J.K. Rowling does not seem ready to forgive stars Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson, the actors who breathed life into two of the main characters in the onscreen adaption of her Harry Potter series.
In the latest online debate Rowling has involved herself in, the acclaimed author appeared to show her dissatisfaction with Daniel and Emma, who have previously waved their supportive flags for transgender rights.
J.K. Rowling spoke about “celebrity mouthpieces” after the recently released Cass Review in the UK, which said children were provided gender-affirming care despite a “lack of high-quality research”
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“Even if you don’t feel ashamed of cheerleading for what now looks like severe medical malpractice, even if you don’t want to accept that you might have been wrong, where’s your sense of self-preservation? The bandwagon you hopped on so gladly is hurtling towards a cliff,” Rowling wrote in a series of tweets on Wednesday.
In response to a tweet from a social media user, the author appeared to suggest she wouldn’t accept an apology from Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson for cozying up “to a movement intent on eroding women’s hard-won rights”
Harry Potter author J.K Rowling has declared that she wouldn’t accept a hypothetical apology from Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson over their differing views on the trans community.pic.twitter.com/J76bVQG3zI
— HANIA Waseem (@haniawaseem286)April 11, 2024
“If I sound angry, it’s because I’m bloody angry. I read Cass this morning and my anger’s been mounting all day. Kids have been irreversibly harmed, and thousands are complicit, not just medics, but the celebrity mouthpieces, unquestioning media and cynical corporations,” she added.
Her jibe at Daniel and Emma came after a fan commented on her tweets saying: “Just waiting for Dan and Emma to give you a very public apology … safe in the knowledge that you will forgive them.”
The author said celebs who “used their platforms to cheer on the transitioning of minors can save their apologies”
Not safe, I’m afraid. Celebs who cosied up to a movement intent on eroding women’s hard-won rights and who used their platforms to cheer on the transitioning of minors can save their apologies for traumatised detransitioners and vulnerable women reliant on single sex spaces.
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling)April 10, 2024
“Not safe, I’m afraid,” Rowling wrote. “Celebs who cosied up to a movement intent on eroding women’s hard-won rights and who used their platforms to cheer on the transitioning of minors can save their apologies for traumatised detransitioners and vulnerable women reliant on single sex spaces.”
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“‘People who menstruate.’ I’m sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?” she tweeted at the time.
Thousands of people left their opinions in the comment section of her post, with one saying, “So what you’re saying is that all human who menstruate are women and those who don’t are not? We live in a time where people fight hard to change narrow terms to be more including. Why do you fight against this? Why is it so important to you to hold on to your outdated believes?”
‘People who menstruate.’ I’m sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?
Opinion: Creating a more equal post-COVID-19 world for people who menstruatehttps://t.co/cVpZxG7gaA
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling)June 6, 2020
Another wrote, “I used to love your books, now I’m just so disappointed in you. Your unapologetic ignorance is vile and deeply hurtful.”
“To the trans and non-binary youth having a hard time because they found out one of their favorite authors created an entire fictional universe but doesn’t have space for them, I feel you. But you are real and valid. I love you more than Harry, Hermione, Neville and Ron combined,” another wrote.
Despite receiving a lot of backlash, Rowling was resolute with her opinion and reiterated her stand in subsequent tweets.
“If sex isn’t real, there’s no same-sex attraction. If sex isn’t real, the lived reality of women globally is erased. I know and love trans people, but erasing the concept of sex removes the ability of many to meaningfully discuss their lives. It isn’t hate to speak the truth,” the author said in anothertweet.
Harry Potter star, Daniel Radcliffe, wrote an essay addressing the author’s remarks and showed his support for the transgender community
Image credits:Jon Furniss/WireImage via Getty Images
Emma also released a statement at the time to show her support for the transgender community and said, “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.”
“I want my trans followers to know that I and so many other people around the world see you, respect you and love you for who you are,” she added.
J.K. Rowling’s representative toldBored Pandathat the author declined to comment.
Bored Pandareached out to representatives of Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson but has not yet received a response.
Some fans accused the Hogwarts architect of using her “huge platform” to spread “hate”
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