THREAD @ReadingsBooks now 'regret' the apology. This is fro…

caused" by an event it hosted three years ago with the feminist campaigner Julie Bindel.

Readings, an independent bookseller in Melbourne, is to host an event on Zoom with Juno Dawson, a transgender author, and Alison Evans, a nonbinary author, on February 25. Transrights

supporters have long accused Bindel of transphobia because she does not believe trans women are women.

Evans, an award-winning author from Melbourne who writes queer sci-fi for young adults, tweeted on Monday: "I agreed to do this event providing Readings publicly apologise for

hosting Julie Bindel. Where is this apology?"

The next day the bookshop said: "Readings prides itself on ensuring everyone in our community feels safe, respected and considered. We apologise for any hurt caused by highlighting the work of an author whose current stance is to

divide our community.

"To that end, Readings regrets programming Julie Bindel in 2018 and thanks our community for opening the dialogue with us. Readings is committed to considering the work of all authors to ensure our future programme of events, reviews and discussions remain

relevant and diverse.'" Bindel questioned why a bookshop that sold editions of Mein Kampf in various languages found it difficult to support differences of opinion over gender. "The [no-platforming] has been happening for a long time, and this is not the nastiest example, but it

is the most ludicrous," she said. "This one made my jaw drop. I've been attacked twice now by trans activists but apparently it is the feminists who are dangerous and make everyone feel unsafe.

"This is about extreme misogyny and bullying. If we don't all stand up against this -

as businesses, individuals, political activists or just as decent people - then we've had it."

Bindel, who campaigns against male violence, spoke in 2018 at Readings about her book The Pimping of Prostitution. She recalled the event as "one of the most enjoyable during the

tour" and said she had been greeted warmly by staff and applauded by the audience.

Mark Rubbo, the managing director of Readings, told The Times he regretted making the apology. "Bookshops should be homes to all ideas," he said. "Julie Bindel has done amazing work for the

women's movement particularly in the area of violence against women. Her views on transgender people are particularly controversial and have caused distress in that community. The fact that we programmed an event with Juno Dawson brought it back to the surface. Our post was an

ill-considered attempt to acknowledge the distress that our event with Julie Bindel may have caused even though it occurred some time ago. I regret the apology."

Neither Evans nor Dawson, a Stonewall ambassador from West Yorkshire, responded to requests for comment."