While trans people are obviously happy that Joanna Cherry has been re-shuffled away from position of power, claiming that she was “sacked” because of transphobia is unhelpful. Here’s why...

Firstly, the rhetoric that Joanna Cherry uses, claiming she was “sacked” is misleading. She has not lost her job or her income. She has merely had certain responsibilities moved away from her, along with the associated title.

This is commonplace for politicians in a reshuffle..

Using language like “sacked” infers that “I have had this thing done *to* me because of something I have done”.

Cherry is implicitly positioning the “thing she has done” as being “standing up for women’s rights” aka transphobia...

In reality, the reason Joanna Cherry has been reshuffled away from the front bench is due to a number of reasons, not just her problematic transphobia.

Her problematic support of Salmond and her vying for SNP leadership are likely more the political motivators...

Stating that Joanna Cherry has been “sacked” because of her transphobia, implies that:

A. trans people actually have that level of influence (they don’t), and
B. people in power care enough about transphobia to take action (would Cherry go if she was a Sturgeon supporter?)...

While it is entirely possible that Joanna Cherry was reshuffled out of the front bench *in part* due to her transphobia, claiming that was the entire reason, allows her to position herself as a “victim” of a “powerful trans lobby*”

*which we know to be entirely without merit

Claiming Joanna Cherry was “sacked” because of her transphobia plays directly into her #DARVO narrative - that she is somehow the ‘victim’, and trans people are the ‘aggressors’.

Understand the linguistic tricks transphobes use, and inform others https://metro.co.uk/2020/06/13/guide-darvo-gaslighting-response-people-give-when-called-bad-behaviour-12847680/