Trans Teacher 'Monstered' by the British Press found dead.

[subrob11]

http://www.newstatesman.com/media/20...nd-dead-home-0

Primary school teacher Lucy Meadows has been found dead at her home in Accrington, Lancashire. The news was announced to pupils and parents on the school's website. Headteacher Karen Hardman wrote:

It is with great sadness that I have to inform you of the death of Miss Lucy Meadows. Our staff will be working closely with bereavement teams and are here to offer the children and yourselves any support in any way we can.
The Manchester Evening News reports that police and paramedics attended the address in Accrington on the evening of 19 March, and where the body of a 32-year-old woman was found. The death is not being treated as suspicious. An inquest will be held.

Meadows had only recently made her transition public - the school wrote to parents at Christmas to announce that staff member Nathan Upton would be returning to work after the break as a woman and was now to be addressed as Miss Meadows.

The news made several papers, including the Sun and the Mail. In the latter, columnist Richard Littlejohn - for whom transsexualism is a regular topic - argued in a piece published in December that Meadows's gender reassignment was too "challenging" for children to deal with. After news of Meadows's death broke, the online version of his column was edited to remove the item. However, it can still be read here.

While the circumstances around Meadows's death are not yet known, there has long been concern for the way gender reassignment is treated in the media. Writing for newstatesman.com's Trans Issues Week earlier this year, Jane Fae said:

You know progress has been made, when Richard Littlejohn, scourge of the politically correct, can be found writing relatively encouragingly about such matters. But. Ah yes: there’s always a but. While transphobia has become increasingly unacceptable, there remains that last line of reactionary defence: “just think of the children”.

Typical of the Daily Mail that rather than provide any sort of apology or sensitivity, they just remove the piece from their site when it becomes inconvenient.

A resource page on this very sad situation has been made available here http://jackofkent.com/resource-pages/lucy-meadows/

[Ms.Stepford]

It's terrible how often this happens.

[martin48]

http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2013/03/22...rd-littlejohn/

Sadly, it will have no effect. The Daily Mail is a more subversive force in British politics and views than ever Murdoch's empire was.

Yes - really sad. Certainly not the first time and not the last.

[GroobySteven]

I remember listening to Jeremy Vine show when the letter was sent to parents and a number of parents called in to the show to comment, men and women and overwhelmingly they were in support of the teacher and the school and said their children full understood.

If the news hadn't picked up on it, it would have been a non-story.

[GroobySteven]

I doubt they will get rid of the cocky right wing cunt - but sign if you can:

http://www.change.org/en-GB/petition...ssible-suicide

[subrob11]

I doubt they will get rid of the cocky right wing cunt - but sign if you can:

http://www.change.org/en-GB/petition...ssible-suicide

Stewart Lee described him in exactly the same way

[Genetic]

I doubt they will get rid of the cocky right wing cunt - but sign if you can:

http://www.change.org/en-GB/petition...ssible-suicide

Signed.