Ben Cooper QC for @BluskyeAllison arguing against redactions.
#AllisonBailey
We are today attending the virtual hearing for #AllisonBailey’s claim against Stonewall & Garden Court Chambers.
Ben Cooper QC for @BluskyeAllison arguing against redactions.
#AllisonBailey
Ben Cooper trying to establish communications between individuals at Stonewall & individuals at Garden Court Chambers. Arguing names of individuals is relevant and they put in public domain.
Ben Cooper QC discussing individuals who had made complaints to Garden Court Chambers. Discussion is can these individuals be publicly named or should they be redacted in papers. These individuals have connections with Stonewall.
Robin Moira White confirming that the three individuals under discussion ARE members of Stonewall’s trans advisory group. They have assisted Stonewall but are not employees. RMW saying their names should not be public domain.
Ben Cooper QC these individuals roles are important. It’s not normal to redact names. There is a public interest in public justice.
Ben Cooper QC and Robin Moira White making final points.
Judge Stout talking about importance of open justice.
Judge Stout: For this hearing only I have decided that the three individuals will remain redacted
Judge Stout: Stonewall has not produced evidence to show that principal of open justice should be discarded. If this was a full hearing my judgement would be different.
Judge Stout: If their names were made public their article 8 rights would be impacted. Order of redaction only for this hearing. May be different at full hearing.
Ben Cooper QC: Only this week has claimant received application to strike out. Disclosure has yet to be completed. Some things are still redacted which shouldn’t be.
Ben Cooper QC: I can’t begin to embark on cross examination in a hearing of this kind. There isn’t the time. It would be a 2-3 day exercise. Please rule she can’t be called at this time.
Anthony Johnston: Claimant has still not named those she accuses of discrimination/victimisation. Do these individuals have authority to act for chambers. Wants Miss Khan called.
Judge Stout: I don’t think calling Miss Khan and having her cross examined would assist me in what I need to decide on today.
Judge Stout: There would not be a fair opportunity to test Miss Khan’s evidence today. Disclosure has not been completed. Application to call Miss Khan today denied.
Ben Cooper QC: Until disclosure has been completed it may not be possible for claimant to set out all protagonists.
Ben Cooper QC: This hearing is about whether the core pleaded statements have more than no chance of success.
Still discussing the fact that claimant has not named individuals who discriminated at this stage (unable to name all individuals without disclosure being completed).
Sound still intermittent.
Ben Cooper QC talking about collective action of the chambers against the claimant (@BluskyeAllison), withholding work during 2019.
Ben Cooper QC: Gender critical beliefs held/expressed by claimant are those held by a women’s movement of female feminists. Indirect discrimination on grounds of sex, also on grounds of sexual orientation, many that hold these beliefs are lesbians.
Ben Cooper QC: Did Stonewall induce, instruct or cause the discrimination against the claimant?
Ben Cooper QC: I will be demonstrating this case is way beyond the strikeout threshold.
Ben Cooper QC is reading from an email sent by @BluskyeAllison in December 2018 objecting to Garden Court Chambers association with Stonewall due to them breaching Equality Act.
Ben Cooper QC: reading from redacted email, only person named from chambers at this stage is Michelle Brewer
Ben Cooper QC: It is the claimants case that through the membership of the Stonewall diversity champion programme, Stonewall enforced its views on Garden Court Chambers
Ben Cooper QC going through claimants loss of earnings since openly expressing gender critical views
Ben Cooper QC: Stephen Lui (SP?) is the Barrister who was liaising with Stonewall re what Garden Court Chambers could offer re Stonewall Diversity Champions scheme.
Ben Cooper QC showing evidence that Michelle Brewer was acting in a Garden Court Chambers capacity and not an individual practitioner capacity.
Ben Cooper QC speaking about WhatsApp messages discussing claimant, can see which is Michelle Brewer but not who all others are. Language towards claimant @BluskyeAllison is described as ‘fruity’
Judge Stout asking if employees of Garden Court Chambers (in the marketing department?) have been redacted.
Ongoing discussion between Ben Cooper QC and Judge Stout re who are the redacted individuals in Michelle Brewers text/WhatsApp messages. Are they members of Garden Court Chambers?
Ben Cooper QC explains that #TERF is a derogatory term used to describe someone with claimants (@BluskyeAllison’s) beliefs
Ben Cooper QC: plainly nonsense, as can be seen from texts, that Garden Court Chambers didn’t realise that putting out a tweet was ‘making a public statement’
Discussion re how longer different counsels will need to speak for. Who will we hear from this afternoon and who tomorrow.
Breaking for lunch. Will resume at 2.
More from Law
Better late than never. Here we go. What does this deal mean for borders, border formalities, customs & trade facilitation?
Long one. TL:DR very little at the moment but has potential
/1
Borders
When compared to no deal the deal changes very little in terms of border procedures. All formalities and checks will still be required.
Reminder - we're not starting from 0 here – both our container ports and our ro-ro ports are already congested
/2
On top of that, all the issues related to border readiness: lack of capacity and space, IT systems not ready, shortages of customs agents, treader readiness – have not been solved.
The deal doesn’t help with that.
/3
Here is where we are:
☑️The UK will phase-in border formalities over 6 months (customs and SPS)
☑️The EU will introduce full formalities in 3 days (customs + SPS)
☑️Irish Sea border also fully operational in 3 days with some short-term SPS easements
/4
Pre-notifications (safety & security declarations) not initially required on the UK side, needed for imports into the EU.
So what's in the deal?
/5
Long one. TL:DR very little at the moment but has potential
/1
Lots of stuff on technical barriers and customs cooperation. See @AnnaJerzewska for more on the latter. pic.twitter.com/3sC5xHD3Z8
— Steve Peers (@StevePeers) December 26, 2020
Borders
When compared to no deal the deal changes very little in terms of border procedures. All formalities and checks will still be required.
Reminder - we're not starting from 0 here – both our container ports and our ro-ro ports are already congested
/2
On top of that, all the issues related to border readiness: lack of capacity and space, IT systems not ready, shortages of customs agents, treader readiness – have not been solved.
The deal doesn’t help with that.
/3
Here is where we are:
☑️The UK will phase-in border formalities over 6 months (customs and SPS)
☑️The EU will introduce full formalities in 3 days (customs + SPS)
☑️Irish Sea border also fully operational in 3 days with some short-term SPS easements
/4
Pre-notifications (safety & security declarations) not initially required on the UK side, needed for imports into the EU.
So what's in the deal?
/5
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I just finished Eric Adler's The Battle of the Classics, and wanted to say something about Joel Christiansen's review linked below. I am not sure what motivates the review (I speculate a bit below), but it gives a very misleading impression of the book. 1/x
The meat of the criticism is that the history Adler gives is insufficiently critical. Adler describes a few figures who had a great influence on how the modern US university was formed. It's certainly critical: it focuses on the social Darwinism of these figures. 2/x
Other insinuations and suggestions in the review seem wildly off the mark, distorted, or inappropriate-- for example, that the book is clickbaity (it is scholarly) or conservative (hardly) or connected to the events at the Capitol (give me a break). 3/x
The core question: in what sense is classics inherently racist? Classics is old. On Adler's account, it begins in ancient Rome and is revived in the Renaissance. Slavery (Christiansen's primary concern) is also very old. Let's say classics is an education for slaveowners. 4/x
It's worth remembering that literacy itself is elite throughout most of this history. Literacy is, then, also the education of slaveowners. We can honor oral and musical traditions without denying that literacy is, generally, good. 5/x
As someone\u2019s who\u2019s read the book, this review strikes me as tremendously unfair. It mostly faults Adler for not writing the book the reviewer wishes he had! https://t.co/pqpt5Ziivj
— Teresa M. Bejan (@tmbejan) January 12, 2021
The meat of the criticism is that the history Adler gives is insufficiently critical. Adler describes a few figures who had a great influence on how the modern US university was formed. It's certainly critical: it focuses on the social Darwinism of these figures. 2/x
Other insinuations and suggestions in the review seem wildly off the mark, distorted, or inappropriate-- for example, that the book is clickbaity (it is scholarly) or conservative (hardly) or connected to the events at the Capitol (give me a break). 3/x
The core question: in what sense is classics inherently racist? Classics is old. On Adler's account, it begins in ancient Rome and is revived in the Renaissance. Slavery (Christiansen's primary concern) is also very old. Let's say classics is an education for slaveowners. 4/x
It's worth remembering that literacy itself is elite throughout most of this history. Literacy is, then, also the education of slaveowners. We can honor oral and musical traditions without denying that literacy is, generally, good. 5/x
THE MEANING, SIGNIFICANCE AND HISTORY OF SWASTIK
The Swastik is a geometrical figure and an ancient religious icon. Swastik has been Sanatan Dharma’s symbol of auspiciousness – mangalya since time immemorial.
The name swastika comes from Sanskrit (Devanagari: स्वस्तिक, pronounced: swastik) &denotes “conducive to wellbeing or auspicious”.
The word Swastik has a definite etymological origin in Sanskrit. It is derived from the roots su – meaning “well or auspicious” & as meaning “being”.
"सु अस्ति येन तत स्वस्तिकं"
Swastik is de symbol through which everything auspicios occurs
Scholars believe word’s origin in Vedas,known as Swasti mantra;
"🕉स्वस्ति ना इन्द्रो वृधश्रवाहा
स्वस्ति ना पूषा विश्ववेदाहा
स्वस्तिनास्तरक्ष्यो अरिश्तनेमिही
स्वस्तिनो बृहस्पतिर्दधातु"
It translates to," O famed Indra, redeem us. O Pusha, the beholder of all knowledge, redeem us. Redeem us O Garudji, of limitless speed and O Bruhaspati, redeem us".
SWASTIK’s COSMIC ORIGIN
The Swastika represents the living creation in the whole Cosmos.
Hindu astronomers divide the ecliptic circle of cosmos in 27 divisions called https://t.co/sLeuV1R2eQ this manner a cross forms in 4 directions in the celestial sky. At centre of this cross is Dhruva(Polestar). In a line from Dhruva, the stars known as Saptarishi can be observed.
The Swastik is a geometrical figure and an ancient religious icon. Swastik has been Sanatan Dharma’s symbol of auspiciousness – mangalya since time immemorial.
The name swastika comes from Sanskrit (Devanagari: स्वस्तिक, pronounced: swastik) &denotes “conducive to wellbeing or auspicious”.
The word Swastik has a definite etymological origin in Sanskrit. It is derived from the roots su – meaning “well or auspicious” & as meaning “being”.
"सु अस्ति येन तत स्वस्तिकं"
Swastik is de symbol through which everything auspicios occurs
Scholars believe word’s origin in Vedas,known as Swasti mantra;
"🕉स्वस्ति ना इन्द्रो वृधश्रवाहा
स्वस्ति ना पूषा विश्ववेदाहा
स्वस्तिनास्तरक्ष्यो अरिश्तनेमिही
स्वस्तिनो बृहस्पतिर्दधातु"
It translates to," O famed Indra, redeem us. O Pusha, the beholder of all knowledge, redeem us. Redeem us O Garudji, of limitless speed and O Bruhaspati, redeem us".
SWASTIK’s COSMIC ORIGIN
The Swastika represents the living creation in the whole Cosmos.
Hindu astronomers divide the ecliptic circle of cosmos in 27 divisions called https://t.co/sLeuV1R2eQ this manner a cross forms in 4 directions in the celestial sky. At centre of this cross is Dhruva(Polestar). In a line from Dhruva, the stars known as Saptarishi can be observed.