Just days after Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling came under fire from fans over alleged transphobic tweets, Daniel Radcliffe has responded. Not only did the actor issue a public apology to HP fans on her behalf, but he also slammed the writer for her words.
Taking to the website of The Trevor Project — a non-profit organization focused on suicide prevention efforts among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning youth — the star explained, “While Jo is unquestionably responsible for the course my life has taken, 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.”
“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. “According to The Trevor Project, 78 percent of transgender and nonbinary youth reported being the subject of discrimination due to their gender identity. It’s clear that we need to do more to support transgender and nonbinary people, not invalidate their identities, and not cause further harm.”
For those who missed it, J.K. received backlash after she retweeted an article titled “Opinion: Creating a more equal post-COVID-19 world for people who menstruate” on June 6, 2020.
“‘People who menstruate.’ I’m sure there used to be a word for those people,” the writer added. “Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?”
‘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 menstruate https://t.co/cVpZxG7gaA
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) June 6, 2020
After being slammed online, the 54-year-old seemingly defended her initial post in a Twitter thread.
“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 — i.e, to male violence — ‘hate’ trans people because they think sex is real and has lived consequences — is a nonsense,” she wrote. “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.”
“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,” Daniel continued in his powerful statement. “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.”
But don’t worry, people, because the former wizard made it clear that he and J.K. are not feuding.
“I realize that certain press outlets will probably want to paint this as in-fighting between J.K. Rowling and myself, but that is really not what this is about, nor is it what’s important right now,” he concluded.
Harry Potter actress Katie Leung. — known for her role as Cho Chang — also spoke out.
“So, you want my thoughts on Cho Chang? Okay, here goes… (thread),” the actress wrote on Twitter, posting links to petitions and organizations that support the Black trans community.
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