JK Rowling says people she worked with who publicly shunned her because of her views on gender rights secretly emailed or texted her to “check if they were still friends.”
The 58-year-old Harry Potter author has previously been criticized for her fervent views on gender identity, but has always strongly denied accusations of transphobia.
And she says colleagues were keen to distance themselves from her, with many condemning her after she backed Maya Forstater in 2019 – a researcher who took her bosses to an employment tribunal claiming she had been discriminated against over her belief that people should not express their views can change. sex.
Ms Rowling also made headlines in October 2022 when she voiced her support for protests against Scotland’s Gender Recognition Reform Bill – a law proposed by then First Minister Nicola Sturgeon that would make it easier for people to change gender.
In support of the protests, the writer posted a photo in which she called Sturgeon a “destroyer of women’s rights.”
JK Rowling says people she worked with who publicly shunned her because of her views on gender rights secretly emailed or texted her to check if they were still friends.
JK Rowling with Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson at the premiere of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in 2002. In recent years, the Harry Potter author has had very public feuds with the stars of her award-winning series
JK Rowling with Rupert Grint, Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson in 2001. In June 2020, in response to a comment by Ms Rowling about ‘people who menstruate’, Mr Radcliffe wrote a blog post against her for LGBTQ+ charity The Trevor Project, stating he explicitly said, “Transgender women are women.”
Ms Rowling also made headlines in October 2022 when she voiced her support for the protests against Scotland’s Gender Recognition Reform Bill. The author posted a photo calling Sturgeon a “destroyer of women’s rights.”
To write The times Yesterday, Ms Rowling claimed her outspoken views on transgender rights have led to people she has worked with ‘rushing to distance themselves from me’.
She said: ‘People who had worked with me rushed to distance themselves from me or publicly condemn my blasphemous views (although I should add that many former and current colleagues have staunchly supported me).
‘In reality, the conviction of certain individuals was far less surprising to me than the fact that some of them subsequently emailed or messaged me through third parties to check whether we were still friends.’
In recent years, the Harry Potter author has had very public feuds with the stars of her award-winning series, including Harry Potter’s titular character: Daniel Radcliffe.
In June 2020, in response to a comment from Ms Rowling about “people who menstruate”, Mr Radcliffe wrote a blog post against her for LGBTQ+ charity The Trevor Project, in which he explicitly said: “Transgender women are women.”
He added: “Any statement to the contrary erases the identity and dignity of transgender people and goes against all advice from professional healthcare organizations who have far more expertise in this area than Jo (Rowling) or I.”
The 34-year-old actor also apologized to fans, saying, “To all the people who now feel like their experience with the books has been tarnished or diminished, I am deeply sorry for the pain these comments have caused you. ‘
Emma Watson appeared to make a subtle comment to author JK Rowling at the 2022 BAFTA Film Awards
Emma Watson, who played Hermione Granger, was quick to support her fellow cast member and spoke out against Rowling’s position.
She wrote on
“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.”
The 33-year-old had also previously shared a photo of herself wearing a t-shirt that read: ‘Trans rights are human rights.’
Then in March 2022, Ms Watson made a comment at the BAFTAs, which was largely interpreted as a dig at JK Rowling.
When she took the stage to give a presentation, the actress emphasized that she was on stage for “ALL the witches!” Viewers at home saw the comment as a jab at the Harry Potter creator, with one writing: “I’m here for all women.” Sly ‘Do you hate JK Rowling, Emma Watson?’
As recently as April this year, Ms Rowling showed that the feud with the stars who made her books famous was still very much alive.
Following the publication of the Cass Review, written by Dr Hilary Cass, which found that teenagers in Britain were allowed to change their gender on the basis of ‘remarkably weak evidence’, J.K Rowling suggested on social media that she would not forgive Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson for their opinions.
Rowling wrote on X after the report was published, saying it was a “watershed moment” and that it “exposed the tragedy” of allowing children to transition.
In her op-ed for The Times, Ms Rowling continued her attack on those who disagree with her views, claiming they find their views ‘truly despicable’.
When someone claimed that Radcliffe and Watson owe her “a very public apology… safe in the knowledge that you will forgive them,” Rowling responded by saying: “Not safe, I’m afraid.”
In her op-ed for The Times, Ms Rowling continued her attack on those who disagree with her views, claiming they find their views ‘truly despicable’.
The comments come after Rowling appeared to challenge Police Scotland to arrest her if her social media posts break new laws following the introduction of the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act.
The police later confirmed it would take no action against the author.
The Women Who Wouldn’t Wheesht is a collection of more than 30 essays, edited by Susan Dalgety and Lucy Hunter Blackburn.
It also includes contributions from SNP MP Joanna Cherry and former prison governor Rhona Hotchkiss, who argue that ‘trans-identified male prisoners’ do not belong in women’s prisons.