Harry Potter’s Bonnie Wright explains why she doesn’t want to talk about JK Rowling’s views anymore
Bonnie Wright explains that she no longer wants to talk about JK Rowling (Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic)
Harry Potter actress Bonnie Wright has explained that she now “prefers not to comment” on author JK Rowling’s much-criticised statements about the trans community.
Wright, who played Ginny in the Harry Potter films, is among the many stars of the franchise to speak out for trans rights in light of Rowling’s continued statements.
“If Harry Potter was a source of love and belonging for you, that love is infinite and there to take without judgment or question. Trans women are women. I see and love you,” Wright tweeted back in 2020.
In a new interview, Wright said she would no longer be addressing Rowling’s views in interviews.
“I made that comment then and I still stand with that same feeling, but it’s got to the point where I prefer not to comment more,” she told The Sunday Times.
She added: “It’s a subject outside of my input.”
If Harry Potter was a source of love and belonging for you, that love is infinite and there to take without judgment or question. Transwomen are Women. I see and love you, Bonnie x— Bonnie Wright (@thisisbwright) June 10, 2020
JK Rowling has faced criticism for her views on trans rights since 2019, when she came out in support of “gender critical” campaigner Maya Forstater.
Things escalated in 2020, when she posted series of tweets on inclusive language for periods.
Rowling took issue with an article in Devex, a media platform for the global development community, with the headline: “Creating a more equal post-COVID-19 world for people who menstruate.”
“‘People who menstruate’,” she wrote in response to the article. “I’m sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?”
She then added in a separate tweet: “If sex isn’t real, there’s no same-sex attraction.”
The author followed this up in June 2020 with her lengthy, now-notorious “TERF Wars” essay, in which she laid out her opposition to “the current trans activism”. She has shared her “gender critical” views regularly and at length since.
An international LGBT+ rights review has warned that rhetoric like Rowling’s is causing “significant damage” in the UK.
Last year’s report on ILGA-Europe’s equality index stated: “Anti-trans rhetoric continued to cause serious damage in the UK again this year. A prime example is repeated transphobic attacks by author JK Rowling, on Twitter and in her writing.”
The report continues: “Her statements have been harshly criticised by trans people, activists and writers. A growing number of celebrities, including from Harry Potter films, have spoken out in support of trans communities.
“Some trans people expressed their wish to leave the UK because of the growing hate.”
Rowling has repeatedly denied that she is transphobic.
