Recently, Harry Potter has been a relevant subject on the internet because of the Wizarding World video game and the teaser from the reboot HBO streaming channel is working on. Inevitably, the mind behind this atemporal success, J.K. Rowling, has also become a trending topic, but not in such a positive way. Users are remembering a big polemic involving J.K.’s transphobic comments. “Boycott Harry Potter” became a viral tag, and the community is splitting itself in two, with divergent opinions, if the wizarding world can be separated from its muggle author.
WHAT HAS J.K. DONE FOR THE TRANS COMMUNITY?
For those who were not familiar with the polemic tweets J.K. sent about the Trans community and her other transphobic acts, here is a little summary of what happened: J.K. Rowling has openly collaborated with radfem accounts and groups, which is a radical vertex of the feminist movement that gained popularity in the 1970s. Nowadays, with the increase in Trans recognition and acceptance, it has become clearer how radical feminists are a threat to their community.
Those feminists think the biological factor is decisive in the construction of the feminine image. For them, being a woman is 100% related to the birth sex, so, in their vision, trans people are just confused people who don’t own a true identity. There are even those who defend the idea that trans women are a way to destabilize the feminism fight by including people with masculine birth sex. And trans men are women who gave in to society’s oppression and decided to become the oppressors.
J.K. Rowling not only liked and reposted many tweets about the movement, but she has also said things in public, especially on Twitter, agreeing with those absurd thoughts. Below are two of the innumerable problematic comments made by J.K. as an example of why the whole polemic started.
Rowling’s tweet once responded to an inclusive magazine article that used the term “people who menstruate” – so trans men, trans women, and women who don’t menstruate fell included – with an infamous joke questioning if there wasn’t already a name for people who menstruate, and later completed the tread with the comment:
HOW TRANS FANS ARE DEALING WITH J.K. HATE TOWARDS THEIR EXISTENCE
We questioned two trans women who actively commented on J.K.’s hate speech and the cancellation of Harry Potter about their relationship with the series, their response, and potential boycott options for those who still couldn’t leave the magical world behind.
The interviewers gained significance since the subject was discussed on several platforms. Actress, singer, and content creator Willa Thomas, 25, made the decision to use TikTok to share her thoughts and feelings regarding J.K.’s recent behavior.
On the other hand, a 27-year-old pop culture journalist named Carol Fitzpatrick used Twitter to comment on it and even respond to other fan accounts that were endorsing Rowling’s transphobic views and behaviors. One of those discussions with a massive fan base went viral.
GROWING UP WITH THE WIZARDING WORLD
Both interviewers are really big fans of the wizarding world and describe them as comfort movies and books. Actually, they talked about how they had grown up with the books and movies and looked forward to the release of a new one every year. They both agreed that going to the movies was a huge deal. Willa explains: “My family is from the countryside; therefore, every new release we went to the big city, so it represents my interaction with a completely different world from mine, a great world that offered wonderful memories.”
Being trans women who grew up with Harry Potter, both of them commented about their big disappointment in seeing the author of that fantastic world being so hateful towards their existence. Every loss is followed by grief, and it is evident they are at different phases because of when they were asked about their present interactions with the world of magic. Willa said, “J.K. was a reference to me, almost like a maternal figure. Even though I think it is really hard to separate the author from the work, and what she is doing is unforgivable, there is no way to stop consuming Harry Potter”.
Contrarily, Carol Fitzpatrick stated: “I love to read, and Harry Potter gave me a lot of motivation to do so. But now that the saga has become so incredibly exclusive, I don’t believe I have the right to enjoy it. When I was younger, I eagerly anticipated the release of new movies every year, but now that we are older, we are capable of realizing that, while her work is still available when we want to revisit it, there are plenty of other way better options, and, as a bonus, we don’t have to support such a hateful woman.”
WASTE OF POWERFUL VOICES
Their reaction, though, was the same. Both were deeply offended and disgusted by Rowling’s remarks, as well as the fans’ agreement or denial that anything happened. “I’ve been requesting accountability from Harry Potter content creators; in fact, I don’t believe those channels should even exist, but since they do, accountability ought to be a top priority. The largest Harry Potter YouTube channel is Brazilian, but, unfortunately, it is run by a cis male who doesn’t mention J.K. at all”, says Carol, who adds: “Today, we know that the book is filled with racism, fatphobia, and xenophobia, and those with influence don’t want to discuss all the issues.”
In addition, Willa Thomas expressed her own feelings and reaction about the author, saying, “I think it’s such cowardice for her to use a powerful voice to attack a group that has been attacked since the beginning of the world; she is forcing a stigma that we’ve never won and beating people who’ve been beating for centuries.”
ALTERNATIVES FOR “BOYCOTT HARRY POTTER”
The interviewees were asked if they were aware of any alternatives to outright cancellation because Harry Potter is a source of comfort for many generations, as it is for them. Willa responded by using an actual instance: J.K. is not engaged in any aspect of the production of the video game Hogwarts Legacy, yet she still receives royalties for the story. The community had been waiting for its manifestation for a long time, so a Brazilian streamer named Vanessa Wolf did a live performance to promote awareness for ideologies that accept trans individuals. She eventually succeeded in raising more than R$20,000 and donated it to two organizations. That remark, in my opinion, was astounding: “If we can’t stop consuming, let’s use the big engagement Harry Potter has to the contrary of what she is using”.
Carol had another perspective on the same subject of the game, citing a different example: “Youtuber Felipe Neto came to the realization that he couldn’t quit the franchise and, because he had already completed the new game, he would contribute R$10.000 to an organization that supports trans people. It doesn’t make sense to me; it’s the same as saying it’s acceptable for comedians to profit from making racist and homophobic jokes if they donate to a charity later. J.K. Rowling is, in fact, funding Trans Excludent Radical Feminist (TERF) organizations with her money and notoriety. People will need his donation because you are contributing with people like her”.
But she also gave her alternative: “The individual can keep using it without sharing if they have an overwhelming need for it because it brings back memories of a particular time in her life or is remarkable in some other manner, just like a guilty pleasure. Without needing to vigorously argue it and ignore the issues with the book. People gaslighting themselves is only worse, and you can always buy a wand, for instance, from some of the Brazilian craftsmen or buy the game from someone who has already finished; there are a lot of alternatives that don’t give money directly to her. They can only understand the risk that it poses for a whole community to buy official merchandise and understand and respect the point of view of those who are harmed by it.”
Carol and Willa are both members of the group that J.K. Rowling has targeted with her cruel deeds, as was previously established, but they are also members of the generation that grew up considering the fantastical world of Harry Potter to be a second home. They both express the same sense of disappointment and incredulity, despite the fact that their replies occasionally deviate.
We cannot defend the author by claiming that she is a decent person simply because she created a popular new universe, just as it is not possible to argue that Harry Potter is not a revolutionary narrative because its author is a bad person. The most crucial thing for everyone who wants to continue consuming the universe is to comprehend its issues and work to reduce the harm they do. Supporting trans authors and novels featuring trans characters is a fantastic opportunity to educate yourself about and bring attention to a community that has faced many challenges up to this point.
—————————
The article above was edited by Juliana Sanches.
Like this type of content? Check out Her Campus Casper Libero for more.