#But the Shane Rose thing and Haydie Bird’s experiences should not be in the same conversation

[thatlonelycactus]

Look idk how many people keep up with Australian Equestrian politics on this site but I need to rant so yeah sorry.

So recently a trans rider called Haydie Bird was competing and the commentators of the event she was riding at left their microphones on during her round and broadcast their entire conversation about her genitals to the entire fucking audience whilst she was doing her round.

And I doubt I have to explain why that is so fucking sick in any context or any sport but in an equestrian sport? In one of the few sports where people can compete in the same classes no matter their gender or what sex they were assigned at birth? Yes, there are so many things in the equestrian world that are disgusting and we are a really toxic sport but honestly I had the naivety to believe that bigotry and issues surrounding gender were almost nonexistent within this sport. And honestly? Maybe that’s on me. But that’s beside my point.

However, what annoyed me more was some of the commentary I saw on it from an influencer. They were essentially comparing Equestrian Australia’s (EA) treatment of Haydie Bird’s experience to another controversy that occurred at the start of the year (I think) with rider Shane Rose. Essentially, Rose wore a mankini to a fancy-dress class and some people deemed it inappropriate.

This person was basically saying that EA’s treatment of each situation was confusing and hypocritical as they claimed that discussions of genitalia was okay in Shane Rose’s case but unacceptable in Haydie Birds’s.

And? Like? I feel like there’s an obvious difference in the case that Rose made a choice which, whilst not meaning he should be sexualised or was purposely drawing attention to himself, lead to the possibility of certain discussions whilst Bird was just riding her. Fucking. Round. And people thought it was okay to comment on her genitals. Even in Rose’s case his genitalia was never directly discussed or even mentioned, his actions were only deemed inappropriate but the actions of the commentators in Birds case draw on issues within our own society on the treatment and sexualisation of trans people, especially tans women, within the sports community and wider population.

These two controversies should t be in the same question purely on the fact that one rider made a choice which was interpreted badly (which is an issue in itself) and the other was just riding her round like everyone else and yet somehow those comments seemed warranted by the commentators.