Outrage as charity for little-known but common women’s condition appoints trans woman as CEO

A charity for a womb condition that can leave women in agony for years has come under fire for appointing a trans woman as its new CEO.

Endometriosis South Coast (ESC) announced on X, formerly known as Twitter, that Labor activist Steph Richards would lead the organisation.

Ms Richards has previously claimed that transgender people can change their biological sex “just a little bit” and boasted about running a “safe space” where men could secretly dress up as women, including as “schoolgirls”.

ECS’s announcement of Ms Richard’s appointment included a statement next to her image that read: ‘Isn’t it ridiculous that I’ll be in my 40s before medical professionals have even mentioned endometriosis.’

Trans women, biological men who identify as women, cannot and should not have a uterus and therefore can never suffer from endometriosis.

Feminist author Milli Hill argued the appointment was no different to a controversial case last year in which a man was appointed Scotland’s first ever dignity officer.

Ms Richards’ appointment received a strong response online.

One woman, who posted only the account name IDD64, said: ‘As a woman who has suffered from endometriosis for decades, I simply cannot fathom why you would find this appointment appropriate.’

The charity was later forced to clarify that the statement was not from Ms Richards and apologized for the ‘misunderstanding’.

‘This quote is from an individual who supports our charity. Not from Steph herself,” they wrote.

“Steph is a huge supporter of what people in the endo community are going through.

“This is why they were appointed, not because they have their own endo journey.”

Feminist writer Milli Hill has also objected to Ms Richards’ appointment, arguing it was no different to last year when a man was appointed as Scotland’s first ever dignity officer.

That position, controversially given to tobacco salesman turned macho personal trainer Jason Grant, was axed after the furore.

Although Ms Richards has not responded directly to the outcry over her appointment, she responded to Ms Hill’s post, saying: ‘I researched issues surrounding pregnancy and women’s health over 20 years ago.

“Strangely enough, ‘sex’ wasn’t an issue at that time.”

Ms Richards has previously argued to Ms Hill that people can change their biological sex, male or female, “a little bit”.

Ms Richards, now in her 70s, has previously detailed her journey to becoming a trans woman on her blog.

In that account, she describes how she and her ex-wife Lin created a safe space where men could dress up in secret from their families.

“Some, of course, wanted to be schoolgirls and brides, but for most it was a matter of wearing a dress, having a cup of coffee or, for the very brave, going out shopping,” she wrote.

ECS claims to support ‘people’ experiencing endometriosis, a condition in which uterine tissue grows in parts of the female anatomy where it shouldn’t, such as ovaries and fallopian tubes.

Symptoms include pelvic and abdominal pain, extremely painful menstruation, pain during sex, difficulty in conceiving, having a huge impact on the patients that may also lead to depression.

The charity was eventually forced to apologize and clarify that the quote came from a person who supported the charity, rather than Ms Richards herself.

Some endometriosis sufferers, such as one user who only used IDD64, said they struggled to understand how the charity could consider this appropriate

It is thought that around one in ten women in Britain have endometriosis.

Despite its prevalence, many women struggle to take their pain and symptoms seriously and may be forced to wait decades for a diagnosis.

The issue of removing the terms women and terms related to female anatomy from health information pages due to conditions that only affect biological women has been raised before.

Health experts have criticized the trend, saying it makes reporting on vital healthcare dangerously complicated.