Beloved author J.K. Rowling now faces becoming just “author J.K. Rowling.”
The Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts creator took to Twitter recently to post a message in support of Maya Forstater, a trans-exclusionary radical feminist whose contract was not renewed at her job after she made a series of transphobic tweets. Yesterday, a British tribunal ruled against Forstater, concluding that her boss was right to fire her as she would continue to behave in a way that “violates their dignity and/or creates an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment. The approach is not worthy of respect in a democratic society.”
For some bizarre reason, Rowling leapt to her defense, posting the following: “Dress however you please. Call yourself whatever you like. Sleep with any consenting adult who’ll have you. Live your best life in peace and security. But force women out of their jobs for stating that sex is real?” It’s a statement that echoes the very worst of transphobic campaigners online, who regularly bombard trans people with abuse and launch campaigns against them.
Harry Potter fans were dismayed and disgusted that someone who preaches broadly progressive views in their books would turn against them. And so, with that, J.K. Rowling is in the process of being officially cancelled.
Here’s a selection of the anger she’s facing today:
https://twitter.com/INDIEWASHERE/status/1207720745721356291
I'm going to tell my kids this is JK Rowling. pic.twitter.com/RqzSO5RcYC
— Pixelkitties 🦆 (@pixelkitties) December 19, 2019
JK Rowling has come out as a TERF (transgender exclusionary radical feminists) and in support of a well known UK transphobic woman, Maya Forstater who was found by UK courts to have been rightfully fired for advocating violence against trans coworkers.
Imagine my heartbreak. https://t.co/udURWbZ6BQ
— thysz (@thysz) December 19, 2019
J K Rowling could spend every second in a pleasure dome or take experimental brain drugs to get insanely good at fighting games but instead she's gotta post TERF shit. Money rots your brain.
— joe (@ShariaUncle) December 19, 2019
"dumbledore was gay in a way that didn't matter"
"harry potter is a cop now"
"that fucked up snake voldemort used to milk is actually a korean lady"
"i'm a straihgt up terf"
MEERY XMAS FROM JK ROWLING— Dr. Charlotta Lofqvist, S.J. (@jon_snow_420) December 19, 2019
JK Rowling is one of my heroes & made me who I am today- including my core beliefs. One of which is that trans & non-binary people are valid and worthy. 🏳️🌈
I’m sorry for the hurt you are feeling today. I feel it too. I hope she’ll see her error one day. I’m with you.
💙💖💟💖💙 pic.twitter.com/L7d3G3gFNG
— Anna Brisbin 🗝️ (@BrizzyVoices) December 19, 2019
When I think about the many trans and non-binary people who have enriched my life and given me a greater understanding of humanity, I feel sorry for JK Rowling and anyone else who may not have such people in their life.
— Harry and the Potters (@hatp) December 19, 2019
https://twitter.com/DiscordianKitty/status/1207727493240758272
https://twitter.com/trainsgenderman/status/1207739336600555521
https://twitter.com/_Snape_/status/1207722658483363841
jk rowling will forever be remembered as a person who could have shut the fuck up after 2007, but for some reason did not
— Nathan Grayson (@Vahn16) December 19, 2019
It’s also worth saying that, despite her (now dwindling) legions of fans and millions of pounds, Rowling has been on something of a downward trajectory for a couple of years now. Folks have rightly called her out for her pointless and weird pronouncements on the Harry Potter universe and its characters, she’s been unable to respond to criticism of her hook-nosed, greedy goblin bankers being an anti-semitic stereotype and she was responsible for the screenplay to the critically mauled and unexpected flop Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.
Maybe people will look back on December 19th, 2019 as the moment that the Harry Potter franchise truly lost its momentum?