MADISON, April 14, 2022 — Late yesterday, in a letter sent to Thistle Pettersen, founder of WLRN, the Staff Collective at WORT officially rejected proposals to mention the upcoming feminist events, Courage Calls to Courage and Sisters for Sisters. The letter came from Chali Pittman’s account, WORT’s News Director.

The reasons stated for refusal to mention the existence of the events on WORT’s airwaves or website calendars included that “all programming heard on WORT must conform to the station’s Mission Statement which directs us to “respect all peoples and their environments.”

The letter goes on to state that “These events have platforms which proclaim that transgender individuals in our community — the T in LGBTQ+ that we aim to serve — do not exist.”

By “our community”, we assume they mean “the WORT community” in which radical and lesbian feminists are excluded for not believing the idea that some special men are actually women. Also, what does it mean to “proclaim that transgender individuals do not exist”? Even if a woman were to proclaim that “transgender individuals do not exist”, what would be the harm in that? Would those individuals “poof” disappear in a puff of smoke because she proclaims they do not exist? We don’t believe in the tenets of catholicism, but we know that the category of “Catholics” exists for the people who do. It is clear that a category called “transgender” exists for those who believe that one can possess an innate individual feeling about one’s identity with regard to varied meanings of the word “gender.”

The reasoning behind this current letter can be traced back to an exchange between WORT Board President, David Devereaux-Weber and Thistle that occurred in 2018 shortly after she aired interviews with feminists Julie Bindel and Meghan Murphy on WORT’s Access Hour program. Thistle’s radio show resulted in policy changes at WORT that require all programming to conform to “inclusive” and “respectful” language, despite the negative impact this new policy has on freedom of expression and the exchange of ideas between listeners and volunteers in the Madison community and beyond.

WLRN likes this part of the WORT Mission Statement and takes it to heart:

“WORT exists to provide “a forum for both the discussion of public issues, and the expansion of musical and cultural experience, in order to promote greater communication, education, entertainment, and understanding.”

Gender politics is a public issue and our gender-critical lesbian and feminist culture, which definitely includes music, is part of greater communication, education, entertainment, and understanding in our community. Women who think outside the boxes gender puts us in have a right to public access airwaves, and to “challenge the cultural and intellectual assumptions of our listeners through unique and diverse programming.”

Who is WORT? Who gets to be “included” in the “WORT community” that makes up a community’s radio station?

Oddly, the president states that no action is needed by the Board in his letter reprinted below, yet four years later, it is clear that action was taken to change policies so that the feminist views expressed by radical and lesbian feminists critical of transgenderism, will never get mentioned, nor air time again on WORT.

Mr. Devereaux-Weber wrote on May 13, 2018:

Dear Thistle,

When you use your free speech to deny the existence of Transgender as a category, it is not surprising when the Transgender community uses their free speech to denounce your denial. I don’t see that this calls for discussion or Board action.

Dave

Thistle responded with the following, trying to wrap her head around the accusation that expressing favor for the sex-based rights of girls and women, “denies the existence of Transgender as a category.”

“Dave,
You are ruling with an iron fist and adding to the obfuscation regarding what I and my Access Hour programs are about.

I did not use my “free speech to deny the existence of Transgender as a category…” Where in any of my speech or programming do I or any of my guests “deny the existence of Transgender as a category?” It is a category or class of individuals who identify as transgender. We can all agree to that.

We can probably also loosely agree that it is a category of persons who feel they were born into a wrongly sexed body that does not match their internal feeling of “gender identity” so they have a need (some would say a right) to present as the opposite sex and to be legally recognized as the opposite sex or as no sex or gender at all. Yes, this is a category and class of persons called “transgender” — I am not in denial of that. 

I am not a lawyer, but the definitions of “gender identity” “non-binary gender” and “transgender” differ widely depending on who you are talking to. A current legal definition  of “gender identity” is the following:

“An individual’s self-identification as being male, female, neither gender, or a blend of both genders.” So as you can see, my understanding of what “transgender” is as a category accepts this definition of “gender identity.”

My programs are not in denial of anything. They are attacked by misogynists who use the transgender issue to push their hatred of women, especially intellectual women who know other intellectual and poised women willing to speak our feminist truth to male power.

You, Sir, are a perfect example of what feminists are talking about when we analyze male power over females in our society. I do not deny your existence nor the existence of any other person or class or category of person as they self-identify. Your existence and the existence of trans-identifying people are extremely evident and clear. I feel it every day.
~ Thistle”

The full letter sent to Thistle yesterday is below:

“April 13th, 2022

Dear Thistle, 

WORT Community Radio has dealt with controversy over the control and content of our public access programs since its inception as a station. 

In recent years, the Board of Directors has affirmed that all programming heard on WORT must conform to the station’s Mission Statement which directs us to “respect all peoples and their environments.” Consequently, the Access Hour and Insurgent Radio Kiosk are now under some editorial discretion. 

Our producers have received your application to host an Access Hour and issue a Kiosk commentary for two events in April — Sisters4Sisters and Courage Calls to Change. These events have platforms which proclaim that transgender individuals in our community — the T in LGBTQ+ that we aim to serve — do not exist. 

Our consensus is that this application is denied. Programming that espouses discrimination is by definition not “respecting all people,” thus it goes against our Mission Statement, and cannot be aired. 

The First Amendment protects a person’s right to free speech from government intervention. It does not give one the right to have speech be heard on WORT. WORT is not a government agency, we are an inclusive organization that seeks to respect and promote the equality of all members of the community.

We thoroughly review each application to the Access Hour in deciding to approve or reject it. You may choose to submit future applications. Please know, though, that future applications proposing programming that rejects the gender identity and expression of trans individuals will be similarly rejected. 

Signed, 

Staff Collective

WORT 89.9 FM Madison”

To write to the WORT board president and the news director, direct your messages to chali@wortfm.org and president@wortfm.org.