Liberate backs States’ messaging on cervical smears after social media backlash
LOCAL LGBTQ+ charity Liberate has welcomed the States’ inclusivity in calling for 'all those with a cervix' to get cervical smears.
The States’ messaging has been criticised by some for not using the word ‘women’.
The comments follow the launch of a three-week long cervical screening awareness campaign, using the hashtags #WeAreAllSmearReady and the particularly controversial #DropYourPants.
Cervical screening is free for women, non-binary people, trans men and intersex people aged between 25 and 65 through a choice of providers including GPs, Choices and the Orchard Centre.
The campaign has received a mixed, though largely negative, response online.
Many on Twitter said it was irresponsible not to explicitly use the term ‘women’ in the initial tweet.
But Liberate CEO Ellie Jones said Twitter was a very negative space for trans people and the majority of the critical tweets were undoubtedly transphobic.
‘These kinds of things [the States’ post] get shared to a transphobic page and people just pile on with negativity,’ she said.
‘If you look at the majority of the commenters’ profiles, they’re not even from Guernsey.’
The States and Liberate discussed the wording for the campaign before it went live, and while the messaging in the press release itself was considered inclusive, the social media posts missed the mark.
‘The message is quite clear, regardless of how people think what they were trying to say should be defined, it’s that this is a vital medical screening that some people need.
‘Not all people who are part of the LGBTQ+ community, who have a cervix, are women,’ Ms Jones said.
She believed people were more offended by the use of the #DropYourPants hashtag, which was criticised for being offensive, disrespectful and insensitive.
‘But, the point of a media campaign is to get people talking, and it has certainly done that.’
A spokesman for the States said the campaign aimed to ensure that all of those eligible for free screening were aware, not just women.
The States did seek to clarify this on Twitter, too.
With regard to Drop Your Pants, the spokesman said this was a slogan devised jointly with third sector and primary care partners, who came up with a creative pant-decorating campaign to further the awareness of the screening programme.
‘We referenced it to support this project, but appreciate that some people have taken offence and we have removed it from our own social posts,’ they said.
The tweet with the #DropYourPants tag was still up yesterday, having attracted some 360 comments.
