With 15,000 HE jobs at risk and staff leaving FE, we don’t have the mechanisms needed to deliver growth.” @drjogrady.bsky.social yesterday.
November 27, 2025 at 10:57 AM
“Labour said education would drive economic growth.
Yesterday we saw nothing for FE, and a dog’s dinner for HE.
With 15,000 HE jobs at risk and staff leaving FE, we don’t have the mechanisms needed to deliver growth.” @drjogrady.bsky.social yesterday.
Yesterday we saw nothing for FE, and a dog’s dinner for HE.
With 15,000 HE jobs at risk and staff leaving FE, we don’t have the mechanisms needed to deliver growth.” @drjogrady.bsky.social yesterday.
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
📺 🔍 NEW
We said we’d sue over Ofcom’s decision to dismiss 22,000 complaints about transphobia on TalkTV – now the regulator has caved.
https://goodlaw.social/ycba
We said we’d sue over Ofcom’s decision to dismiss 22,000 complaints about transphobia on TalkTV – now the regulator has caved.
https://goodlaw.social/ycba
TalkTV: Ofcom bows to pressure | Good Law Project
We said we’d sue over Ofcom’s decision to dismiss 22,000 complaints about transphobia on TalkTV – now the regulator has caved.
goodlaw.social
November 27, 2025 at 10:21 AM
📺 🔍 NEW
We said we’d sue over Ofcom’s decision to dismiss 22,000 complaints about transphobia on TalkTV – now the regulator has caved.
https://goodlaw.social/ycba
We said we’d sue over Ofcom’s decision to dismiss 22,000 complaints about transphobia on TalkTV – now the regulator has caved.
https://goodlaw.social/ycba
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
Solidarity to our striking comrades @ucuimperial.bsky.social !!
🚨 Day 2 of 4: Staff strike at Imperial.
UCU & Unite are on the picket lines Tues–Fri, followed by two weeks of UCU teaching-targeted action until the end of term.
What began as a pay dispute has become a serious governance crisis.
🧵(1/)
UCU & Unite are on the picket lines Tues–Fri, followed by two weeks of UCU teaching-targeted action until the end of term.
What began as a pay dispute has become a serious governance crisis.
🧵(1/)
November 27, 2025 at 9:27 AM
Solidarity to our striking comrades @ucuimperial.bsky.social !!
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
1/5 It was entirely predictable that The Telegraph would jump on @DavidOlusoga’s Empire series to fight its right wing culture war for control of our public history. Let’s see what they’ve done:
November 27, 2025 at 8:28 AM
1/5 It was entirely predictable that The Telegraph would jump on @DavidOlusoga’s Empire series to fight its right wing culture war for control of our public history. Let’s see what they’ve done:
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
1/🧵 He did something similar after the murder of Brianna Ghey, using the mention of a hate crime as a kind of prop. He never talks about hate crimes themselves; he only talks about how virtuous it supposedly is for him to acknowledge that they exist.
metro.co.uk/2025/11/26/k...
Why are we hearing about this now if it happened a few years ago?
Since coming to office AFTER the attack on his niece, Starmer's culture war anti-LGBTQ+ words and policies have got him and Labour banned from every Pride. He has personally made ...
Why are we hearing about this now if it happened a few years ago?
Since coming to office AFTER the attack on his niece, Starmer's culture war anti-LGBTQ+ words and policies have got him and Labour banned from every Pride. He has personally made ...
Keir Starmer's fury after niece and wife 'beaten by blokes for holding hands'
'I thought the days of beating up people because they were gay were well behind us.'
metro.co.uk
November 27, 2025 at 8:53 AM
1/🧵 He did something similar after the murder of Brianna Ghey, using the mention of a hate crime as a kind of prop. He never talks about hate crimes themselves; he only talks about how virtuous it supposedly is for him to acknowledge that they exist.
Indeed they have. The AAP has been steadfast in supporting gender affirming care, even as the Trump Administration has cracked down on it.
I don’t think people outside of healthcare realize how much AAP is standing out as a moral backbone of medicine right now, especially in pediatrics. There is so much fear at institutions. Seeing an org directly and repeatedly targeted refuse to budge an inch is extraordinary.
AAP: ‘Stop wasting government resources to amplify false claims’ about vaccines, autism
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has updated its website to include false claims linking vaccines and autism, prompting a swift rebuke from the AAP and other medical experts.
publications.aap.org
November 27, 2025 at 7:07 AM
Indeed they have. The AAP has been steadfast in supporting gender affirming care, even as the Trump Administration has cracked down on it.
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
Irks me when he says this because I’ve been at an LGBT event he’s been at, I’ve seen him attend others; he is in no way unaware of this being a problem nor his own role in it
metro.co.uk/2025/11/26/k...
metro.co.uk/2025/11/26/k...
Keir Starmer's fury after neice and wife 'beaten by blokes for holding hands'
'I thought the days of beating up people because they were gay were well behind us.'
metro.co.uk
November 26, 2025 at 10:27 PM
Irks me when he says this because I’ve been at an LGBT event he’s been at, I’ve seen him attend others; he is in no way unaware of this being a problem nor his own role in it
metro.co.uk/2025/11/26/k...
metro.co.uk/2025/11/26/k...
Meanwhile in the UK, clueless Labour turncoats like @racheltaylormp.bsky.social congratulate themselves for launching a rigged puberty blocker trial on the back of a stitched up Cass Review.
Good trans healthcare isn't hard to provide or endorse. Mamdani knows how. Labour fails at every chance.
Good trans healthcare isn't hard to provide or endorse. Mamdani knows how. Labour fails at every chance.
Interviewer: “What do you say to trans kids who are starting their transition?”
Zohran Mamdani: "We're gonna make this a city that doesn't just protect trans kids, but also celebrates and cherishes them."
Zohran Mamdani: "We're gonna make this a city that doesn't just protect trans kids, but also celebrates and cherishes them."
November 26, 2025 at 8:51 PM
Meanwhile in the UK, clueless Labour turncoats like @racheltaylormp.bsky.social congratulate themselves for launching a rigged puberty blocker trial on the back of a stitched up Cass Review.
Good trans healthcare isn't hard to provide or endorse. Mamdani knows how. Labour fails at every chance.
Good trans healthcare isn't hard to provide or endorse. Mamdani knows how. Labour fails at every chance.
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
I’m guessing, like most people, you’d never heard of Jammie Booker before today.
Go Google her name.
Look at the headlines.
Notice how she’s talked about as an issue, not a person.
Go Google her name.
Look at the headlines.
Notice how she’s talked about as an issue, not a person.
November 26, 2025 at 6:31 PM
I’m guessing, like most people, you’d never heard of Jammie Booker before today.
Go Google her name.
Look at the headlines.
Notice how she’s talked about as an issue, not a person.
Go Google her name.
Look at the headlines.
Notice how she’s talked about as an issue, not a person.
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
Now here’s the part that makes the whole thing even more disgusting:
The organisation’s own transgender policy, on their website, clearly says trans women ARE allowed to compete in the women’s category.
The organisation’s own transgender policy, on their website, clearly says trans women ARE allowed to compete in the women’s category.
November 26, 2025 at 6:31 PM
Now here’s the part that makes the whole thing even more disgusting:
The organisation’s own transgender policy, on their website, clearly says trans women ARE allowed to compete in the women’s category.
The organisation’s own transgender policy, on their website, clearly says trans women ARE allowed to compete in the women’s category.
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
📢 Oscar Davies in COUNSEL Magazine: Lessons Learnt: Unbinding the binary at the Bar⚖️
Oscar discusses use of social media to broaden access to justice, use of language in protecting rights, and resilience as a barrister.
Read here: www.counselmagazine.co.uk/articles/les...
Photo Credit © Greta Graf
Oscar discusses use of social media to broaden access to justice, use of language in protecting rights, and resilience as a barrister.
Read here: www.counselmagazine.co.uk/articles/les...
Photo Credit © Greta Graf
November 26, 2025 at 12:42 PM
📢 Oscar Davies in COUNSEL Magazine: Lessons Learnt: Unbinding the binary at the Bar⚖️
Oscar discusses use of social media to broaden access to justice, use of language in protecting rights, and resilience as a barrister.
Read here: www.counselmagazine.co.uk/articles/les...
Photo Credit © Greta Graf
Oscar discusses use of social media to broaden access to justice, use of language in protecting rights, and resilience as a barrister.
Read here: www.counselmagazine.co.uk/articles/les...
Photo Credit © Greta Graf
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
'gender critical'
if someone has a penis then *obviously* they behave in these ways - any denial of that is 'gender ideology'
if someone has a vagina then *obviously* they behave in these ways - any denial of that is 'gender ideology'
'gender critical' is sexism
'gender ideology' is feminism
if someone has a penis then *obviously* they behave in these ways - any denial of that is 'gender ideology'
if someone has a vagina then *obviously* they behave in these ways - any denial of that is 'gender ideology'
'gender critical' is sexism
'gender ideology' is feminism
November 26, 2025 at 2:28 PM
'gender critical'
if someone has a penis then *obviously* they behave in these ways - any denial of that is 'gender ideology'
if someone has a vagina then *obviously* they behave in these ways - any denial of that is 'gender ideology'
'gender critical' is sexism
'gender ideology' is feminism
if someone has a penis then *obviously* they behave in these ways - any denial of that is 'gender ideology'
if someone has a vagina then *obviously* they behave in these ways - any denial of that is 'gender ideology'
'gender critical' is sexism
'gender ideology' is feminism
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
When anti-trans news outlets describe the 17 yr old victim in the linehan verdict as an adult, they are participating in an age old tactic used to dehumanise minority children.
lets talk about the right wing tactic of "playing magical age"
🧵THREAD /1
lets talk about the right wing tactic of "playing magical age"
🧵THREAD /1
November 26, 2025 at 12:40 PM
When anti-trans news outlets describe the 17 yr old victim in the linehan verdict as an adult, they are participating in an age old tactic used to dehumanise minority children.
lets talk about the right wing tactic of "playing magical age"
🧵THREAD /1
lets talk about the right wing tactic of "playing magical age"
🧵THREAD /1
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
Evidence has now emerged of the adverse consequences of the laws banning GAHT for trans youth in both the US and UK. This includes sharp declines in mental health and increased suicide attempts among transgender young people.
t.co/YZaiSgdDAl
t.co/YZaiSgdDAl
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41562-024-01979-5
t.co
November 26, 2025 at 8:51 AM
Evidence has now emerged of the adverse consequences of the laws banning GAHT for trans youth in both the US and UK. This includes sharp declines in mental health and increased suicide attempts among transgender young people.
t.co/YZaiSgdDAl
t.co/YZaiSgdDAl
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
I wrote this piece about Trudi Warner and why juries are an important part of our constitution in April last year. I think particularly worth reading today.
goodlawproject.org/high-court-s...
goodlawproject.org/high-court-s...
High Court slaps down ‘fanciful’ prosecution of Trudi Warner | Good Law Project
Judge rules that the solicitor general ‘mischaracterised’ the evidence when he charged Warner with contempt of court for holding up a placard.
goodlawproject.org
November 25, 2025 at 9:57 PM
I wrote this piece about Trudi Warner and why juries are an important part of our constitution in April last year. I think particularly worth reading today.
goodlawproject.org/high-court-s...
goodlawproject.org/high-court-s...
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
Briony Clarke now identify as a bent judge.
“she found Graham Linehan was a ‘generally credible witness’ and appeared to be ‘genuinely frank and honest’.”
“she found Graham Linehan was a ‘generally credible witness’ and appeared to be ‘genuinely frank and honest’.”
They keep fucking editing the article, but it's not any better. And this addition about why the judge referred to her as "them" is like a parody of impartiality
![An excerpt from the linked article that reads:
[The judge] explained that the prosecution used female pronouns to refer to the complainant during the trial, while Linehan's defence used male pronouns. The judge said she had chosen to refer to Brooks using "gender neutral pronouns and as 'the complainant'" in her ruling.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:umokacyt44veykd6qw5zokyi/bafkreifcuteahuy7btte3q77evxfatrh7ddbi676sw4squ6hrpshakcszm@jpeg)
November 25, 2025 at 9:40 PM
Briony Clarke now identify as a bent judge.
“she found Graham Linehan was a ‘generally credible witness’ and appeared to be ‘genuinely frank and honest’.”
“she found Graham Linehan was a ‘generally credible witness’ and appeared to be ‘genuinely frank and honest’.”
Nothing is fun about this fact, but the thread it starts will shock even the most battle hardened trans people/allies.
What the UK press and political class - especially Labour - have allowed to metastacize over the past 10 years is nothing short of a moral panic.
What the UK press and political class - especially Labour - have allowed to metastacize over the past 10 years is nothing short of a moral panic.
Fun fact I couldn't mention until now: At the time Graham Linehan was harassing Sophia Brooks online, I was contacted by her former teachers and School Safeguarding Team to get her latest contact details, as they were worried sick about her being publicly stalked by an abusive alcoholic celebrity.
November 25, 2025 at 6:29 PM
Nothing is fun about this fact, but the thread it starts will shock even the most battle hardened trans people/allies.
What the UK press and political class - especially Labour - have allowed to metastacize over the past 10 years is nothing short of a moral panic.
What the UK press and political class - especially Labour - have allowed to metastacize over the past 10 years is nothing short of a moral panic.
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
Complaining to the BBC about anti-trans reporting
Another day, another attack on trans people. This time, in how the BBC described the teenage victim of Graham Linehan’s crime. So here is my complaint to the BBC:
owen.blacker.me.uk/posts/blog/2...
Another day, another attack on trans people. This time, in how the BBC described the teenage victim of Graham Linehan’s crime. So here is my complaint to the BBC:
owen.blacker.me.uk/posts/blog/2...
Complaining to the BBC about anti-trans reporting — Owen Blacker
In reporting about Graham Linehan’s conviction for criminal damage, the BBC used offensive language to describe the 17-year-old victim of this crime
owen.blacker.me.uk
November 25, 2025 at 6:11 PM
Complaining to the BBC about anti-trans reporting
Another day, another attack on trans people. This time, in how the BBC described the teenage victim of Graham Linehan’s crime. So here is my complaint to the BBC:
owen.blacker.me.uk/posts/blog/2...
Another day, another attack on trans people. This time, in how the BBC described the teenage victim of Graham Linehan’s crime. So here is my complaint to the BBC:
owen.blacker.me.uk/posts/blog/2...
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
Join Ella Sbaraini, Dan Matlin, Adam Sutcliffe and Lena Ferriday, to hear how King's academics work with the emotions in their own historical work followed by a chaired panel on the nature of studying these slippery but important histories.
www.kcl.ac.uk/events/getti...
www.kcl.ac.uk/events/getti...
Getting Emotional About History? A Panel Discussion | King's College London
Want to learn more about what studying emotions in the past entails? Interested in how historians manage their own emotional relationships with their source material?
www.kcl.ac.uk
November 25, 2025 at 12:37 PM
Join Ella Sbaraini, Dan Matlin, Adam Sutcliffe and Lena Ferriday, to hear how King's academics work with the emotions in their own historical work followed by a chaired panel on the nature of studying these slippery but important histories.
www.kcl.ac.uk/events/getti...
www.kcl.ac.uk/events/getti...
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
Very excited to share that today is publication day for my first monograph!! Queering UK Refugee Law: Sexual Diversity and Asylum Administration is published as a part of Bristol University Press's Law, Society, Policy series.
bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/queering-uk-...
bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/queering-uk-...
Queering UK Refugee Law
Queering UK Refugee Law - Sexual Diversity and Asylum Administration; In the context of a global backlash against migrant and LGBTIQA+ rights , this book examines the experiences of LGBTIQA+ people in...
bristoluniversitypress.co.uk
November 25, 2025 at 9:36 AM
Very excited to share that today is publication day for my first monograph!! Queering UK Refugee Law: Sexual Diversity and Asylum Administration is published as a part of Bristol University Press's Law, Society, Policy series.
bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/queering-uk-...
bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/queering-uk-...
Reposted by Chris(tyn) Parkes
A very, very important peer-reviewed empirical study published in the academic journal Pediatrics shows that hormone treatment of young trans people decreases suicidality very significantly.
Doubtless it will be ignored by Simonoff et al, who are not even measuring this in the “Pathways” study.
Doubtless it will be ignored by Simonoff et al, who are not even measuring this in the “Pathways” study.
Changes in Suicidality among Transgender Adolescents Following Hormone Therapy: An Extended Study
To examine changes in suicidality following hormone therapy (HT) among transgender and gender-diverse adolescents and young adults.A retrospective cha…
www.sciencedirect.com
November 25, 2025 at 5:05 AM
A very, very important peer-reviewed empirical study published in the academic journal Pediatrics shows that hormone treatment of young trans people decreases suicidality very significantly.
Doubtless it will be ignored by Simonoff et al, who are not even measuring this in the “Pathways” study.
Doubtless it will be ignored by Simonoff et al, who are not even measuring this in the “Pathways” study.