Your Party overwhelmingly votes to make trans rights party policy

Your Party has officially made trans liberation a party line after members overwhemlingly voted to include trans rights in its founding documents.

Members of the left-leaning political party founded by Zarah Sultana and Jeremy Corbyn voted to enshrine trans rights in the wake of its first conference over the weekend.

An amendment, which passed with nearly 70 per cent of the vote, will add the term “trans liberation” to a line in its Organisational Strategy which cements the party’s commitment to fighting for marginalised groups.

The vote came alongside a set of proposed amendments to the political party’s founding documents, including its Political Statement, Constitution, Organisational Strategy, and Standing Orders.

Less than half of Your Party’s membership turned up to vote on Amendment 4, which successfully modified the strategy to show Your Party’s commitment to fighting for “the struggles for the liberation of Palestine, anti-racism, trans liberation, and the struggles of all oppressed people”.

While nearly one third of voters opposed the amendment, not all those who voted against it were explicitly against making trans rights a party line.

During a debate on the motion, one speaker arguing against it said they felt it did not do “justice” for the specific issues faced by trans people, Palestinian people, and people of colour.

“They need to be separated and given their own sentence. Their own time, rather than a trivial pick and mix,” he said. “Trans rights are hugely important and we should respect that and give it its own place.”

Zarah Sultana says there is ‘no space for transphobia’ in Your Party

Zarah Sultana and Jeremy Corbyn are both historically staunch LGBTQ+ allies and have, on numerous occasions, shown support for the trans community.

In September, shortly after the co-leaders launched Your Party, Sultana made it clear that the political party would not accept transphobic rhetoric.

Speaking to The Canary, the former Labour MP said she felt it was “really important” for the left-wing group to be “loud and proud” about its allyship.

“What’s the point if we’re not proudly saying we’re anti-racist, we’re supportive and pro-LGBT, there is no space for transphobia, we will stand in complete defence of migrants’ rights and fight fascists, we are intenationalists, we’re pro-workers’ rights?”

Her comments came after after former Your Party MP Adnan Hussain came under fire for agreeing with a post that said trans women were “not biologically women”.

Sharing a post which called for Your Party not to “parrot the same neoliberal idea of gender ideology”, Hussain wrote: “I agree, women’s rights and safe spaces should not be encroached upon. Safe third spaces should be an alternative option.”

In its first few weeks, Your Party faced mounting criticism for its silence on trans rights topics.

Sultana acknowledge the concerns, saying: “There can’t be any questions about our position on trans rights and we need to make sure that everyone feels safe, everyone feels welcome in shaping this party.

“Trans people have the worst outcomes when it comes to housing, when it comes to health, when we look at suicide rates. If we are going to change society for everyone, we have to centre the most-marginalised people.”

The political party’s conference comes amid a growing rift between Zarah Sultana and Jeremy Corbyn after Sultana claimed its senior leadership amounted to a “boys club“.

During her speech at conference, the Coventry South MP said there had been “witch hunts” and “bullying” at the top of the party, declaring she “will not stand for this”.