The founder of a social media app designed for “females”, is appealing against a finding that it discriminated against a transgender woman.
In January 2022, Giggle for Girls, marketed as a female-only space that allows women to find roommates, engage in freelance work, find friendship groups and more, came under fire for excluding trans women with its use of artificial intelligence.
Australian businesswoman and founder of Sall Grover had now launched an appeal against a court ruling in August that determined she and her app had unlawfully discriminated against Roxanne Tickle.
On Tuesday (1 October), Grover, whose Wikipedia page describes her as a “self-identified trans-exclusionary radical feminist”, filed the notice of appeal, challenging justice Robert Bromwich’s decision.
The appeal is to ‘protect the rights of both sexes in our society’
The court found that Tickle had been unlawfully indirectly discriminated against after she was barred from using the app in 2021 “because she did not look sufficiently female”.
Tickle was awarded Australian $10,000 (£5,200/$6,800) in damages and limited costs. She had sought damages and aggravated damages amounting to $200,000, (£104,000/$137,000), claiming that misgendering by Grover resulted in constant anxiety.
Grover now argues, according to The Guardian, that Bromwich’s finding “misinterprets the fundamental rights of women and girls, and the principles of single-sex spaces essential for their safety and dignity”.
She went on to claim: “This case underscores a critical conversation about gender identity and the necessity of protecting the rights of both sexes in our society.
“As we move forward with our appeal, we emphasise that women standing up for their rights, including the right to single-sex spaces, are acting with bravery, honesty, and integrity. This is not an act of unkindness or bigotry. Rather, it is a stand for fairness, honesty and truth.”
‘I shouldn’t have to prove I exist’
A “very disappointed” Tickle said of the appeal: “I shouldn’t have to spend years of my life in court to either prove I exist or to have my existing legal rights upheld.”
Jackie Turner, the director of the Trans Justice Project, said: “The federal court’s decision was a major step forward for the freedom and equality of all women. It affirmed that women who are trans are protected from discrimination under the current laws, the same as all other women.”
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