JK Rowling thinks people are afraid to speak about gender because they ‘fear for their personal safety’
JK Rowling attends the Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them premiere in 2016 (Getty/Jim Spellman)
JK Rowling has suggested that “gender identity ideology” poses a challenge to women’s rights, as she continues to air her views about trans people.
The multi-millionaire author spoke out yet again on transgender issues in an interview with Good Housekeeping magazine, despite emotional pleas from fans and Harry Potter cast members for her to reconsider on her stance on the subject.
Speaking to the magazine for its January issue, Rowling said: “Many women are concerned about the challenges to their fundamental rights posed by certain aspects of gender identity ideology.
“I’ve had a huge postbag since speaking up on this issue and more than 90 per cent of the letters and emails have been supportive. My correspondents have included medical staff, social workers, prison workers, workers in women’s refuges and members of the LGBT community, including trans people.”
JK Rowling claims people are too scared for their ‘personal safety’ to speak up.
Rowling continued: “Many are afraid to speak up because they fear for their jobs and even for their personal safety. This climate of fear serves nobody well, least of all trans people.
“I believe everybody should be free to live a life that is authentic to them, and that they should be safe to do so. I also believe that we need a more nuanced conversation around women’s rights and around the huge increase in numbers of girls and young women who are seeking to transition.
“Some of the most heartbreaking letters I’ve received have been from young women who regret the irreversible surgeries they’ve undertaken. These stories need to be told.”
Pro-Democracy protesters hold signs calling out JK Rowling as they take part in a Harry Potter themed protest on August 3, 2020 in Bangkok, Thailand.(Getty/Lauren DeCicca)
JK Rowling remains silent on Johnny Depp domestic abuse row.
The JK Rowling interview comes amid production chaos on Fantastic Beasts 3, the latest film in her cash cow Wizarding World franchise, after the enforced departure of Johnny Depp.
Rowling had previously dismissed calls to drop Depp from the franchise despite concerning details emerging about his relationship with Amber Heard, but his exit was forced by studio bosses last month after he lost a libel case against a tabloid newspaper that described him as a “wife-beater”.
In a 2017 statement responding to initial calls for Depp to be dropped from the franchise, Rowling had said: “The agreements that have been put in place to protect the privacy of two people, both of whom have expressed a desire to get on with their lives, must be respected.
“Based on our understanding of the circumstances, the filmmakers and I are not only comfortable sticking with our original casting, but genuinely happy to have Johnny playing a major character in the movies.”
Rowling has made no further statement since the libel case ruling and Depp’s departure, and no questions on the furore were published as part of the Good Housekeeping interview. PinkNews contacted the author’s representatives for comment.
