In general I agree. This was the same problem when social justice advocates (particularly those who were not core contributors) were trying to force "codes of conduct" on open source communities that felt no need for them.
But in this case, my understanding is that the distinction of sex and gender is essential to the concept of transgender in the first place. Is insisting (perhaps somewhat pedantically) on using those terms in a consistent fashion really an offense?
Now, they are free to exclude people for whatever reason they want. Sub-reddits are not supposed to be all things to all people. But the statement does not strike me as obviously offensive to trans people (I've even seen them make the same distinction).
> my understanding is that the distinction of sex and gender is essential to the concept of transgender in the first place.
That... depends? I mean, consider that "male" and "female" (as buckets people are assigned to at birth) do a pretty bad job of describing actual biology in many cases, often with harmful results. And that's before we even get to the topic of gender identity! You can be a trans woman while you still have a penis, because being trans isn't just about having surgery. (Consider that the term "transsexual" has fallen out of favor, in part because "transgender" covers the idea that your birth-assigned sex or biological features don't always accurately describe your identity.)
Anyway, consider what the parent originally said:
> > I was banned from r/asktransgender for telling a girl in a relationship with a pre-transition MtF person that it doesn’t make sense to call herself a lesbian (since sexual orientation is based on sex and not gender)
That's.. just not correct at all. Who was the parent to decide that "lesbian" = "biological female in relationship with biological female"? If someone identifies as female and is in a relationship with someone who identifies as female, they are perfectly justified in calling themselves lesbians, regardless of what reproductive parts or hormonal levels they have. Disagreeing with that is just meaningless, because this is how the word "lesbian" is used in the real world, and fighting against reality is generally not a winning move.
> Is insisting (perhaps somewhat pedantically) on using those terms in a consistent fashion really an offense?
If you're someone who's tired of outsiders telling you how you're supposed to describe yourself, yes, it probably is an offense. It's even worse when said outsider doesn't know what they're talking about and is insisting upon something that's incorrect.
> Now, they are free to exclude people for whatever reason they want.
I don't know why the parent got banned, of course. It could have been because they offended people, or it could have simply been because they were being an annoying pedantic (incorrect!) language lawyer who was sucking the life out of discussions. Either, in my mind, is a valid reason for a ban.
> But the statement does not strike me as obviously offensive to trans people (I've even seen them make the same distinction)
"Trans people" is not a monolithic block of people all with the same attitudes and tolerances. One trans person may not be bothered by it (though I would hope they'd be bothered by the parent's statement, since it's incorrect), but another may be. That's just life. And regardless, it doesn't matter if it strikes you or me as offensive to trans people, unless we're trans people. (I'm not, and I assume based on how you've framed this discussion that you aren't either.) It only matters if actual trans people are offended, and perhaps some number of them were. And if you are a trans person, I would hope that you'd agree that you probably don't speak for all trans people.
But in this case, my understanding is that the distinction of sex and gender is essential to the concept of transgender in the first place. Is insisting (perhaps somewhat pedantically) on using those terms in a consistent fashion really an offense?
Now, they are free to exclude people for whatever reason they want. Sub-reddits are not supposed to be all things to all people. But the statement does not strike me as obviously offensive to trans people (I've even seen them make the same distinction).