We’ve published a number of articles this year exposing the transphobia of the Sisters Cisters of Cinema group. However, it’s in the clash of opinions that we’ll find the truth – and to further this synthesis we have interviewed someone from the other side. Today we talk to Germaine of the Sisters Cisters of Cinema collective.

Editor: Germaine, welcome.

Germaine: Thanks! It’s great to be here.

So you are a core member of the collective, you told us. Are there many people working for you?

Well, it’s true we’ve had some budget problems. And several people walked out or flat out refused to help us anymore since we collaborated with a transphobe, and we fired the web designer, so to tell you the truth it’s been a bit quiet in the office. We’re trying to convince some more people to work for us for free, that should solve the problems.

Why don’t you tell us a bit about what’s been happening, the big controversy.

Well, we were hacked! The web designer – a young forty-year-old woman – changed our facebook page and our website, calling out to ‘pay webdesigners’ and ‘apologize for transphobia’ – and we just can’t have these hopeful, inspiring messages of change. That’s why we wanted to set the record straight.

And she posted hate speech on the page?

Well no, mostly music and interesting feminist second wave articles. But the intention was bad! And we can’t let that slide. Well it’s best if we look at what she does as ‘hate’ so we can be the calm, diplomatic adult ones. We were seething with rage, actually, I can tell you! We already wanted to fire her earlier this year because she protested against showing a movie by a transphobe. But it would have looked pretty bad then, you know. So we said, ‘let’s wait a while until things calm down’.

And in your last communique [which will be published soon – Ed.] you’ve accused her of being a bit… hysterical. Isn’t that against what feminism stands for, calling other women ‘crazy’ or ‘hysterical’?

Oh no we didn’t call her hysterical! Just… deceptive, angry, hateful and confused.

And that’s totally different from hysterical. We checked with our lawyers, and we could use those words. Plus, we received not a small amount of messages from some of our supporters – who happen to be transphobic but we don’t discriminate – who mentioned that only ‘real’ women could be hysterical. Now we don’t agree of course! Trans women can be hysterical, too! Not that that is the case, here. Not that trans women aren’t… uhm, next question?

Ok… We also saw the name of your facebook page was changed to Cisters of Cinema, what was that about?

O we didn’t do that, that was the ‘hacker’. I mean, it’s technically true we’re all ‘cis’ since we fired the only trans person in the team, but that’s just a coincidence. I mean we would never – I don’t even see (peers at a small handwritten note) fender identity. We just don’t do that. We are a fine, diverse group of white cis women.

Of course it doesn’t look good to show a movie by a transphobe, then not apologize about that for a whole year and then fire a trans woman but – look, it’s just a coincidence. It’s superficial. Let’s look elsewhere.

The woman who was fired also went on strike to protest against transphobia, how come you haven’t mentioned the strike so far?

Oh, it’s best for us if we don’t tell anyone about the fact she went on strike. We’re calling it hacking, since that sounds so sinister. You know, hackerz, the matrix, evil keyboards and stuff.

So was there actually any real ‘hacking’?

Well… not as such no, since a web designer basically already has the passwords to edit the website, cause it’s their job you know. It’s more like a number of people disagree with the edits, and well, the number of people who aren’t transphobes is just smaller, and we are a democracy! We vote, and the majority wins every time. That’s why there haven’t been any apologies – we never reached a majority for that.

And what about the transphobes, are they really that dominant?

It’s 2019, we are a feminist collective and in our whole website there is not one message about trans inclusion, you do the math.

So how do you think the situation will progress?

I have two words for you: Nina Paley. Oh wait no, I wasn’t supposed to mention that. Ah we don’t align ourselves with transphobes, of course not! Well, except that time when we showed a movie by Nina Paley. And that other time when we interviewed the worst trans hater ever, Janice Raymond, for our docu on prostitution. But apart from all those times, never!

It’s outrageous to even insinuate we would be any less than perfect when it comes to fender discrimination. In fact, even questioning this is an attack on the collective. Criticism is just an attack, it’s.. you don’t do that. Everyone who is not with us, is against us! Oh no, that was a Bush quote, scratch that. Let a thousand flowers bloom.

Thank you very much for coming! This has been illuminating.

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From the not-entirely-true-but-suspiciously-close department

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See also