UK

Trans comic feels ‘vindicated’ after video emerges of her being abused at LGB Alliance conference

Jen Ives at the LGB Alliance conference

Jen Ives attended the LGB Alliance conference in October, 2021. (Twitter/ jenivescomedian)

Trans comedian Jen Ives feels “vindicated” after shocking and distressing footage emerged of her being subjected to transphobic abuse at the 2021 LGB Alliance conference.

The controversial conference was held in October at the Queen Elizabeth II Centre in London, and was attended by many LGB Alliance supporters and so called “gender critical” lobbyists, including Graham Linehan, Labour MP Rosie Duffield and Tory MP Jackie Doyle-Price.

Panels were held on “transgender ideology” and although the group’s hero, JK Rowling, was unable to attend, LGB Alliance paid for a cut-out of her to be brought to the conference centre so attendees could pose with it.

LGB Alliance has been branded an “anti-trans hate group” by high-profile LGBT+ figures, charities and organisations since its launch in October 2019, including Pride in London, gay SNP MP John Nicolson, journalist Owen Jones and gay Scottish actor David Paisley. Searing criticism has also come from the likes of It’s a Sin creator Russell T Davies and openly gay footballer Josh Cavallo.

Labour’s shadow minister for women and equalities, Taiwo Owatemi, said that the group “should be rejected by all those who believe in equality”. LGB Alliance continues to deny it is transphobic.

Ives, a bisexual trans woman and a comedian, decided to pay for a ticket and attend the conference.

While in attendance, she was subjected to severe transphobic abuse, which she publicly discussed at the time, but Ives has now told PinkNews she has spent the last five months being branded a liar by so-called gender critical campaigners.

This week, she said she feels “vindicated” after footage surfaced of her being confronted by LGB Alliance supporter Alexander Bramham and his now-boyfriend Brad – Bramham has confirmed they began dating after meeting at the LGB Alliance conference.

“Obviously, testimony is more difficult to believe than straight-up video posted by the person who did it,” she said. “An image is worth a thousand words.”

The voice behind the camera, widely identified as Brad including by Bramham himself, can be heard repeatedly abusing Ives, saying: “You are a man. You are a man… You are trying to use female spaces. You are not female you are male. You are a man. You are an adult, human male.”

He then compared being trans to a deadly psychiatric illness, adding: “Pro-anorexia websites are banned, but your crap is published everywhere, promoted everywhere.”

He said: “You are a mentally ill, autogynephilic pervert.”

A friend of Ives was “lurking in a gender critical forum” when they discovered the video, recorded by Brad, had been “passed around” gender critical “circles” for around four months.

During those months, Ives says she was repeatedly described as a “liar” by anti-trans campaigners.

Linehan accused Ives of lying in a blog post, and said she “hung around waiting for a chance to demand to be let into the women’s toilets”.

Ives said Rob Jessel, who was then LGB Alliance’s press officer, apologised to her at the conference.

“He was saying, ‘This isn’t appropriate, this shouldn’t have happened,'” said Ives.

“Very much giving the public face.”

But after she spoke out, Jessel took to Twitter and also accused her of lying. For unrelated tweets, Jessel was later permanently banned from Twitter for “abuse and harassment”.

 

Despite the video evidence of abuse, LGB Alliance supporters have sought to defend it.

Since posting the footage, Ives has been accused of filming women in the toilets at the conference, and of “bullying” and “entrapping” Brad, who is autistic.

Ives says she did not film anything at the event, nor did she record any audio inside the toilets.

She added: “As far as I’m concerned, [Brad] was there with an LGB Alliance t-shirt on, he’s an adult, he was there in a professional capacity, and I had no idea that he was autistic.”

“I worked with people with autism for five years and I resent that accusation.”

After the event, Ives submitted a complaint to the Queen Elizabeth II Centre, a government-owned building, over security’s alleged inaction.

She said: “They said that in their opinion security acted in a timely manner, and it was all done as it should be. They brushed me off a little bit.”

Ives said venue staff seemed to not want to take responsibility for the event.

“It seems like as far as the members of LGB Alliance were concerned, on that day, on that one floor, it was gender critical law,” she said.

PinkNews has contacted LGB Alliance and the Queen Elizabeth II Centre for comment.

 

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