When instructors united with bullies to hound her out of school, the sixth-form student who dared to challenge trans ideology has warned that ‘there is no forgiveness for those branded transphobic,’ revealing that she self-harmed and relapsed into anorexia.
Last month, Britain’s ‘cancel culture’ crisis was brought to light after it was reported that an 18-year-old A-level student was labeled a ‘heretic’ for challenging pro-trans remarks made by a member of the House of Lords during a visit to the school.
After disputing her ideas with a peer during a questions-and-answers session at the private school in the Home Counties, the sixth-former was reportedly subjected to a verbal ‘pile-on’ by up to 60 students.
In an interview with The Mail on Sunday, the Baroness at the center of the controversy backed Kate’s right to free speech, joining other free speech proponents like as Tory minister Nadhim Zahawi and JK Rowling, who have also been chastised by trans campaigners.
Speaking out for the first time, the pupil has described how the experience of being condemned by teachers and pupils alike was so harrowing that she self-harmed on school premises, was made to sit on her own in the library, and ultimately forced her to drop out.
Giving the name ‘Kate’ to Unherd’s Julie Bindel, the 18-year-old told the feminist journalist that the school fell under the influence of LGBT charity Stonewall, which runs a controversial diversity scheme for hundreds of British organisations and has lobbied for gender-neutral language in legislation.
She described how she had challenged the visiting Baroness over what she considered to be her ‘righteous denunciation of her peers as irredeemably transphobic’.
Kate said she told the politician: ‘I respectfully disagree’ – causing one of her peers to run out of the room crying.
Afterwards, the sixth-former heard several students talking about ‘transphobia’ and was directly accused of causing trans students to consider suicide.
When she went to collect her bag from the locker room, a number of students circled her, called her names including ‘Nazi’, ‘fascist’, ‘transphobe’, ‘homophobe’, ‘racist’ and ‘c**t’ – and allegedly spat on her face.
The next day, Kate’s desk was covered in printouts of trans flags covered in text which read: ‘Trans rights are human rights.’ The day after that, the other sixth-formers staged a ‘Trans Day of Visibility’ and left her out – apparently to embarrass her or teach her a lesson.
Two investigations were then launched into Kate’s alleged bullying, including her ‘provocative history’.
Meanwhile, teachers would apologise to the students for Kate’s alleged ‘terrible, hateful behaviour’.
Kate told Miss Bindel that she became so distressed that she self-harmed on school premises, and was asked to stay home for several weeks ‘because I was seen as a danger to myself and to other students’.
She had battled anorexia through her teenage years and spent a year in hospital aged 13 being treated for her eating disorder.
When she did eventually return to school, she was then made to sit in the library, separate from other students.
She decided to leave the school, and Kate is now continuing her studies online and is set to begin university by the time she’s 21. Her anorexia had forced her to retake her GCSE exams.
‘Why would they turn on me so viciously?’ Kate told Unherd.
She added that these days ‘there is no forgiveness for those branded with the damning suffix of “-phobic”‘.
The Baroness told the MoS: ‘I spoke about a wide range of human rights issues. One young woman challenged some of my views and was treated with the same courtesy as everyone else who took part.’
She added: ‘I was not aware of any consequences from our interactions and thought that we had parted on amicable terms.’
The Baroness’s comments may bring some comfort to the 18-year-old, whose experience was highlighted by one of her teachers on the Transgender Trends website.
Kate previously told The Times: ‘It made me think I was mad. Otherwise how could people turn on me so bitterly?’
It is understood that the school disputes the version of events outlined in the media.