Despite the continued backlash for what many consider her “anti-trans” views, Harry Potter author JK Rowling does not back down. It all started when she shared an article about “creating a more equal post-COVID-19 world for people who menstruate,” and admitted that it angered her to see women no longer being, well, women were indicated.
Speaking on The Witch Trials of JK Rowling podcast (via SFFGazette.com), Rowling said she knows that “like dropping a hand grenade on Twitter,” add: “Was I planning to throw a hand grenade in it? No. I just kept my own anger in check. So it went well.’
Since then, the writer has continued to voice concerns about certain elements of the trans community, including the fact that men who identify as women are allowed access to women’s locker rooms and bathrooms is a slippery slope that could lead to disastrous consequences. The floodgates of hatred against Rowling have since opened and she thought about what that was like.
“I definitely knew that if I spoke out, many people who loved my books would be deeply unhappy with me,” she admits. “Personally, it hasn’t been fun and I’ve sometimes feared for my own safety and, overwhelmingly, the safety of my family. Time will tell if I’m wrong.”
“All I can say is that I’ve thought about it deep and hard and long and I’ve listened, I promise, to the other side.”
Rowling would add, “I have to tell you there were still a lot of Potter fans with me. And in fact a lot of Potter fans were thankful that I said what I said. I stand behind every word I wrote there, but the question is, what is the truth And I object to people who literally say that sex is a construct, [that] it is not real.”
“I absolutely believe there is something dangerous about this movement and it should be challenged,” she continued. “My position is that this activist’s movement, in the form it currently takes, reflects exactly what I warned against in Harry Potter.”
There are plenty of people who agree with Rowling and some do Harry Potter cast members were quick to criticize her views, she was defended by Ralph Fiennes, Evanna Lynch and Helena Bonham Carter. Ironically, though the writer doesn’t always choose her words carefully, any valid points she’s made are usually overshadowed by the fact that she’s been labeled anti-trans.
No matter what you do and disagree with, it’ll be interesting to see if Rowling’s elaboration on previous comments cools things down or adds even more fuel to the fire.