An event proposed for Launceston sought to exclude transgender women and could have required attendees to "provide intimate information about their body" to gain entry, Tasmania's Anti-Discrimination Commissioner has ruled.
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LGB Alliance member Jessica Hoyle applied for an exemption with Commissioner Sarah Bolt to allow the event to ban what she described as "biological men" from attending, apart from one gay man as DJ and cameraman.
The application attempted to gain an exemption for three years.
Ms Bolt found that LGB Alliance was seeking to "go further" than just asking a person's sexual orientation.
"It is evident from the wording used in the exemption application that the LGB Alliance seeks to exclude transgender women," she said.
"I note that, peculiarly, while the exemption application states 'As lesbians we find it difficult to meet each other and to be in a safe environment away from the eyes of biological men', a male DJ/cameraman will be permitted at the event.
"To grant the exemption would permit LGB Alliance to discriminate on the basis of gender identity and intersex variations of sex characteristics."
LGB Alliance originated in the United Kingdom and describe their mission as "asserting the right of lesbians, bisexuals and gay men to define themselves as same-sex attracted", but has faced criticism for allegedly being "trans-exclusionary".
In her rejection, Ms Bolt said that granting the exemption would be a direct contradiction to her role.
"An exemption should not be granted which seeks to control the types of bodies that are permitted into public spaces in accordance with the sexual preferences of a person, or group of people, who are hosting an event," she wrote.
Equality Tasmania spokesperson Charlie Burton said he was disappointed by the application and said it did not reflect the views of the wider LGBTIQ+ community.
"I talk regularly to people in the much broader community and they're horrified at some of the actions and statements that are being made towards trans women in particular," Dr Burton said.
"And they're just ordinary Tasmania who see that we want more inclusion, not less. We want more equality, not less and we want to be an inclusive community and not a divided one."
Ms Hoyle and LGB Alliance have lodged a complaint against the Commissioner with the Anti-Discrimination Tribunal in an appeal against the decision, claiming it was "homophobic".
"This request in no different to a women's refuge or shelter asking for single-sex privacy and safe space," their complaint read.
"It is also discriminatory on the basis of sex, as lesbian women should be afforded the same rights as other women to gather only with members of the female sex."
Ms Hoyle said she would continue to appeal the decision through the courts. She defined herself as a same-sex attracted lesbian who did not want transgendered women or gender diverse people at the event.
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