Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling has come under fire this week for a series of anti-trans tweets that have sent the novelist’s fandom and Hollywood friends into unrest.
Now, Harry Potter himself, Daniel Radcliffe, is speaking out against the author’s tweets, and defending the trans community as only a true superhero would. Or, a super WIZARD I should say!
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In case you missed it, J.K. Rowling popped off about trans people on Twitter for literally *no* reason at all this past weekend.
The 54-year-old tweeted: “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.”
If this wasn’t upsetting enough, the author continued to ramble in several more tweets.
“The idea that women like me, who’ve been empathetic to trans people for decades, feeling kinship because they’re vulnerable in the same way as women — ie, to male violence — ‘hate’ trans people because they think sex is real and has lived consequences — is a nonsense.”
“I respect every trans person’s right to live any way that feels authentic and comfortable to them. I’d march with you if you were discriminated against on the basis of being trans.”
“At the same time, my life has been shaped by being female. I do not believe it’s hateful to say so,” she concluded.
Naturally, these bigoted remarks did not go over well on social media.
Celebrities and fans alike had a lot to say about J.K.’s comments, and weren’t shy about expressing their disgust and disappointment.
As a refresher, this is not the first time J.K. has been called out for ignorant, anti-trans comments.
The author aligns with TERFs — trans-exclusionary radical feminists, and she has been tweeting her “gender critical” (another term for TERF-y) viewpoints for quite some time.
One of the celebrities that did not take J.K.’s comments lightly is sweet angel baby Daniel Radcliffe, J.K.’s own fictionalized hero!
In an essay published on Monday, Daniel said absolutely not to the author’s comments and expressed his disappointment in J.K.’s anti-trans remarks.
“As someone who has been honored to work with and continues to contribute to The Trevor Project for the last decade, and just as a human being, I feel compelled to say something at this moment,” Daniel began.
“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.”
He continued: “To all the people who now feel that their experience of the books has been tarnished or diminished, I am deeply sorry for the pain these comments have caused you.”
“I really hope that you don’t entirely lose what was valuable in these stories to you.”
“If these books taught you that love is the strongest force in the universe, capable of overcoming anything; if they taught you that strength is found in diversity, and that dogmatic ideas of pureness lead to the oppression of vulnerable groups.”
“If you believe that a particular character is trans, nonbinary, or gender fluid, or that they are gay or bisexual; if you found anything in these stories that resonated with you and helped you at any time in your life — then that is between you and the book that you read, and it is sacred.”
“And in my opinion nobody can touch that. It means to you what it means to you and I hope that these comments will not taint that too much,” he concluded.
To learn more about The Trevor Project and their amazing work, please click here .
