Court Case Against Anti-Trans Dating App ‘Giggle’ Kicks Off

Trans rights activists held a counter-protest this morning outside Sydney Federal Court, standing up to anti-trans activists at the beginning of the Tickle v Giggle for Girls Pty Ltd court case today.

The case was brought to court by Roxanne Tickle, a transgender woman, after she was removed from Giggle for Girls, a social media platform for women. 

Ms Tickle has said that she was denied access on the grounds of being a trans woman, and that Giggle for Girls CEO Sall Grover looked at photos and considered her ‘male’. 

Ms Tickle’s lawyer Georgina Costello told a court hearing that the app and Grover had illegally discriminated against Tickle because of her gender identity. Ms Tickle is in possession of a birth certificate stating that she is female, which she received after gender-affirming surgery in 2019. 

Meanwhile, Ms Grover and her team say that Giggle for Girls was created as an “online refuge” for women online, stating that the app is not in violation of sex discrimination laws.

Precedent-setting case

This is the first case to tackle gender identity discrimination at a federal level, and has involved Sex Discrimination Commissioner Dr Anna Cody. 

On Tuesday April 9th, Dr Cody said: “Every individual, regardless of their gender identity, deserves dignity, respect and equal treatment under the law. 

“We stand with trans communities and will continue to advocate for their rights and the rights of women. No one in Australia should face discrimination or exclusion based on their sex or gender identity.”

Protests around Tickle v Giggle

Members of Sydney University’s Queer Action Collective gathered at 9:30am outside the courthouse to counter a previously planned anti-trans protest. 

Ester Whitehead from QAC said that the case was a “clear-cut case of anti-trans discrimination”, having nothing to do with the safety of women but instead an attempt to fearmonger about trans people and women. 

Whitehead said: “These people are spreading entirely false narratives that members of our community are dangerous, talking of trans women as perpetrators or as a danger to women’s spaces. This couldn’t be further from the truth.

“It’s not only trans women impacted by this – plenty of cisgender women with more ‘masculine’ facial features have been blocked by Giggle’s AI. This means the app is not only transphobic but also deeply sexist, telling us that women who aren’t ‘feminine’ enough aren’t welcome.

“We are here today to stand up for trans rights and for feminism – for the rights and safety of all women.”