Ursula Doyle has worked in book publishing for over thirty years, including at Hachette UK since 2008. She founded her own imprint, Fleet, in 2016, which has published award-winning books. In 2020, Ursula published Kathleen Stock’s “Material Girls,” leading to severe backlash from colleagues, who accused her of bigotry and transphobia, often tagging her employer, Hachette, and its Pride network into social media posts. Hachette did nothing to protect her and created a hostile environment. When Fleet’s authors complained about her views, Hachette moved their books to another imprint, damaging her reputation. Ursula’s health suffered, and she resigned.
She is suing Hachette for discrimination based on her gender-critical beliefs and sex. Ursula’s case highlights the suppression of gender-critical views in publishing. She argues that Hachette’s trans-inclusion policy discriminates against women and hopes to prove its illegality. Ursula needs funds to cover legal fees and aims to fight for freedom of speech in publishing. Her lawyers work on a conditional fee agreement, keeping costs down. Ursula seeks support to challenge the culture of fear and censorship in the industry.