Philippa East (Author)

PACE calls for ban on conversion practices The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), meeting in plenary session in Strasbourg, today called on member states to adopt legislation to “prohibit conversion practices, providing fo...

Official announcement out now: pace.coe.int/en/news/1018...

Official announcement out now: pace.coe.int/en/news/1018...

Thank you @kateosbornemp.bsky.social!

Quite.

Resolutions aren’t legally binding, but set out the Council's official stance on the specific issue.

It would set the standard and expectations for all member states of the Council of Europe. That includes the UK, and all these countries👇
🤗

www.coe.int/en/web/about...

Thank you so much for sharing! 🙏🙏🙏

The Council of Europe votes by 2/3 majority to accept the resolution banning conversion practices, brought by UK MP @kateosbornemp.bsky.social.
#SexMatters and #AthenaForum tried their best to derail this resolution, but failed.
Huge well done to everybody involved 🙌🙌🙌

Huh!

Screenshot of the landing page from the link above which reads: We are a collective of cisgender* women from every corner of society – mothers, daughters, friends, sisters, partners, colleagues, caregivers, and leaders. We represent diverse ages, backgrounds, and life experiences, united by a shared truth that demands to be heard. We reject – completely and categorically – the active discrimination and exclusion of trans, non-binary and gender-diverse people. Those who continue to target this minority group do not speak for us or represent our interests. They never have. They never will. Throughout our lives, we have endured harassment, discrimination, violence, and abuse in countless forms. From childhood catcalls to workplace discrimination, from domestic violence to sexual assault, from being silenced in boardrooms to being blamed for crimes committed against us – we know intimately what the real threat to women looks like. Cisgender men who abuse their power are the real threat We witness the devastating impact of anti-trans rhetoric, aimed predominantly at trans women, that masquerades as feminism while advancing nothing but harm. We see politicians weaponising fear to avoid addressing the systemic issues that actually endanger women. We watch media outlets generate moral panic for profit while ignoring the epidemic of male violence that claims women’s lives: One woman is killed by a man every three days in the UK (Femicide Census, 2023) 1.7 million women were impacted by domestic violence in 2023 (ONS, 2023) 98% of perpetrators of sexual offences are men (Cambridge Rape Crisis Centre, 2023) Trans people are under attack

Totally agree!
This is reflected in @nionwomen.bsky.social open letter for cisgender women, which is now at almost 80,000❤️
We’d be so grateful if you’d consider sharing this with your followers & encouraging cis women to sign.
From a big fan & fellow author!🤗
notinourname.org.uk/petition/not...

I often wonder whether it’s a twist on “flutter by”?

Oh! I thought this was a red admiral (and I put that in the alt text) but you’re right! That makes it even more special 🤗

Photo of a polar bear with a green plastic bucket stuck on its head like a helmet

Can anyone find me that funny meme about translating the magical idea in your head into actual words on the page that features this picture of a polar bear with a bucket on its head? The first part of the meme was a beautiful picture of an epic helmeted warrior riding a polar bear.

Thank you! I actually write thrillers/horror, so I’m happy to send this idea out into the world in case anybody wants it 😆

Thank you, this is really helpful and interesting! 🙏
I’ve never heard anything about this before

Book cover showing the silhouette of a person in a threatening looking wood at night. The letter T in the title word “stake” is a bloody wooden stake

My #RecentRead*
#Stake by #KevinJAnderson

*books I’ve really liked/loved

Screen shot of the above webpage that reads: During the past year, developments in four areas of the life sciences have increased potentially catastrophic risks. In December 2024, scientists from nine countries announced the recognition of a potentially existential threat to all life on Earth: the laboratory synthesis of so-called “mirror life.” Those scientists urged that mirror bacteria and other mirror cells—composed of chemically-synthesized molecules that are mirror-images of those found on Earth, much as a left hand mirrors a right hand—not be created, because a self-replicating mirror cell could plausibly evade normal controls on growth, spread throughout all ecosystems, and eventually cause the widespread death of humans, other animals, and plants, potentially disrupting all life on Earth. So far, however, the international community has not arrived at a plan to address this risk.

Um, did you guys know about this? 😧

thebulletin.org/doomsday-clo...

It was flapping against the window so we let it out 😬🫣

Whaaaaaat?

cover for an ebook titled BY YOU, HOPE STANDS; it shows two wolves (one golden, one black) howling underneath an arch with the phases of the moon above, and a starry sky in the background; the text is white with the subtitle "stories of hope and resistance"

hi friends, i've put together a short collection of SFF stories and set it free—i hope it can give you some encouragement, a smile, or even just a pause in the doomscrolling. art is resistance. <3 🐺 📚

ko-fi.com/s/f0da603a0d <— support/PWYW (free!)
tiny.cc/2q7y001 <— direct download

Yes, I tried my best with my iPad to capture it. It really was such a beautiful butterfly. At one point it landed on my hand for a little bit. 🥰🥰🥰

Close-up of a beautiful red admiral butterfly on the window pane bathed in sunlight

Woke up to find a huge and beautiful butterfly *in our house*!
In January! 🦋🦋🦋
Is this a good omen?

291: My Chinese Buddhist Israeli AI Guru Podcast Episode · Conspirituality · 15/01/2026 · 1h 6m

Apparently, there’s a whole spate of these kinds on AI First Nations videos popping up (to sell you crap and make click money)

podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/c...

From Black Zine Fair and Sojourners 4 Justice on Instagram: post featuring old-school computer graphics of books on a bookcase. Text says: “Black Zine Fair. Save the date: May 9, 2026. Open call for exhibitors, workshops, and volunteers until February 9, 2026.”

Black Zine Fair 2026: Open call for exhibitors, workshops, and volunteers until FEB 9. “If you have never made a zine, only made a few zines, or made several zines and never tabled a zine/art book fair before, we really want you to apply!” docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F... #BlackZineFair #BZF2026 #NYC

Good way of putting it 👍

This sounds like a great “meet cute” for a romance book, BTW

Could I ask you all to be my research monkeys and reply to this with all books you know by and about trans men.

Thanks you 😘

Yeah, I think the hope is there’s increasing scope for a change of direction. Absolutely nothing guaranteed though 😕

See also 😡
hyphenonline.com/2026/01/26/t...

EHRC’s guidance on single-sex spaces being adapted under ‘constructive’ new chair Exclusive: Mary-Ann Stephenson said to have more pragmatic approach in trying to limit impact on trans people and on businesses

www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

It picks the MP that is a delegate to the Council of Europe 👍