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Death threat[edit]

A man has been sentenced for making death threats against J K Rowling and Rosie Duffield. [1] I think this should be added to this article, but I don’t want to interfere with any redrafting, etc. Sweet6970 (talk) 20:17, 5 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]

  • I agree. Incorporated in draft #7, below.—S Marshall T/C 10:54, 9 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Draft 7[edit]

Suissa and Sullivan are out, and Glenn Mullen is in. As there's no good faith dispute at all over whether J. K. Rowling was insulted and threatened for her views, I've left that in.—S Marshall T/C 10:54, 9 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Draft 7.1: 403 words Historical: 429 words
Main article: Political views of J. K. Rowling § Transgender rights

Rowling has [some contributors want to add a qualifier here] gender-critical views.[1][2][3] She resists proposed changes to UK law that would make it simpler to transition without a medical diagnosis. Rowling is concerned that easier transitions could affect access to female-only spaces and legal protections for women.[4][5][6][a] She opposes gender self-recognition[11][12][b] and suggests that children and cisgender women are threatened by trans women and trans-positive messages.[14] In April 2024, responding to Scotland's Hate Crime and Public Order Act, she tweeted a list of trans women, writing that they are "men, every last one of them".[15]

Friction over Rowling's gender-critical writings surged in 2019 when she defended Maya Forstater.[16] When Forstater's employment contract was not renewed after Forstater shared gender-critical views,[17] Rowling wrote that trans people should live in "peace and security", but questioned women being "force[d] out of their jobs for stating that sex is real".[18][c] According to Harry Potter scholar Lana Whited, in the next six months "Rowling herself fanned the flames as she became increasingly vocal".[23] In June 2020,[23] Rowling mocked the phrase "people who menstruate",[24] and tweeted that women's rights and "lived reality" would be "erased" if "sex isn't real".[25][17]

Rowling's views have affected her reputation.[26] She has been the target of widespread condemnation,[9][27][28] insults, and threats, including death threats.[29][30] Despite the controversy, sales of Harry Potter books grew during the COVID-19 lockdown.[31][32] Criticism came from Harry Potter fansites, LGBT charities, and leading actors of the Wizarding World.[33][34][35] and Human Rights Campaign.[4][36][37][38] After Kerry Kennedy expressed "profound disappointment" in her views, Rowling returned the Ripple of Hope Award given to her by the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights organisation.[39]

Rowling rejects these characterisations and denies being transphobic.[13][40] In an essay posted on her website in June 2020 – which left trans people feeling betrayed[11][33] – Rowling said her views on women's rights sprang from survivorship of domestic abuse and sexual assault.[41][42] While affirming that "the majority of trans-identified people not only pose zero threat to others, but are vulnerable ... Trans people need and deserve protection", she wrote that it would be unsafe to allow "any man who believes or feels he's a woman" into bathrooms or changing rooms.[42][43][44] Whited asserted in 2024 that Rowling's sometimes "flippant" and "simplistic understanding of gender identity" had permanently changed her "relationship not only with fans, readers, and scholars ... but also with her works themselves".[45]

Main article: Political views of J. K. Rowling § Transgender rights

Rowling's responses to proposed changes to UK gender recognition laws,[4][5][d] and her views on sex and gender, have provoked controversy.[9] Her statements have divided feminists;[6][46][47] fuelled debates on freedom of speech,[48][49] academic freedom[8] and cancel culture;[27] and prompted declarations of support for transgender people from the literary,[50] arts[51] and culture sectors.[52]

When Maya Forstater's employment contract with the London branch of the Center for Global Development was not renewed after she tweeted gender-critical views,[17][18] Rowling responded in December 2019 with a tweet that transgender people should live their lives as they pleased in "peace and security", but questioned women being "force[d] out of their jobs for stating that sex is real".[18][e] In another controversial tweet in June 2020,[34] Rowling mocked an article for using the phrase "people who menstruate",[24] and tweeted that women's rights and "lived reality" would be "erased" if "sex isn't real".[54][55]

LGBT charities and leading actors of the Wizarding World franchise condemned Rowling's comments;[37][38][f] GLAAD called them "cruel" and "inaccurate".[61] Rowling responded with an essay on her website[13] in which she revealed that her views on women's rights were informed by her experience as a survivor of domestic abuse and sexual assault.[42] While affirming that "the majority of trans-identified people not only pose zero threat to others, but are vulnerable ... Trans people need and deserve protection", she believed that it would be unsafe to allow "any man who believes or feels he's a woman" into bathrooms or changing rooms.[42][62][63] Writing of her own experiences with sexism and misogyny,[64] she wondered if the "allure of escaping womanhood" would have led her to transition if she had been born later, and said that trans activism was "seeking to erode 'woman' as a political and biological class".[65]

Rowling's continual statements – beginning in 2017[9][66][67] – have been called transphobic by critics[68][69] and she has been referred to as a TERF.[69][70][71] She rejects these characterisations and the notion that she holds animosity towards transgender people, saying that her viewpoint has been misunderstood.[13][68][67] Criticism of Rowling's views has come from the Harry Potter fansites MuggleNet and The Leaky Cauldron;[72] and the charities Mermaids,[34] Stonewall,[73] and Human Rights Campaign.[74] After Kerry Kennedy expressed "profound disappointment" in her views, Rowling returned the Ripple of Hope Award given to her by the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights organisation.[39]

As Rowling's views on the legal status of transgender people came under scrutiny,[8] she received insults and death threats[75][76] and discussion moved beyond the Twitter community.[77] Some performers and feminists have supported her.[77][78] Figures from the arts world criticised "hate speech directed against her".[79]

Sources[edit]

Sources

References

  1. ^ Whited 2024, p. 7. "But in June 2020, Rowling's manifesto led some people to label her as a trans-exclusionary radical feminist (TERF), a term first used in 2008 that has more recently evolved as 'gender critical'.".
  2. ^ Steinfeld 2020, pp. 34–35. "Just ask JK Rowling and other women who have been labelled as Terfs".
  3. ^ Schwirblat, Freberg & Freberg 2022, pp. 367–368. "This sparked a heated discussion within the Twitter community, one side buttressing Rowling's statements, and the other espousing her as a trans-exclusionary radical feminist (TERF)".
  4. ^ a b c Milne, Amber; Savage, Rachel (11 June 2020). "Explainer: J. K. Rowling and trans women in single-sex spaces: what's the furore?". Reuters. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
  5. ^ a b Brooks, Libby (11 June 2020). "Why is JK Rowling speaking out now on sex and gender debate?". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  6. ^ a b Kottasová, Ivana; Andrew, Scottie (20 December 2019). "J.K. Rowling's 'transphobia' tweet row spotlights a fight between equality campaigners and radical feminists". CNN. Retrieved 5 May 2024. Cite error: The named reference "Kottasova2019" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  7. ^ a b Pedersen 2022, Abstract.
  8. ^ a b c d Suissa & Sullivan 2021, pp. 66–69.
  9. ^ a b c d e Duggan 2021, PDF pp. 14–15 (160–161).
  10. ^ Watson, Jeremy (18 February 2024). "JK Rowling donates £70k for legal challenge on defining a woman". The Times. Archived from the original on 17 February 2024. Retrieved 5 May 2024.
  11. ^ a b Whited 2024, p. 7.
  12. ^ "JK Rowling backs protest over Scottish gender bill". BBC News. 6 October 2022. Retrieved 5 May 2024.
  13. ^ a b c d "J.K. Rowling writes about her reasons for speaking out on sex and gender issues". JK Rowling. 10 June 2020. Archived from the original on 10 June 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  14. ^ Duggan 2021, p. 161.
  15. ^ Brooks, Libby (3 April 2024). "JK Rowling's posts on X will not be recorded as non-crime hate incident". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  16. ^ Whited 2024, pp. 6–8.
  17. ^ a b c Pugh 2020, p. 7.
  18. ^ a b c Stack, Liam (19 December 2019). "J.K. Rowling criticized after tweeting support for anti-transgender researcher". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 13 June 2020. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
  19. ^ a b Faulkner, Doug (10 June 2021). "Maya Forstater: woman wins tribunal appeal over transgender tweets". BBC News. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  20. ^ a b Siddique, Haroon (10 June 2021). "Gender-critical views are a protected belief, appeal tribunal rules". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  21. ^ Pape 2022, p. 230.
  22. ^ "Maya Forstater: Woman discriminated against over trans tweets, tribunal rules". BBC News. 6 July 2022. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  23. ^ a b Whited 2024, p. 6.
  24. ^ a b Gross, Jenny (7 June 2020). "Daniel Radcliffe criticizes J.K. Rowling's anti-transgender tweets". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 7 June 2020. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
  25. ^ Duggan 2021, pp. 14–15.
  26. ^ Whited 2024, p. 8.
  27. ^ a b Schwirblat, Freberg & Freberg 2022, pp. 367–369.
  28. ^ Pape 2022, pp. 229–230, 238.
  29. ^ Whited 2024, p. 9.
  30. ^ Burnell, Paul (4 June 2024). "Internet troll threatened to kill JK Rowling and MP". BBC News. Retrieved 9 June 2024.
  31. ^ Pape 2022, p. 238.
  32. ^ Sweney, Mark (21 July 2020). "Harry Potter books prove UK lockdown hit despite JK Rowling trans rights row". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  33. ^ a b Henderson 2022, p. 224.
  34. ^ a b c Petter, Olivia (17 September 2020). "Mermaids writes open letter to JK Rowling following her recent comments on trans people". The Independent. Archived from the original on 15 June 2020. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  35. ^ Hinsliff, Gaby (3 November 2021). "The battle for Stonewall: the LGBT charity and the UK's gender wars". New Statesman. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
  36. ^ "JK Rowling's tweets on transgender people spark outrage". Associated Press. 7 June 2020. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
  37. ^ a b Waterson, Jim (23 July 2020). "Children's news website apologises to JK Rowling over trans tweet row". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 March 2022. Rowling's comments on gender were condemned by LGBT charities and the leading stars of her Harry Potter film franchise.
  38. ^ a b c Lang, Brent (10 June 2020). "Eddie Redmayne criticizes J.K. Rowling's anti-trans tweets". Variety. Retrieved 28 March 2022. Eddie Redmayne, star of the Fantastic Beasts franchise, is speaking out against J.K. Rowling's anti-trans tweets, as the controversy surrounding the author and her beliefs continues to swirl.
  39. ^ a b Flood, Alison (28 August 2020). "JK Rowling returns human rights award to group that denounces her trans views". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
  40. ^ "JK Rowling dismisses backlash over trans comments: 'I don't care about my legacy'". BBC News. 22 February 2023. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  41. ^ Duggan 2021, pp. 160–161).
  42. ^ a b c d Shirbon, Estelle (10 June 2020). "J.K. Rowling reveals past abuse and defends right to speak on trans issues". Reuters. Archived from the original on 11 June 2020. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
  43. ^ Gonzalez, Sandra (10 June 2020). "J.K. Rowling explains her gender identity views in essay amid backlash". CNN. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
  44. ^ Garrand, Danielle (11 June 2020). "J.K. Rowling defends herself after accusations of making 'anti-trans' comments on Twitter". CBS News. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
  45. ^ Whited 2024, pp. 6, 8–9.
  46. ^ "JK Rowling responds to trans tweets criticism". BBC News. 11 June 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2022.
  47. ^ Ferber, Alona (22 September 2020). "Judith Butler on the culture wars, JK Rowling and living in 'anti-intellectual times'". New Statesman. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
  48. ^ Pape 2022, pp. 229–230.
  49. ^ "BBC nominates J.K.Rowling's controversial essay of trans rights for award". DW News. 22 December 2020. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
  50. ^ UK, US, Canada, Ireland: Flood, Alison (9 October 2020). "Stephen King, Margaret Atwood and Roxane Gay champion trans rights in open letter". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 April 2022.
  51. ^ Rowley, Glenn (11 June 2020). "Artists fire back at J.K. Rowling's anti-trans remarks, share messages in support of the community". Billboard. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
  52. ^ Culture sector:
  53. ^ "Maya Forstater: Woman discriminated against over trans tweets, tribunal rules". BBC News. 6 July 2022. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  54. ^ Duggan 2021, PDF pp. 14–15.
  55. ^ Moreau, Jordan (6 June 2020). "J.K. Rowling gets backlash over anti-trans tweets". Variety. Archived from the original on 7 June 2020. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
  56. ^ a b Hibberd, James (17 March 2021). "Ralph Fiennes defends J.K. rowling amid trans controversy, says backlash is 'disturbing'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  57. ^ Lenker, Maureen (10 June 2020). "Every Harry Potter actor who's spoken out against J.K. Rowling's controversial trans comments". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 1 April 2022.
  58. ^ Baska, Maggie (20 May 2021). "Stephen Fry defends 'friendship' with JK Rowling: 'I'm sorry that people are upset'". PinkNews. Retrieved 29 March 2022.
  59. ^ Evans, Greg. "Helena Bonham Carter says Johnny Depp 'completely vindicated' in defamation trial, and J.K. Rowling 'hounded' for transgender stance". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  60. ^ Yasharoff, Hannah (30 December 2021). "How the 'Harry Potter' reunion addresses author J.K. Rowling's anti-trans controversy". USA Today. Retrieved 2 April 2022.
  61. ^ Yasharoff, Hannah (10 June 2020). "J.K. Rowling reveals she's a sexual assault survivor; Emma Watson reacts to trans comments". USA Today. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
  62. ^ Gonzalez, Sandra (10 June 2020). "J.K. Rowling explains her gender identity views in essay amid backlash". CNN. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
  63. ^ Garrand, Danielle (11 June 2020). "J.K. Rowling defends herself after accusations of making "anti-trans" comments on Twitter". CBS News. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
  64. ^ Cain, Sian (11 June 2020). "JK Rowling reveals she is survivor of domestic abuse and sexual assault". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 March 2022.
  65. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (10 June 2020). "J.K. Rowling defends trans statements in lengthy essay, reveals she's a sexual assault survivor & says 'trans people need and deserve protection'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
  66. ^ Jacobs, Julia (9 February 2023). "Hogwarts legacy can't cast aside debate over J. K. Rowling". The New York Times. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
  67. ^ a b Spangler, Todd (14 February 2023). "J.K. Rowling addresses backlash to her anti-trans comments in new podcast: 'I never set out to upset anyone'". Variety. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
  68. ^ a b Breznican, Anthony (12 April 2023). "J.K. Rowling will oversee a new streaming Harry Potter series". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 14 July 2023.
  69. ^ a b Rosenblatt, Kalhan (10 June 2020). "J.K. Rowling doubles down in what some critics call a 'transphobic manifesto'". NBC News. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
  70. ^ Steinfeld 2020, pp. 34–35.
  71. ^ Schwirblat, Freberg & Freberg 2022, pp. 367–368.
  72. ^ "Harry Potter fan sites distance themselves from JK Rowling over transgender rights". The Guardian. Reuters. 3 July 2020. Archived from the original on 3 July 2020. Retrieved 3 July 2020.
  73. ^ Hinsliff, Gaby (3 November 2021). "The battle for Stonewall: the LGBT charity and the UK's gender wars". New Statesman. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
  74. ^ Brisco, Elise (8 October 2021). "Dave Chappelle says he's 'Team TERF,' defends J.K. Rowling in new Netflix comedy special". USA Today. Retrieved 29 March 2022.
  75. ^ Suissa & Sullivan 2021, p. 69.
  76. ^ Qiao 2022, p. 1323.
  77. ^ a b Schwirblat, Freberg & Freberg 2022, p. 368.
  78. ^ Supporting Rowling:
  79. ^ Flockhart, Gary (28 September 2020). "JK Rowling receives support from Ian McEwan and Frances Barber amid 'transphobia' row". The Scotsman. Retrieved 2 April 2022.

Notes

  1. ^ The laws and proposed changes are the UK Gender Recognition Act 2004 and the Scotland Gender Recognition Reform Bill; related also are the UK Equality Act 2010[7][8][9] and the Scotland Gender Representation on Public Boards Act of 2018.[10]
  2. ^ Rowling wrote in 2020: "The current explosion of trans activism is urging a removal of almost all the robust systems through which candidates for sex reassignment were once required to pass. A man who intends to have no surgery and take no hormones may now secure himself a Gender Recognition Certificate and be a woman in the sight of the law."[13]
  3. ^ A tribunal ruled in 2021 that Forstater's gender-critical views were protected under the 2010 UK Equality Act.[19][20][21] In July 2022, a new tribunal decision was published (Forstater v Center for Global Development Europe) ruling that Forstater had suffered direct discrimination from her employer.[22]
  4. ^ The UK laws and proposed changes are the Gender Recognition Act 2004, the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill and the related Equality Act 2010.[7][8][9]
  5. ^ A tribunal ruled in 2021 that Forstater's gender-critical views were protected under the 2010 UK Equality Act.[19][20] In July 2022, a new tribunal decision was published (Forstater v Center for Global Development Europe) ruling that Forstater had suffered direct discrimination from her employer.[53]
  6. ^ Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint,[56] Eddie Redmayne[38] and others expressed support for the transgender community in reaction to Rowling's comments;[57][58] Helena Bonham Carter,[59] Robbie Coltrane,[60] and Ralph Fiennes supported Rowling.[56]

Discussion[edit]

Is that meant to be titled as Draft 6.3, or is it a mistake? Alpha2 5232 (talk) 16:49, 9 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Fixed.—S Marshall T/C 17:42, 9 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Busy for the rest of today, but I should be able to enter my commentary (as promised weeks ago), by tomorrow. SandyGeorgia (Talk) 19:41, 9 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
PS, this might provide an updated source to replace her website essay. SandyGeorgia (Talk) 19:56, 9 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
S Marshall, thanks for doing this & huge apologies for being awol (there's another article where I'm in over my head & my time for Wikipedia keeps shrinking). A couple of comments to get started:
  • I have some as-yet-very-muddy-thoughts about the first sentence & the phrase gender-critical so I'll try to flesh those out later.
  • Minor point, but there's some repetition of "She, she, she" in the first para that needs wordsmithing.
  • For people with no clue, have been wondering whether we should try working in a link to Forstater v Centre for Global Development Europe
  • "affected her reputation" should be cited to Whited page 8
  • Good to see the draft less wordy; I'm wondering how others feel about putting back the sentence "Her statements have divided feminists... etc., etc." that's in the historical draft? The end of that sentence mentions includes " "lived reality" would be "erased" if "sex isn't real", which is another way of saying sex is immutable. Should that be clarified?
That's it for now. Victoria (tk) 20:57, 14 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
  • In draft 7.1, I've attempted to address points #2, #3 and #4 that you raise, and I await further input on #1 and #5.—S Marshall T/C 21:55, 14 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
    • Much appreciated! Agreed that input from others is needed. Just to spin my thoughts out a bit more. Re the first sentence, I've realized that one reason it's been bugging me is that the term gender-critical may mean something very different in the US than in the UK. Recently I read an article about someone running for congress whose opinions about women are, shall we say, a bit archaic. Beyond that this person claims the LGBQT+ movement was created by radical feminists. So we need to be clear in terms of where links are going & what exactly we mean for a global audience.
      Regarding the sentence in the historical draft, which begins with ""Her statements have divided feminists... etc., etc." ... it occurred to me the newish literature address these debates & so those points should be made. Also I've not had time for a full examination of the essays in Whited (Project MUSE book 111748} or Konchar Farr {Project MUSE book 99615), which in my view needs to be done. Anyway, let's see what the others say. Victoria (tk) 23:36, 15 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
      • Yes. On the wildest, most far-flung fringes of the US right, there lurk certain characters who do indeed like to burst out of their swamps, yell things like "the LGBTQ+ movement was created by radical feminists!" and then slide back into the mire, waiting for the next gloriously unhinged thought to turn up. Like you, I'm often refreshed and challenged by their unique perspectives and their idiosyncratic ways of putting things. I think my personal favourite is "blame the gun". Presumably someone who thinks you shouldn't be allowed to drive without a driving licence is "blaming the car".
        I don't think we can use language the way those people do, and I also don't think we should be trying. Conservapedia is thataway ----->. I feel that as encyclopaedists, it's our task to summarize things in simple and clear terms, even (especially!) when the things we're trying to summarize are complex and difficult; and we should use normal, natural language in its usual meaning; and, despite what the US right might think, it's quite possible to be supportive and tolerant of gay and lesbian people, but intolerant of trans people; and that J.K. Rowling is; and that "gender-critical" is succinct, accurate, and neutral. It's not a pejorative.
        But I can see that "gender-critical" is an uncomfortable thing to say about someone. Even though it's not a pejorative, it's a pungent term. It reeks of repression and segregation and prejudice. It's scrupulously accurate, though.—S Marshall T/C 09:09, 16 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
        • I knew I wouldn't be able to make myself clear & that's why I have trouble engaging here. Being told to go off to Conservapedia doesn't want me to engage. To try to clarify: can we not just say she's a Gender-critical feminist whose views align with Maya Forstater (i.e the #IStandWithMaya tweet) & then tell readers who don't know (or who do know) those views are x, y and z (including that they believe sex is immutable). I think we're close. So just ignore me. Victoria (tk) 14:15, 16 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
          @Victoriaearle If we call J.K. Rowling a gender-critical feminist in the article, do we need to clarify what that means? Surely the page it would link to would give people an idea of what those views are without having to reclarify here? Alpha2 5232 (talk) 14:42, 16 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
          Yes, I think we should because this is her biography & the article is about her. But I need to step away to refamiliarize myself with the sources & don't have time for that at the moment. Victoria (tk) 16:45, 16 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
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