JUNE 11, 2020 BY MICHAEL STONE
Disappointing: After posting a series of anti-trans tweets, J.K. Rowling has become an unlikely leader in the right wing assault on transgender people.
Media Matters reports:
Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling’s anti-trans tweets are being used as fodder for hateful misinformation by right-wing media and anti-LGBTQ groups. Rowling had lamented trans-inclusive language and suggested that acceptance of trans identities would erase cisgender women’s “lived reality.”
In fact, Rawling has become a hero for many conservatives after her recent and repeated attacks against trans people. Media Matters notes:
Right-wing outlets such as Fox News and TheBlaze, as well as extreme anti-LGBTQ groups Family Research Council and American College of Pediatricians, seized on Rowling’s comments to promote their anti-trans views.
The list of right wing sources citing Rowling in their attacks on transgender people is lengthy, and if nothing else should be a big clue to Rowling that she is on the wrong side of this issue.
Indeed, when Christian hate groups are holding you up as a hero, you should know that you are most probably on the wrong side of the issue.
Commenting on the story, GLAAD President Sarah Kate Ellis says that J.K. Rowling’s comments about the transgender community are dangerous. Ellis explained:
J.K. has a history of problematic tweets for the trans community. Oftentimes being trans has been boiled down to the physical aspect of it and the bodily aspect of it, and that is not necessarily the case. So it is very disappointing to see J.K. Rowling, with such a platform, such an influence, and because she’s been so near and dear to the queer community in her fantastical writings, that she would turn her back on the trans community and the LGBTQ community.
By turning your back on the trans community, you are turning your back on the LGBTQ community. … And so I just think it’s such a stain on who she is, when she could have been so phenomenal about this. But this is a series of tweets. This isn’t just one tweet. She has over and over again done this about trans people specifically.
While some conservatives rejoice in Rawling’s open assault on transgender people, many Hollywood celebrities and other intelligent people are distancing themselves from Rawling’s cruel and ignorant remarks. For example, Daniel Radcliffe, who played Harry Potter in the films based on J.K. Rowling’s hit book series, condemned Rowling’s attacks on trans people in a statement posted to the Trevor Project website, noting:
Transgender women are women. Any statement to the contrary erases the identity and dignity of transgender people and goes against all advice given by professional health care associations who have far more expertise on this subject matter than either Jo or I. According to The Trevor Project, 78% of transgender and nonbinary youth reported being the subject of discrimination due to their gender identity. It’s clear that we need to do more to support transgender and nonbinary people, not invalidate their identities, and not cause further harm.
On Twitter, Emma Watson, who played Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter movies, rebuked Rawling’s bigotry, noting:
Trans people are who they say they are and deserve to live their lives without being constantly questioned or told they aren’t who they say they are.
Bottom line: In a surprising and disappointing development, J.K. Rowling has become the villain, and is currently one of the leaders in the right wing attack on trans people.
Sad!
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