TENI in Tatters? Trans NGO Sees Mass Resignations Amid Harassment and Financial Woes

The Burkean has taken inordinate interest in TENI Ireland the past year, the nation’s premier trans advocacy group noted for their rather sloppy accounts and links to the corridors of power. They have been essential in giving Ireland arguably the most liberal laws on trans matters. 

From the NGO’s foreign funding streams, to their dismissal by the HSE following failure to file accounts, TENI appears to be a chink in the armour for the nation’s NGO complex. 

For this reason we were intrigued by the near simultaneous resignations en masse at the group yesterday, with the accusation of harassment being bandied about. 

Gleefully recounted by TERF dissident extraordinaire Graham Linehan, the day began with the resignation of the group’s recently installed American CEO Shoshanna Carroll, followed shortly by Health and Education manager Dr. Vanessa Lacey later that day. 

The bad day at the office was cemented by the departure as well of Gordon Grehan, the Operations Manager for the charity, making it three major resignations in 24 hours. 

To lose one board member in a day could be considered an accident, three indicates an organisation on the ropes. 

With a flurry of wild and sadly for now unpublishable rumours floating around about their executive board, TENI’s leadership potentially going up in smoke comes as very little surprise for those in the know. 

Try as they might, not even GCN could put a positive spin on the matter. 

Increasingly reminiscent of the GLEN debacle of yesteryear, the job falls to TENI’s chair(trans)woman, Sara Phillips, to keep the group above water. 

TENI, despite their laxity on matters of accounting, has been given an easy ride by the mainstream press, despite growing to gargantuan proportions. 

Even if they were to capsize in the morning, their imprint on policy making would still be remarkable, all supported by either the state and corporate capital. 

We’ll keep an eye on TENI, hoping and praying their institutional reign of terror on Irish life is approaching an end. Whether Irish policy makers reflect on the influence they attained and trajectory of the trans lobby is another question.