Open Letter to the British Film Institute

This is a kick in the teeth to women.

What a let down for women in the industry

Great idea. But an actual woman who has links with making films must be out there. Surely you are not telling us the best woman for the job was a man.

I agree wholeheartedly with the sentiment of this petition. Surely it’s not that hard to find a woman involved in filmmaking who has the intellegience, scope and sensibility to hold the space for the concerns being addressed in this symposium?

Bergdorf is a man.

Misogyny dressed up as inclusion. Let women speak about their own experiences. Women need to talk.

Signed in full solidarity with the women who continue to face discrimination in the film industry in the UK and around the world.

Sadly this is not the first time women have been over looked in favour of transwomen. This is far from an original or progressive move. A quick search on the history of this individuals attitiude to women should have alerted you to your mistake.

We don't need a man to speak for women. Find a qualified biological woman to speak.

The keynote speaker must be a woman who has a career in film in whatever capacity but we need to be represented.

There are many fine women more than capable of giving a keynote speech. Please give one of them a voice. Thanks.

There are so many deserving women, with perspectives that resonate with all of us raised as inferior to males, who you're excluding in favor of elevating someone who is all about shallow shameless self-promotion because that's all he has going for him. Oh, and being male.

Munroe Bergdorf has consistently spoken against women’s rights, denying the role of biology in women’s oppression. Bergdorf resigned as a Labour Party advisor because of sending offensive tweets, including those linking the suffragette movement to white supremacism. Suffragettes were in fact closely linked to the abolitionist movement and many prominent black women abolitionists were also suffragettes. Bergdorf seeks to erase these women from history and to create divisions between women.

Women with a movie camera should have a keynote speaker who is a woman.

Absolute disgrace. So many actual women to choose from, why choose a man who has never made a film?!

I respect Munroe Bergdof’s right to Identify as a woman. But I am appalled that you could think that she can speak on feminist issues that face women film makers. This is misogynistic and wrong.

This is really beyond parody. In the era of #metoo and #weinstein (et al) to have a male born person in such a prominent role is a kick in the guts for women everywhere, particularly as female representation in the industry is woefully low. Bergdorf has already been dropped by a high end cosmetic company AND UK Labour for their racist tendencies. They also talk of lesbians in extremely disparaging terms. Come on BFI, up your game and find us a real woman to front this event. Hell, I'll do it. I know a bit about the movies, and Im a Natural Born Woman too!

You could at least have a woman. This is misogyny 101.

Berghof should not be speaking at this event. He has told women they shouldn't centre their reproductive abilities in feminism because it is 'exclusionary'. He isn't a feminist and he isn't involved in the world of film, nor has he ever expressed any interest in feminism in film or women in film. Also racist.

A male presenting the key note address at an event around women in film is appalling. You could have included Munroe in the event without making them the keynote speaker! What experience does Munroe have in the film industry? Munroe made a documentary once? - this doesn't qualify you to makea key note speech. No natal woman that once made a documentary would be making that address why is Munroe? You can be inclusive without erasing women, women that have worked hard and overcome incredible obstacles to become highly successful in their field.