LGBTQ+ Activist Reacts To J.K. Rowling’s Anti-Transgender Twitter Rants
Interview With Artist
They say to never meet your idols as such an occurrence can result in tremendous disappointment and even heartbreak.
This has been the unfortunate experience lived by many Harry Potter readers who identify as transgender, who may not have met its author, JK Rowling, but have heard enough from her to hope never to have to encounter her in person.
Recent events have strengthened the LGBTQ+ communities’ growing disappointment over the author who has inspired so many young readers.
Rowling has provoked controversy in the past couple of years due to her responses regarding proposed changes to UK gender recognition laws, and her views on sex and gender, which are topics that have divided politics in various countries.
JK Rowling provoked controversy due to her recent responses regarding proposed changes to UK gender recognition laws
Image credits: Mike Marsland/Getty Image
The best-selling author started to fuel debates on transgender rights in 2020, when Rowling wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter) that transgender people should live their lives as they pleased in “peace and security”, but questioned women being “force[d] out of their jobs for stating that sex is real”.
Following the initial post, Rowling has continued to express controversial statements, with another X publication in the same year, where Rowling mocked an article for using the phrase “people who menstruate”, and tweeted that women’s rights and “lived reality” would be “erased” if “sex isn’t real”.
“People who menstruate” has been an accepted term to use in order to be more inclusive of people who do not identify as female, but still have their period.
Moreover, sex and gender have been scientifically proven and accepted to be different concepts, as The World Health Organisation explained that sex refers to “the different biological and physiological characteristics of males and females, such as reproductive organs, chromosomes, hormones, etc.”
She replied “no” to a photo posted on X which showed the phrase, “Repeat after us: trans women are women” projected on a government building
Image credits: Daniel Ogren
Additionally, gender refers to “the socially constructed characteristics of women and men – such as norms, roles and relationships of and between groups of women and men.”
Newer updates of the 58-year-old philanthropist revealed that Rowling has continued to propagate views regarding the LGBTQ+ community, which some have found to be damaging to marginalized communities.
Last week, she claimed she would “happily” go to jail in order to keep misgendering people in a post on X.
HuffPost reported that the mom-of-three was reacting to unverified reports about the UK’s Labour Party and their plans to amend an already existing hate crime law to better protect gender identity.
Rowling wrote “It matters not what someone is born from, but what they grow to be,” in ‘Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire’
Image credits: Executive Office of the President
Rowling wrote: “I’ll happily do two years if the alternative is compelled speech and forced denial of the reality and importance of sex.
“Bring on the court case, I say. It’ll be more fun than I’ve ever had on a red carpet.”
The UK already acknowledges hate crimes stemming from race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, and transgender identity.
Additionally, offenses driven by racial or religious motivations may be categorized as “aggravated” crimes, resulting in more severe penalties.
Rowling’s posts on X have sparked a lot of controversies
As described by the Daily Mail, the Labour Party wants this “aggravated” classification to also be available for crimes motivated by gender identity.
The news source cited an unidentified conservative lawmaker opposing transgender rights who concluded that this could potentially result in individuals being incarcerated solely for intentionally using the wrong pronouns when addressing someone.
The existing legal guidelines in the UK stipulate that using incorrect gender pronouns to address someone can be considered a criminal act if employed as a “deliberate tactic during the commission of an offense.”
And just in case Rowling’s views weren’t clear enough, she went on to reply a simple “no” to a photo posted on X which showed the phrase, “repeat after us: trans women are women” being projected on a government building.
She also reacted to unverified reports about the Labour Party’s plans to amend an existing hate crime law to better protect gender identity
Bored Panda has reached out to Tia Latham, an intersex woman with what she has described to be a transgender experience.
She reflected on the impact Rowling’s statement has had on people who identify as transgender.
“The impact is detrimental to the trans community, it plays into many misinformed views that have been curated by people in positions of power to sensationalize, hyper-sexualize, and attack some of the most vulnerable people in society,” the television personality said.
Transgender people are over four times more likely than cisgender people to experience violent victimization, including rape, sexual assault, and aggravated or simple assault, according to a new study by the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law.
The author admitted that she would happily go to prison rather than call trans women ‘women’
Tia, who is also an LGBTQ+ activist, expressed her disappointment at the author who fueled many children’s imagination, from all walks of life, with famous quotes such as “it matters not what someone is born from, but what they grow to be,” from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.
“JK Rowling is obsessed with trans people and won’t stop attacking us,” the activist said.
She continued: “She should have her OBE revoked by the King seeing as she represents hate.
“As someone who grew up reading and loving her books, seeing her attack my community at every opportunity she gets is devastating.”
Tia Latham, an LGBTQ+ activist who identifies as an intersex woman said Rowling’s rants were detrimental to the trans community
Image credits: officialtialatham
In 2017, Rowling received an OBE, an Order of the British Empire, by Prince Williams, for her services to literature and philanthropy.
Tia went on to explain that influential figures in positions of power using social media to berate transgender people was “a typical tactic used to divert attention away from much more pressing political and humanitarian matters such as climate change, the cost of living crisis many countries are facing and the wars across the globe.”
The advocate based in London, who is followed by 54 thousand people on Instagram, has also noticed how such rants against her community were harmful.
“There has been a drastic shift in attitudes towards trans people and unfortunately it’s for the worst,” Tia said.
Tia, who is also a TV personality, said that JK Rowling was obsessed with trans people
Image credits: officialtialatham
She continued: “Trans and intersex people were revered in history and celebrated in many cultures and as time comes to present day this is clearly not reflected.”
According to LGBT Health, in ancient cultures such as Mesopotamia, Sumerian, Assyria, Babylonia, and Akkadian, there is historical evidence that documents priests-priestesses known as ‘Gala’, a male-to-female priesthood that was accepted as sacred and given reverence.
The Old Testament Era also unveils evidence from an ancient Mesopotamian text known as ‘Erra and Ishum’ that references the worship of the fertility Goddess Ishtar and describes men ‘who changed their masculinity into femininity’.
“People such as JK Rowling alike use their celebrity to push their hateful views onto the wider masses which incites more violence and discord,” Tia said.
Transgender people are over four times more likely than cisgender people to experience violent victimization
Image credits: Inti Tupac Liberman Ares
She added: “JK Rowling does not have the capacity to comprehend the pain and suffering she has caused to the trans community.
“JK Rowling’s unprovoked outbursts make Voldemort (from her book) seem much more a hero than a villain.”
Planned Parenthood states that being transgender means one’s gender identity is different from the gender that the doctor gave them when they were born, based on the way their body looked.
That label is called “sex assigned at birth” — usually “male” or “female.”
JK Rowling does not have the capacity to comprehend the pain she has caused to the trans community, Tia said
Image credits: Nik
Meanwhile, when a person has the same gender identity as the sex the doctor assigned them at birth, they are considered to be “cisgender” — like a man who was assigned male at birth or a woman who was assigned female at birth.
According to the non-profit organization, intersex is a general term used for a variety of situations in which a person is born with reproductive or sexual anatomy that doesn’t fit the boxes of “female” or “male.”
Sometimes doctors perform surgeries on intersex babies and children to make their bodies fit binary ideas of “male” or “female”.
As a result, doctors always assign intersex babies legal sex (male or female, in most states in the USA), but, just like with non-intersex people, that doesn’t mean that’s the gender identity they’ll grow up to have.
While some people strongly disagreed with JK Rowling’s views, others appeared to support them
I don't think it's very brave to say you'd do 2 years for something that is not or will never be illegal. Typical slippery slope fallacy...
Almost as though JK Rowling wrote a number of good kids’ books a few years ago, but is now dedicating herself full-time to being unbearable.
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People have been speaking out against her TERFing for ages. I wonder if she's as vitriolic about transmen. (spoiler, she isn't). "Girls can wear jeans and cut their hair short, wear shirts and boots. 'Cause it's OK to be a boy. But for a boy to look like a girl is degrading. 'Cause you think that being a girl is degrading."
Don't get why she has to keep going on about it so much; I'm getting bored of her dragging it up over and over again. Don't like it? Don't get involved in it - magic! Problem solved!
I love how the 2 overtly transphobic incels/miso-mysandrists (because misogyny begets misandry & toxic “mannism”) are being downvoted to hēll, which is the proper use of downvotes. I’ve read Greer, Padman, Nixon & Bindel, to see where these “gender-critical feminists” (they’re still fücking TERFs) are coming from. There’s some real issues with their premises. First, they don’t tend to fully acknowledge gender as the social construct it is. They too conveniently blur the lines between sex & gender, specifically to force their, dare I say “fear mongering,” narrative. When JK stepped in some 8 years ago & before she went down the echo chamber, rabbit hole of confirmation bias, her initial concerns were on the right track. Albeit, coming from a place of ignorance given she didn’t have all facts in line. At one point in her early statements, she even confused HRT with puberty blockers & used this misinterpretation & misunderstanding as a basis for her tirade. She looks so ignorant!!
It's okay JK, just continue to prove you're an out-of-touch piece of trash, it makes it much easier for me to forget your mediocre literature. Honestly, this whole sex / gender debate is tiresome- sex has been proved to be non binary; this Forbes article helps to break down some of the scientific discussion - https://www.forbes.com/sites/kimelsesser/2020/06/15/the-myth-of-biological-sex/?sh=3d2604a876b9 . Why then is it so hard for people to accept? My grandparents, in their 70s and 80s, both devout Christians who have lived in a rural British village for most of their lives with little to no racial or cultural diversity knew, and were friends with and accepting of, a 60+ year old trans woman. If they can be accepting of her, surely the rest of us can manage it too.
I'd also add, as a 40+ man who grew up in the same kind of rural British community as my grandparents, I'm proud to count a number of non-binary and trans men and women as my friends. It took me all of about 2 minutes to learn their preferred pronouns and use them. It's seriously not that hard.
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YSK - there was no change or proposed change to UK law. There WAS a new law passed in Scotland alone (with cross party support and many years of consultation with all interested groups in favour and against) The law passed was to do two things. One - speed up the process of changing your paperwork. Two - ending the requirement for a letter from a gender dysphoria specialist to confirm you met THAT criteria, this generally took years due to the demand and the shortage of such consultants. Also the law has NOT come into effect. Scotland has devolution and health is a devolved matter where Scotland's parliament has the right to pass her own laws when a majority in parliament approve. ALL of this procedure was followed and then some. As stated the consultations were lengthy and the support was from at least SOME of all parties. Despite all being done properly the UK Government overturned the legislation using rules not meant for this type of law. So Rowling is crying over nothing
I suspect she’s counting on being sent to rich-person prison like Jordan Belfort.
JK Rowling became a sick bigot as soon as COVID started. Are we certain she isn't suffering very severe brain damage? If not, I believe someone else wrote Harry Potter. Someone going from Dumbledore to Umbridge is such a massive personality change that they can only be different people.
All women are women. Including trans women. But they can never understand what biological women have been through and biological women can never understand what trans women have been through. But that doesn’t mean that they aren’t still women.
Her bigotry is just gross. Used to really respect Rowling, but now she has ruined her legacy for millions of fans.
It’s so silly how many of these commenters who are staunchly gatekeeping terminology have no idea what sex & gender are, nor their difference. They’re also basing their definitions on primary & secondary sex characteristics & applying their limited ability to comprehend to a social construct as if it’s scientific fact. Until they can demonstrate the function of INAH-3 (clue: it’s the sexually dimorphic nucleus of human beings.) they may wanna stick to eating their pancakes.
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She's a tail end baby boomer with old fashioned views. Ignore her like you ignore your grandma's neighbor who makes grand idiotic statements. Both are complete strangers who have no control over your relationships.
I really, really don't understand ciswomen who think transwomen are some sort of threat to feminism. I know a couple of transwomen and pretty much the only difference between us is that I menstruate and they don't. But both of my best friends are 70 year old ciswomen and neither of them menstruate either, so...
Her determination to martyr herself by going to jail reminds me of Jordan Peterson. I haven't read the proposed law in the UK but I suspect it's very similar to the one passed in Canada. Peterson claimed, incorrectly, that people would be arrested for misgendering trans people. Not a single arrest or criminal complaint has been made. The difference between the two is I don't think Rowling is insane. Peterson, on the other hand, is bat***t, straight-jacket, padded room insane. I also think he's relapsed on drugs.
at least she owns up to her words, and would go to jail for her beliefs.
Seriously though, it's not hard. When a woman you know marries and changes her last name, do you adjust? If a friend wants to go by "Robert" now instead of "Robbie" do you adjust? My guiding principle in life has always been if it's more important to you than it is to me, we do it your way. It's served me very well. This is literally the easiest thing you could do and it makes a huge, huge difference for them. Nobody is stopping you from exercising your "freedom", but we *are* judging your laziness & inflated ego every time you do.
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She is not controversal, the trans freaks are. There are two sexes, and a bunch of mentally disturbed morons.
i love how people feel so free to say hurtful things on the internet, its like they enjoy being horrible little turdwaffles
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Trans person: “Please call me a ‘she’.” JK Rowling: “I WOULD RATHER GO TO PRISON.” Agron54: “Well done, JK. Nobody has ever said JK Rowling will have to go to prison. But she has stood up against a threat that only exists in her imagination - and she’s done it with grace.”
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Nobody's trying to push you to be LGBT; sorry, dear, but nobody is actually that desperate to f**k you. They just want you not to be a c**t to the people who are LGBT. Not a big ask, really.
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If you honestly don't know the difference between a human and a cat then you have bigger problems than whining about downvotes.
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To use a analogy from my life: two family members changed their names. One wanted to be addressed by the adult version of their name (think "Robert" instead of "Bobby"); the other was transitioning and wanted to be addressed by a short version and gender-ambiguous version of their new name (think "Jay" for "Jason" instead of "Jennifer"). I didn't see a slippery slope to a dystopian future where Robert and Jay have me imprisoned for refusing. Yet I respected their wishes. I did miss their old names for a few days, but it didn't feel like good enough reason to refuse.
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Hi Tiff, Can you please give me one solitary example in your entire life when “a bloke in a dress” has “taken your spot”. If you’re unable to do so, it’s likely that people may just include that you’re a mangy old bigot. So take your time and let us know.
Load More Replies...
I don't think it's very brave to say you'd do 2 years for something that is not or will never be illegal. Typical slippery slope fallacy...
Almost as though JK Rowling wrote a number of good kids’ books a few years ago, but is now dedicating herself full-time to being unbearable.
Load More Replies... People have been speaking out against her TERFing for ages. I wonder if she's as vitriolic about transmen. (spoiler, she isn't). "Girls can wear jeans and cut their hair short, wear shirts and boots. 'Cause it's OK to be a boy. But for a boy to look like a girl is degrading. 'Cause you think that being a girl is degrading."
Don't get why she has to keep going on about it so much; I'm getting bored of her dragging it up over and over again. Don't like it? Don't get involved in it - magic! Problem solved!
I love how the 2 overtly transphobic incels/miso-mysandrists (because misogyny begets misandry & toxic “mannism”) are being downvoted to hēll, which is the proper use of downvotes. I’ve read Greer, Padman, Nixon & Bindel, to see where these “gender-critical feminists” (they’re still fücking TERFs) are coming from. There’s some real issues with their premises. First, they don’t tend to fully acknowledge gender as the social construct it is. They too conveniently blur the lines between sex & gender, specifically to force their, dare I say “fear mongering,” narrative. When JK stepped in some 8 years ago & before she went down the echo chamber, rabbit hole of confirmation bias, her initial concerns were on the right track. Albeit, coming from a place of ignorance given she didn’t have all facts in line. At one point in her early statements, she even confused HRT with puberty blockers & used this misinterpretation & misunderstanding as a basis for her tirade. She looks so ignorant!!
It's okay JK, just continue to prove you're an out-of-touch piece of trash, it makes it much easier for me to forget your mediocre literature. Honestly, this whole sex / gender debate is tiresome- sex has been proved to be non binary; this Forbes article helps to break down some of the scientific discussion - https://www.forbes.com/sites/kimelsesser/2020/06/15/the-myth-of-biological-sex/?sh=3d2604a876b9 . Why then is it so hard for people to accept? My grandparents, in their 70s and 80s, both devout Christians who have lived in a rural British village for most of their lives with little to no racial or cultural diversity knew, and were friends with and accepting of, a 60+ year old trans woman. If they can be accepting of her, surely the rest of us can manage it too.
I'd also add, as a 40+ man who grew up in the same kind of rural British community as my grandparents, I'm proud to count a number of non-binary and trans men and women as my friends. It took me all of about 2 minutes to learn their preferred pronouns and use them. It's seriously not that hard.
Load More Replies... YSK - there was no change or proposed change to UK law. There WAS a new law passed in Scotland alone (with cross party support and many years of consultation with all interested groups in favour and against) The law passed was to do two things. One - speed up the process of changing your paperwork. Two - ending the requirement for a letter from a gender dysphoria specialist to confirm you met THAT criteria, this generally took years due to the demand and the shortage of such consultants. Also the law has NOT come into effect. Scotland has devolution and health is a devolved matter where Scotland's parliament has the right to pass her own laws when a majority in parliament approve. ALL of this procedure was followed and then some. As stated the consultations were lengthy and the support was from at least SOME of all parties. Despite all being done properly the UK Government overturned the legislation using rules not meant for this type of law. So Rowling is crying over nothing
I suspect she’s counting on being sent to rich-person prison like Jordan Belfort.
JK Rowling became a sick bigot as soon as COVID started. Are we certain she isn't suffering very severe brain damage? If not, I believe someone else wrote Harry Potter. Someone going from Dumbledore to Umbridge is such a massive personality change that they can only be different people.
All women are women. Including trans women. But they can never understand what biological women have been through and biological women can never understand what trans women have been through. But that doesn’t mean that they aren’t still women.
Her bigotry is just gross. Used to really respect Rowling, but now she has ruined her legacy for millions of fans.
It’s so silly how many of these commenters who are staunchly gatekeeping terminology have no idea what sex & gender are, nor their difference. They’re also basing their definitions on primary & secondary sex characteristics & applying their limited ability to comprehend to a social construct as if it’s scientific fact. Until they can demonstrate the function of INAH-3 (clue: it’s the sexually dimorphic nucleus of human beings.) they may wanna stick to eating their pancakes.
Load More Replies... She's a tail end baby boomer with old fashioned views. Ignore her like you ignore your grandma's neighbor who makes grand idiotic statements. Both are complete strangers who have no control over your relationships.
I really, really don't understand ciswomen who think transwomen are some sort of threat to feminism. I know a couple of transwomen and pretty much the only difference between us is that I menstruate and they don't. But both of my best friends are 70 year old ciswomen and neither of them menstruate either, so...
Her determination to martyr herself by going to jail reminds me of Jordan Peterson. I haven't read the proposed law in the UK but I suspect it's very similar to the one passed in Canada. Peterson claimed, incorrectly, that people would be arrested for misgendering trans people. Not a single arrest or criminal complaint has been made. The difference between the two is I don't think Rowling is insane. Peterson, on the other hand, is bat***t, straight-jacket, padded room insane. I also think he's relapsed on drugs.
at least she owns up to her words, and would go to jail for her beliefs.
Seriously though, it's not hard. When a woman you know marries and changes her last name, do you adjust? If a friend wants to go by "Robert" now instead of "Robbie" do you adjust? My guiding principle in life has always been if it's more important to you than it is to me, we do it your way. It's served me very well. This is literally the easiest thing you could do and it makes a huge, huge difference for them. Nobody is stopping you from exercising your "freedom", but we *are* judging your laziness & inflated ego every time you do.
Load More Replies... She is not controversal, the trans freaks are. There are two sexes, and a bunch of mentally disturbed morons.
i love how people feel so free to say hurtful things on the internet, its like they enjoy being horrible little turdwaffles
Load More Replies... Trans person: “Please call me a ‘she’.” JK Rowling: “I WOULD RATHER GO TO PRISON.” Agron54: “Well done, JK. Nobody has ever said JK Rowling will have to go to prison. But she has stood up against a threat that only exists in her imagination - and she’s done it with grace.”
Load More Replies... Nobody's trying to push you to be LGBT; sorry, dear, but nobody is actually that desperate to f**k you. They just want you not to be a c**t to the people who are LGBT. Not a big ask, really.
Load More Replies... If you honestly don't know the difference between a human and a cat then you have bigger problems than whining about downvotes.
Load More Replies... To use a analogy from my life: two family members changed their names. One wanted to be addressed by the adult version of their name (think "Robert" instead of "Bobby"); the other was transitioning and wanted to be addressed by a short version and gender-ambiguous version of their new name (think "Jay" for "Jason" instead of "Jennifer"). I didn't see a slippery slope to a dystopian future where Robert and Jay have me imprisoned for refusing. Yet I respected their wishes. I did miss their old names for a few days, but it didn't feel like good enough reason to refuse.
Load More Replies... Hi Tiff, Can you please give me one solitary example in your entire life when “a bloke in a dress” has “taken your spot”. If you’re unable to do so, it’s likely that people may just include that you’re a mangy old bigot. So take your time and let us know.
Load More Replies...
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