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PRESS RELEASE
MCC Brussels Condemns Attempt to Silence Women's Voices in European Parliament
Brussels, April 2, 2025 – MCC Brussels strongly condemns the latest attempt by well-funded lobby groups to suppress legitimate debate on women’s rights in the European Parliament. A complaint lodged by trans lobby groups represents yet another intolerant effort to shut down discussion on issues of fundamental importance to women across Europe.
Several organizations have submitted a complaint to European Parliament President Roberta Metsola, denouncing an event that, according to them, “framed trans rights as harmful to women and children” and urging action against so-called hate speech. The complaint claims: “Within the European institutions, there should be no space for anti-rights movements, including any backlash against universal human rights that contribute to attacks on democracy and the shrinking of civil society space.”
The letter was sent by six organizations: ILGA-Europe, Eurochild, IPPF European Network, EL*C, TGEU, and IGLYO.
The event, “How Trans Policy Harms Women and Children,” was sponsored by András László and the Patriots for Europe Group and featured the presentation of a new report, Mission Creeps, published by MCC Brussels.
The full report can be accessed here: Mission Creeps.
MCC Brussels Responds
Frank Furedi, Executive Director of MCC Brussels, countered the criticism, stating:
“The European Parliament is supposed to be a place where political ideas can be debated. Yet, these organizations have no tolerance for any discussion that challenges their increasingly radical agenda.”
He added:
“The event detailed how policies such as self-ID put women at serious risk and highlighted how certain NGOs have abandoned any genuine concern for women’s rights.”
“It is particularly ironic that these NGOs accuse our event of ‘shrinking civil society space’ when their parasitic reliance on government funding has done more than anything else to corrupt genuine civil society.”
Ashley Frawley, Visiting Research Fellow at MCC Brussels, author of the Mission Creeps report, and speaker at the event, stated:
“We knew from the start that writing this report meant challenging a well-funded and well-connected lobby. However, the sheer arrogance of this NGO mafia in attempting to silence women’s concerns is staggering. This is not just about one meeting—it’s about defending free speech and ensuring that women’s voices, increasingly marginalized, are heard.”
Further Commentary from Stella O’Malley
Stella O’Malley, a psychotherapist and Executive Director of Genspect, an international organization advocating for a non-medicalized approach to gender dysphoria, also spoke at the parliamentary event. She stated:
“Lobby groups demanding censorship should listen to the detransitioners I work with every week. Their stories of being rushed into medical interventions, only to regret them later deeply, are not ‘hate speech’—they are crucial evidence of harm that is being deliberately ignored.”
“At Genspect, we see growing numbers of young people who feel betrayed by systems that failed to explore their mental health before making irreversible changes to their bodies. When organizations claim our concerns ‘dehumanize’ people, they’ve got it precisely backwards. What’s truly dehumanizing is silencing those who question whether current approaches genuinely help vulnerable youth.”
“The European Parliament should remain a place where evidence can be presented without being labeled ‘anti-democracy’ simply for challenging a particular ideology. Those writing to President Metsola should consider a fundamental question: how can any policy truly protect people if examining its real-world consequences is forbidden?”
MCC Brussels stands firm in its commitment to free expression, open debate, and women's right to speak out on matters that directly affect them. We call on policymakers, the media, and civil society to reject these censorial attempts and uphold the fundamental principles of democracy and free speech.
Read the full report: Mission Creeps
