Olivia Colman, Jameela Jamil and Paloma Faith condemn ‘violence and hostility’ against trans women in open letter

‘Our feminism is against any and all violence, against any and all women,' letter says

Olivia Colman is one of the open letter’s signatories (Getty Images for Pride in London)

Olivia Colman, Jameela Jamil and Paloma Faith have signed an open letter condemning “hostility and violence” against trans women, joining a chorus of voices to do so on International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and Girls.

The letter, which pledges solidarity with trans women, who experience significantly higher levels of violence, was also signed by Labour MPs Nadia Whittome and Zarah Sultana.

Two in five trans people (41 per cent) have experienced a hate crime or incident because of their gender identity in the last 12 months, Stonewall’s 2018 Trans Report found.

The open letter says: "We are feminists and we write, on international day for the elimination of violence against women and girls, to express our solidarity with trans women, particularly trans women of colour, who experience violence and hostility so frequently it is almost a way of life.

"Trans women are more likely to be murdered, more likely to be victims of violent attacks in their own homes, and more likely to be homeless, again increasing the risk of violence, than their cis sisters. 

"Those who use hostile, crude or mocking language towards trans women, demeaning their bodies, and refusing to accept that they are who they say they are, contribute to the culture which creates those discriminatory disparities,  a culture which de-humanises trans women and girls thereby legitimising prejudice and violence against them.

"Those people, many of them in high places of fame, wealth and power, absolutely do not speak for us. 

"Our firm belief is that an end to violence against women and girls will only be possible with the full might of the sisterhood working together – and so our feminism is against any and all violence, against any and all women.  

“To our trans sisters on this day: we are with you.”

The UN has said that while all girls and women can suffer from gender-based violence, it highlights that some are especially vulnerable, identifying “women who identify as lesbian, bisexual, transgender or intersex, migrants and refugees, indigenous women and ethnic minorities, or women and girls living with HIV and disabilities, and those living through humanitarian crises” in particular.

The open letter was signed by:

Molly Mulready, 

Olivia Coleman,  

Paloma Faith

Jameela Jamil,  

Reni Eddo-Lodge  

Grace Campbell

Zarah Sultana MP,  

Nicola Coughlan    

Eleni Stefanou,

Zing Tsjeng,  

Mona Chalabi  

Rebecca Niblock,  

Sally Mulready OBE  

Ellie-Mae O’Hagan

Kuba Shand-Baptiste,    

Eliza Mulready-Carroll  

Tamsin Ormond

Tori Tunbridge

Elle Hunt  

Ash Sarkar

Nadia Whittome MP

Olivia Streater    

Candy Horsbrugh    

Laura Snapes  

Anika Grimm  

Kathy Gentles  

Nora Mulready

Julia Carrie Wong

Rehab Jaffer

Katie Ward,

Priscilla Kent,

Tabby Millest,  

Sofie Grettve Von Rosen,  

Sirin Kale

Astrid Everall,

Hannah Ewans,

Celia Telford,

Flora Coleman,

Lois Beckett,  

Emily Mackay,  

Emily Holden,  

Anna Leach

Dani Dinger,  

Clara Vulliamy,

Joan Greve,  

Freddie Cook,  

Toleana McKeown,

Emma Garland,  

Lauren O’Neill,  

Ashley Chervinski,  

Claire Maugham,    

Rachel Smethers,  

Maya Goodfellow,  

Kathryn Bromwich,

Victoria Stokes

Vivian Ho

Caitlin Curran