And finally, the HRC’s punishment for accepting the sexual-orientation-only version of the proposed new law put the entire Left on notice. Transactivists picketed its fundraisers, including its gala dinner in Washington. Then came the legalisation of gay marriage. Some veteran campaigners stepped down, making way for graduates stuffed to the gills with queer theory. Campaign groups needed a new marquee cause – and the transactivists had one ready and waiting. With barely a pause for breath, civil-rights organisations big and small changed their focus to gender self-identification.
