CV NEWS FEED // Australia’s Supreme Court is set to rule this week on a case brought by a biological male, identifying as a woman, who is seeking full access to a woman-only app, and a written apology from the company for not allowing him to join.
Roxanne Tickle, a man who identifies as a woman, sued the app “Giggle for Girls” in December of 2022 for discrimination after he was not allowed to join the female-only networking app.
The respondent in the case is represented by Katherine Deves of Alexander Rashidi Lawyers. Deves stated that the landmark case forces the country’s Supreme Court to answer the question, “What is a woman?”
The Australian Supreme Court heard the case, Tickle v. Giggle, on April 9 and is expected to issue a ruling later this week.
Non-profit organization Alliance Defending Freedom International issued a news release in support of “Giggle for Girls” and its founder, Sally Grover.
“This case has significant implications for the watching world, as women fight in every corner to maintain their access, in the name of equality and non-discrimination, to single-sex spaces, including sports, changing rooms, counseling groups, crisis centers and more,” stated ADF International Director of Advocacy Robert Clarke.
ADF International reported that Tickle argues that he is “legally permitted to identify as female” and has had his birth certificate changed from male to female. Because of this, he argues that he should be allowed in female-only spaces, including digital ones. According to online news outlet Tribunal Tweets, Tickle “is seeking damages, a written apology and complete access to the platform.”
The ADF International news release also included a statement from the app’s CEO and founder Sally Grover.
“I designed my app to give women their own space to network,” Grover said. “It is a legal fiction that Tickle is a woman. His birth certificate has been altered from male to female, but he is a biological man, and always will be. A woman’s-only app isn’t about discrimination. It’s about freedom of speech, belief and association.”
Grover added that her company is standing “for the safety of all women’s only spaces, but also for basic reality and truth, which the law should reflect.”
Clarke backed Grover’s statement that the Australian Supreme Court should answer the question, “what is a woman?” according to biological reality.
“In a world of confusion, it’s critical that law must always uphold truth,” Clarke stated. “Men cannot become women, and we cannot change decades of hard-fought legal agreements and rights simply to accommodate a lie.”
