Times- ‘Bigoted people may be challenged’: Comments by trans head of Edinburgh Rape Crisis sparks controversy
‘Bigoted people may be challenged’: Comments by trans head of Edinburgh Rape Crisis sparks controversy
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The Times
Mridul Wadhwa, a former SNP parliamentary candidate, was appointed chief executive of Edinburgh Rape Crisis in May
The head of one of Scotland’s largest rape crisis centres has claimed that “bigoted” people seeking help from her organisation could be “challenged on their prejudices” in an apparent comment on trans rights and women-only spaces.
Mridul Wadhwa, a trans woman and former SNP parliamentary candidate, was appointed chief executive of Edinburgh Rape Crisis in May, a job that was advertised as being reserved for a woman.
Some feminist campaigners claimed she had no gender recognition certificate and has not undergone gender reassignment surgery so is not legally entitled to be classed as a woman.
Wadhwa made the comments, which appeared to be aimed at her critics, when she appeared on a podcast earlier this week, insisting “therapy is political”.
Interviewed on The Guilty Feminst she said: “Sexual violence happens to bigoted people as well. But these spaces are also for you.
“But if you bring unacceptable beliefs that are discriminatory in nature, we will begin to work with you on your journey of recovery from trauma. But please also expect to be challenged on your prejudices.”
She stated people holding “discriminatory” views who sought help after being sexually assaulted would be encouraged to “reframe their trauma”.
Wadhwa, who left the SNP after MSPs overwhelmingly backed an amendment to allow survivors of rape and sexual violence to pick the sex rather than the gender of the person examining them, added: “You have to rethink your relationship with prejudice.
“Otherwise, you can’t really, in my view, recover from trauma and I think that’s a very important message that I am often discussing with my colleagues.
“Because you know, to me, therapy is political, and it isn’t always seen as that.”
For Women Scotland, a feminist campaign group, claimed Wadhwa’s comments had caused distress to many survivors of sexual violence.
“The ‘bigots’ Wadhwa identifies are women who want female-only spaces in rape or domestic violence shelter and female-only counselling,” a spokeswoman said.
“It also concerned those with a background in counselling and mental health who wondered about the professional qualifications of one who apparently failed to understand that therapy must be non-judgmental.
“They also worried Wadhwa had reinvented or misunderstood the concept of ‘reframing trauma’, which is supposed to enable a survivor to understand their natural response to attack and ‘reframe’ any residual guilt they might feel in not having fought off the attacker or for having frozen.
“It is not supposed to be a vehicle for re-education or for making victims think they carry ‘prejudice’.”
They contrasted Wadhwa’s comments to a policy statement issued by Rape Crisis Scotland on Tuesday, which said: “The core value that underpins all Rape Crisis support is of being non-judgemental.”
“Our services are trauma-informed. This means that we work collaboratively and are non-directive — we won’t ever tell someone what to do, or what not to do – to restore a survivor’s sense of control over their own journey.”
Rape Crisis Scotland, which runs 17 member centres, said they were “proud” to have Wadhwa “as a colleague within our movement” after she was appointed.
The charity claimed it had become aware of “coordinated and harmful” claims about their services on social media.
In a statement it said: “Sexual violence is gendered and has a disproportionate impact on women and girls; our services reflect that. Women-only spaces are a core principle of the Rape Crisis movement and are upheld through our National Service Standards.
“These spaces include women with a diverse range of lived experience and views, including trans women and girls.”
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