A Statement on the Oxford Literary Festival

I am stepping down from my panel “Hidden Lives, Forbidden Loves” at the Oxford Literary Festival, which I would have shared with AJ West, author of The Betrayal of Thomas True, and would have been chaired by Sophie Duncan, author of Searching for Juliet. It was scheduled for 3rd April, 2025.

I have made this decision based on the Oxford Literary Festival’s platforming of anti-trans campaigners, who will be holding two headlining events at the festival on 2nd April.

This decision was not taken lightly. To my knowledge, I am one of just three out trans/ nonbinary speakers invited to the OLF, which has put me in a difficult position. Over the past month, I’ve felt a great deal of pressure to go in multiple directions: to stay and not allow myself to be “silenced,” to keep my head down and not ruffle feathers, and yes, to back out, either quietly or publicly. I’ve conferred with other queer and trans authors, cis and straight authors, friends and family, and in the end I feel that stepping down from my panel is the only way forward, both for my personal safety, and my conscience.

I have deep feelings of regret and disappointment towards the leadership at the OLF, which I would prefer not to air here. I will, however, quote something a very good friend said to me recently: “Freedom of speech is not a zero-sum game.” Broadly speaking, calling for the oppression, indeed, the eradication of an entire class of human beings is not engaging in “academic” or “intellectual debate.” Asking me to stand under the same banner as people who accuse me and people like me of being mentally ill, sexually deviant, or simply evil is not allowing for “both sides” to state their case in a “congenial atmosphere.” Not when one of those sides is saying, simply, “We exist, and have a right to live openly, honestly, and without fear for our lives,” and the other side’s response is, “No, you don’t.”

I can’t begin to express my gratitude to the other authors who have also withdrawn in protest over the OLF’s choice to prioritize hate speech over the safety of LGBTQ+ speakers and attendees. I am also incredibly grateful to the people behind the scenes who have supported me in making this decision, and who have shown such courage and care for the beautiful, generous, resilient, and beloved trans community. Not everyone will agree that withdrawing is the right thing to do, but for my part, the alternative would have been unbearable.

It’s immensely disappointing to all of us who have stepped back that we won’t be able to take advantage of what should have been an opportunity to share our work, our love for literature and history, and hopefully to inspire others to read more, learn more, write more, feel more. To be more open, more human, and more gracious. That’s all anyone should want or expect from a literary festival.

I sincerely hope that more OLF invitees will join us in demanding a festival that is welcoming and safe for all lovers of literature and learning. I believe the OLF can and should do better. This should have been a chance to celebrate humanity and art, and I hope we all continue to do that in whatever way we can.

All my💙to my trans siblings.