Watch: Trans activist glues hand to Oxford Union floor during Kathleen Stock talk

A trans activist has glued themselves to the floor of the Oxford Union in protest of a talk by Prof Kathleen Stock.

Riz Possnett, a student activist, sat in front of Prof Stock and Union president Matthew Dick wearing a t-shirt emblazoned with the words “No More Dead Trans Kids”.

Possnett was glued to the floor in front of the speakers and refused to move, while two other protesters stood up at different ends of the room, shouting and handing out leaflets.

The protesters were booed by members of the audience, with one attendee calling for “free speech” and another urging everyone to “listen to Kathleen Stock”.

Possnett later admitted to the stunt on social media, saying it was peaceful protest against Ms Stock, who Possnett accused of promoting “anti-trans propaganda”.

It comes as hundreds of trans activists have commenced a march on the Oxford Union, chanting “cut your system, f-ck your hate, we are not open for debate”.

08:01 PM

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07:38 PM

Activist joins protesters outside the Oxford Union after disrupting the talk

07:36 PM

Riz Possnett appears after being removed from the Oxford Union

Possnett was greeted at the back entrance of the building by cheering protestors before returning to the front of the venue where the crowd chanted: “Terf lies cost lives”

07:24 PM

Oxford Union protester says trans rights 'should not be up to debate'

Riz Possnett, the protester who glued themselves to the floor of the Oxford Union debating chamber, said trans rights “should not be up to debate”.

In a thread posted to Twitter, Possnett said that those who had come to listen to Prof Stock, who has been accused of transphobia by the Oxford University LGBTQ+ society in the lead up to the event, should consider the “dangerous consequences” of her views.

Possnett said: “Trans lives and rights should not be up for ‘debate’, but the Union did not even provide that. My goal was to show the other side, to ensure everyone who listened to Stock’s talk also considered the dangerous consequences of those views for trans people, particularly trans youth.

“Kathleen Stock is not welcome here. Terfs are not welcome here. We will resist hatred, and we will fight for trans rights. Trans people, including trans youth, deserve to live in peace, safe from bigotry and harassment, with access to life-saving gender-affirming healthcare.

“We grieve for our trans siblings who have lost their lives on waiting lists, we grieve for those who have been murdered, and we grieve for those who died without ever having the freedom to live as their true selves. No more.

“We will fight for trans rights and trans futures. We will not let the trans youth of the future suffer as we have. We will fight for justice for trans youth, healthcare for trans youth, dignity for trans youth, and joy for trans youth. No more dead trans kids.”

07:20 PM

'At least 50 per cent' of trans women in prison there for sexual assault, says Prof Stock

Kathleen Stock has said that those who think trans people are not violent “should speak to a criminologist”.

Arguing that trans women who were born male should not be able to access female-only spaces, she said: “In changing rooms where women are, we are supposed to do stuff (to protect them) and when we took males out as we did before, it was on the assumption that some males are predators.

“We are not doing that as a society. We are supposed to care about women. It is a risk of a man saying he is a woman and going into a space and taking advantage of that”.

When pressed on whether trans women posed a similar risk to biological men, she said that “if you think trans people aren’t violent, you need to talk to some criminologists”.

She added that “at least 50%” of trans women in prison were there for sexual assault.

Prof Stock said it is “not fair on females” for trans women to enter their spaces, asking: “Why should females take this burden on?”

06:26 PM

Institutions becoming 'propaganda machines for a particular point of view'

Prof Stock has told the Union that having hundreds of protesters outside the Union “wasn’t traumatic” for her and that students in her generation would stage similar protests.

She said she is more concerned about protesters infiltrating institutions and that those institutions then become “propaganda machines for a particular point of view”.

She said she believes that is happening at some places and at some universities.

It is going “to take courage” for people to realise that “the world does not end” when you have disagreements, she said.

“We can disagree reasonably and still be friends.”

06:24 PM

We need to talk about ‘reality’, says Prof Stock

Prof Stock has told the Union that we need to talk about “reality”.

She said: “I just think if we don’t talk about reality then we go wrong basically...You can live in in these worlds where...you can go about your life pretending for a while but ultimately reality will hit you in the face…It’s out there, it’s real and I can think of myself as a man all I like but ultimately I’m not going to arm wrestle you very successfully.”

06:16 PM

Prof Stock 'not saying' trans women should be in male changing rooms

Matthew Dick has asked Prof Stock about the potential harm to transgender women if they have to use male changing facilities.

She said she is “not saying” that transgender women should be in male changing rooms.

If we can find millions of pounds for Stonewall, then “we can use that” to lobby for creating “a range of spaces for everybody”, she said.

06:11 PM

Oxford protest in pictures

06:06 PM

Prof Stock says trans protesters 'totally misunderstand' her views

Prof Stock has acknowledged the noise of chanting protesters outside the Union.

She said her views on protecting female spaces is “not to say that there is something about being a transgender woman that makes you violent.”

She added: “It’s the sort of thing that these people outside totally misunderstand what I am saying.”

05:57 PM

Protester removed by police amid a round of applause

Police have now removed the protester Riz Possnett and received a round of applause from the audience.

Matthew Dick, president of the Union, told the audience that the Union has been “unwavering” in its determination to hold the event since the start of term.

05:56 PM

Police struggle to remove trans activist

Police officers appear to be struggling to work out how to remove the activist student Riz Possnett from the floor of the Union. The student is said to have glued their hands to the floor.  Four officers have arrived with tools to try and remove the student and are filming as they do so.

05:52 PM

'Anyone with two free hands' should Google Tavistock gender clinic scandal

Marie Daouda, a French lecturer at Oriel College, has taken the opportunity to make a statement while the Union waits for police officers.

She said that “anyone with two free hands” should take a minute to Google the Tavistock gender clinic scandal.

05:44 PM

Prof Kathleen Stock arriving at Oxford Union

04:57 PM

Hundreds of protesters begin march to the Oxford Union

A few hundred people have turned out for a protest against Ms Stock’s appearance.

Speakers said they were “fighting for their rights” and took part in chants of “trans rights are humans rights” and “no borders, no nation, trans liberation”.

Activists chanted “cut your system, f*ck your hate, we are not open for debate” before setting off an a march towards the union.

Students against Ms Stock’s appearance said the Union should have made the event more of a debate, however those queuing up to attend the event said they were supporting free speech.

04:49 PM

Police say they will balance 'rights of protesters with the needs of the local community'

A Thames Valley Police spokesperson said: “We are aware of a planned protest around an event at the Oxford Union in Oxford today and we are working with the event organisers and protest groups.

“We will have appropriate resources in place to facilitate lawful and peaceful protest, as is our legal obligation, while balancing the rights of protesters with the needs of the local community.

“However, where people engage in non-peaceful protest or disrupt those going about their lawful business, we will take proportionate action.”

“If anyone has any concerns at the protest then please speak to a police officer or police member of staff.

“Alternatively, you can contact the force online or call 101. In an emergency situation, always call 999.”

04:11 PM

'Prepare' for arrests at trans activist protest

Leaders of a pro-transgender protest outside tonight’s talk by the gender-critical feminist Prof Kathleen Stock have told activists to “prepare” for arrests.

They have emailed Oxford students a “bust card which summarises everything and includes the numbers of solicitors specific to protest and activism law”, adding: “It is advisable to memorise some of those names and numbers!”

The email adds: “I am attaching the Green and Black Cross summary of the 5 Key messages (no comment; no personal details; no duty solicitor; under what power?; no caution) which are relevant to all protests when interacting with the police, but perhaps even more important if you are a member of the LGBTQ+ community and at higher risk of being arrested.”

LGBTQ+ society reps told students in the email that arrests are “quite unlikely but prepare for them regardless because police behaviour can sadly be very unpredictable at times” and said “there will also be legal observers present”.

03:57 PM

Support your trans students, Oxford colleges told

Zoë-Rose Guy, a computer science student at Hertford College, said that Oxford’s colleges and tutors “need to make it clear that they support their trans students”.

She told a panel discussion ahead of Prof Kathleen Stock’s Oxford Union talk that trans students have been “neglected by senior management” at the university.

Another student speaking at the event also called on academics to do more to support trans students.

She said: “Two of my Philosophy tutors signed the open letter [supporting the trans community] but I cannot say that they have acted more than neutrally with respect of the issue and perhaps they could do a lot more.”

03:52 PM

Welfare rooms laid on with ear plugs and energy bars

Activists have set up “welfare rooms” in an Oxford college for trans activist protesters who are distressed, even if they haven’t attended Prof Kathleen Stock’s talk.

In an email, an LGBTQ+ society rep told students this afternoon: “We have set up welfare rooms at Brasenose college [...] If you can’t get to it, you can also go to the backup welfare room [...]!

“These are both open between 16:00 and 20:00, and will be operated by trained peer supporters and first aiders.

“They can offer water bottles, energy bars, ear plugs, bust cards, storage space for your personal belongings (bags, ID, phone, etc.), and welfare support. These are quiet spaces which you can escape to if you need a moment away from the protest.”

03:47 PM

What's the row about?

Oxford dons warned students that freedom of speech was at risk as a trans row began to engulf the university earlier this month.

More than 40 academics - including Prof Richard Dawkins, the evolutionary biologist, and Prof Nigel Biggar, the theologian - intervened in support of a planned appearance at the Oxford Union by Prof Kathleen Stock, a leading feminist, in a letter to The Telegraph.

In the biggest row to erupt at the university since Rhodes Must Fall, students have tried to cancel Prof Stock’s talk - claiming that she is transphobic for her view that it is fiction to claim “transwomen are women”.

It comes amid a spate of free speech rows at universities featuring speakers with gender-critical views.

Read the story up until now here.

03:41 PM

'Bumpy time' for trans community

Here’s an update from the second panel discussion that trans activists have held in Lincoln College to coincide with tonight’s Oxford Union talk, with the rally due to start at 4pm.

The second panel focused on “trans joy” and heard from members of the community about their experiences coming out and of “generational trauma”, Neil Johnston reports.

The host  Dr Clara Barker, a transgender academic who is Dean for Equality and Diversity at Linacre College, said the community was going through a “bumpy time” but hoped they would be “moving forward”.

”I’m quite comfortable we are moving forward and there are going to be a lot more voices moving forward,” Dr Baker said.

Activists are now heading to Bonn Square and claimed that a counter-protest turned up at the wrong time and had now gone home.

02:50 PM

Students' learning is hampered by 'hate speech', says Oxford academic

Dr Clara Barker, a transgender academic who is Dean for Equality and Diversity at Linacre College, told the panel that discussion that veers into “hate speech” will stop students from learning and getting the best results.

She said: “Our main reason for being a university is to teach, is to lecture, is to impart knowledge and to help people learn and get grades. And there’s a whole bunch of studies that show that students that are overstressed, that are in a bad situation in one way or another, do not learn as well.”

She said that if the university is “encouraging an environment” where there are negative feelings, then it could harm the ability of students to perform well.

“We have to question what is it that we want,” she said. “Do we want to make sure that our students get the test results? Do we want to encourage learning as much as we can?”

02:45 PM

'Everywhere is gender-critical', says protest leader

Amiad Haran Diman, president of the Oxford University’s LGBTQ+ society, is speaking this afternoon at a panel discussion on “free speech and hate speech” arranged in response to Prof Stock’s talk.

He said that “everywhere is gender critical” and denied that opposing Prof Stock’s talk was putting free speech at risk.

He said that you only have to look at the “opinions of major parties” and “how hostile they are”.

“The real power is with the [gender] ‘criticals’, not the trans community. The real victims of this is the trans community.”

He said it was a “misconception” that students are “snowflakes”. He said students at Oxford were “probably too up for debate”. He added: “However, what they also do is reject intolerance, is reject hate. I think that’s what happened here.”

02:27 PM

What's happening in the Oxford trans row this afternoon?

There are several things happening across the course of the afternoon before the talk by Kathleen Stock itself. We’ll be bringing you the latest as it happens.

1. 2pm until 3pm - panel at Lincoln College: titled “Between Free Speech and Hate Speech”, a panel of of trans, nonbinary, gender non-conforming, and intersex speakers “will discuss ways to preserve academic freedom without promoting or validating dangerous and hateful speech, which can harm marginalised groups”.

2. 3pm until 4pm - panel in Lincoln College: titled “Trans+ Joy Across Generations”, this second panel in the same location, the Oakeshott Room in the college, “will feature trans, nonbinary, gender non-conforming and intersex people of various ages who will speak about what trans+ joy means for them”, organisers say.

3. 4pm until 4.40pm - mass rally begins in Bonn Square: this will see activists gather outside the Westgate Shopping Centre for a rally “to express a rejection of hateful and trans-exclusionary speakers”, featuring “speeches and chants”.

4. 4.40pm until 7pm - Pride protest outside Oxford Union: this will take place directly outside the venue of the talk, described by organisers as “a hopeful festival centred around the joy, power, and visibility of trans, nonbinary, gender non-conforming and intersex people” featuring “loud music, empowering chants” and “fill[ing] the streets with drag queens, dancing, and colourful, unavoidable visibility”.

02:04 PM

We want trans people to be protected, says Kathleen Stock

Feminist Kathleen Stock has said that the way trans people have been written about by some sections of the press has “encouraged a sense of paranoia”.

Professor Stock told Times Radio: “It’s encouraged a feeling that this must be about their existence or their legal protection, when in fact, as far as I’m concerned, it’s not. It’s about the form the legal protection takes and whether it interacts with legal protections for biological sex and female sex in particular.

“I have sympathy. I’m hoping that by this sort of initiative people in positions of influence start to see that this is not about trans people’s existence, we know they exist, we want them to be legally protected.

“The way in which it has been talked about in some quarters of the press is just completely ridiculous and histrionic and has encouraged a sense of paranoia.”

01:51 PM

Recap: Rishi Sunak backs Kathleen Stock after trans uproar over Oxford invite

Rishi Sunak has said that Prof Kathleen Stock has a right to be heard as he urged students to engage with the feminist academic’s views even if they disagree with her.

Prof Stock, who believes trans women are not women, is set to take part in an event at the Oxford Union on Tuesday evening, but her invitation sparked a backlash from trans activists.

In a rare intervention into a campus free speech row, the Prime Minister told The Telegraph: “A free society requires free debate. We should all be encouraged to engage respectfully with the ideas of others.

“University should be an environment where debate is supported, not stifled. We mustn’t allow a small but vocal few to shut down discussion. Kathleen Stock’s invitation to the Oxford Union should stand.

“Agree or disagree with her, Professor Stock is an important figure in this argument. Students should be allowed to hear and debate her views.”

He added: “A tolerant society is one which allows us to understand those we disagree with, and nowhere is that more important than within our great universities.”

Read more on this here

01:44 PM

Kathleen Stock is 'well-informed' about trans matters

One of the Oxford academics supporting Prof Kathleen Stock’s right to speak has hit back at criticisms from activists that trans matters are not her field of expertise.

John Maier, 25 a philosophy PhD student at Oxford, said: “I think there’s a reliable contingent still of the student and academic population who do obviously oppose Kathleen Stock being permitted to speak at the Oxford Union.”

Mr Maier, who is among a group of academics defending free speech at the university, added: “I think one of the remarkable things about this is that Kathleen Stock is talking about something that her expertise well places her to discuss.

“You’re talking about a well-credentialed academic, talking about something that she is well-informed about.”

01:38 PM

Good afternoon

Hello and welcome to The Telegraph’s live coverage of a row engulfing the University of Oxford over a transgender debate with Prof Kathleen Stock, a leading philosophy expert and gender-critical feminist, this afternoon.

We’ll be bringing you live updates from the talk at 5pm and the mass transgender activist protests expected to take place outside the venue, with organisers warning that “heated interactions are likely”.

The question and answer session is being held at the Oxford Union, the 200-year-old debate society.

Stay with us for live updates as the dispute that has divided Oxford for weeks reaches its crescendo.

01:33 PM

Biggest Oxford row since Rhodes Must Fall

Dr Julius Grower, 32, of St Hugh’s College, Oxford, told The Telegraph on Tuesday that the row over Prof Stock’s talk is the biggest cultural debate to have erupted at the university since Rhodes Must Fall.

He said: “The same anger around Rhodes Must Fall is present in some of the discourse here.”

Dr Grower, who co-ordinated a letter by more than 40 academics defending free speech earlier this month, said he has since received “very wide ranging and generally very supportive reaction.”

He told The Telegraph: “Lots of colleagues from a wider range of subjects and more importantly, a wider range of political persuasions than I think we would ever have imagined, would have supported us, have been in touch to say that the principle expressed in the letter is absolutely right.

“It means something to them, and that they wish they could have supported it.”

01:32 PM

Hundreds of protesters to rally outside Oxford Union

Hundreds of protesters are expected to descend on Oxford this afternoon to join a rally ahead of Prof Kathleen Stock’s talk, Louisa Clarence-Smith and Freya Jones write.

Amiad Haran Diman, president of the Oxford University’s LGBTQ+ society, told The Telegraph that protest organisers are hoping for around 500 people to participate.

A Pride panel event and “mass rally” planned for this afternoon is also backed by the LGBTQ+ society at Oxford Brookes.

Mr Diman said: “Oxford Trans+ Pride is not about Kathleen Stock and is not about the Oxford Union. They both enjoy the attention they’ll get from it - I don’t care about them.

“Who I care about is the trans people of Oxford - who it’s all about. It’s about celebrating trans joy, cherishing trans lives, and amplifying trans power - that’s the best form of protest we could have.”