Richard Dawkins refuses to give an inch to the gender mob

Richard Dawkins speaks to Piers Morgan about biological reality

Some of you may remember that the celebrated evolutionary biologist tweeted his way into a bit of bother back in 2021. His crime? Asking a question relating to gender ideology and having the audacity to encourage discussion:

Richard Dawkins @RichardDawkins

In 2015, Rachel Dolezal, a white chapter president of NAACP, was vilified for identifying as Black. Some men choose to identify as women, and some women choose to identify as men. You will be vilified if you deny that they literally are what they identify as. Discuss.

This resulted in the usual chorus of online screeching from the Anime Avatar Army and the Pronoun Mafia. But what was especially disappointing was witnessing several American atheist and humanist organisations completely beclown themselves too. You would hope organisations that exist to defend open inquiry and critical thinking in the face of religious dogma would possess greater immunity to new-born faith-based movements. Sadly not it seems.

Richard Dawkins was subsequently excommunicated from American Atheists, American Humanists and others. These organisations released embarrassing statements of condemnation that did little more than demonstrate their failure to fulfil the basic reasons for their existence. Oh, and Richard Dawkins’s Humanist of The Year Award 1996 was revoked too. I documented all of this here when it happened.

Anyhow, fast forward a couple of years later and it’s wonderful to see this experience hasn’t weakened the professor’s grip on reality. He can be seen reiterating some basic scientific facts about sex and advocating for the crime of ‘discussion’ in this clip from Piers Morgan’s show:

Piers Morgan Uncensored @PiersUncensored

Richard Dawkins says JK Rowling and Kathleen Stock have been "bullied" while standing up for themselves over trans issues. "As a biologist, there are two sexes and that's all there is to it." @RichardDawkins | @piersmorgan | @jk_rowling | @Docstockk

Of course, this has once again triggered the very online gender ‘activists’. Which is fine. However it also appears one of the most vocal critics of Dawkins from within American atheist circles, Hemant Mehta has doubled down on his own unreason:

Hemant Mehta @hemantmehta

It's so damn sad that Dawkins, who wrote some wonderful books explaining evolution, chose this particular hill to die on.

Piers Morgan Uncensored @PiersUncensored

Richard Dawkins says JK Rowling and Kathleen Stock have been "bullied" while standing up for themselves over trans issues. "As a biologist, there are two sexes and that's all there is to it." @RichardDawkins | @piersmorgan | @jk_rowling | @Docstockk https://t.co/jAV1WoGoPj

To recap, the ‘hill’ that Richard Dawkins is choosing to ‘die on’ here is scientific fact and the unhinged idea that we should be able to discuss things. Richard Dawkins is 100% correct in his statements. His reasonable utterances annoy people like Hemant because Hemant has been captured by a new religion. Dawkins is guilty of heresy because nothing but unquestioning affirmation of the ‘correct thoughts’ (decided by Hemant) is acceptable. Hemant has become the sort of irrational zealot he has spent much of his time pushing back against. He seems perfectly capable of noticing the anti-scientific claims and intolerance of conservative Christians, but doesn’t have the self-awareness to recognise it in himself.

The continued demonisation of anyone that dares to espouse gender critical views (or simply just ask questions) wouldn’t be so bad were this issue purely an academic one. But it isn’t. This ideology is responsible for great harm in the real world. Right here, right now. Past, present and future.

Be it the rights of women to single sex spaces, the medicalisation of children and irreversible surgery, the experiences of de-transitioners, the closure of scandalised gender clinics, the impact on women’s sports and the stifling of free expression. I could go on and on.

People like Mehta should start getting their excuses ready for their complicity in this harmful movement at a time when the issue was desperate for rational voices to speak up and defend reality.