JK Rowling refuses to back down to Twitter trolls who labelled her ‘transphobic’

Harry Potter author JK Rowling has obliterated critics of her “wrong think” comments about gender in an open letter which says the new trans movement is eroding the legal definition of sex. Rowling – labelled “transphobic” by Twitter trolls and colleagues - says she will fight to protect notions of freedom of speech – even offering to stand up for the rights of President Donald Trump. Rowling penned a 3600-word explanation of her comments which were labelled “transphobic” after accurately pointing out there was a biological distinction between sex and gender. Daniel Radcliffe - the star of Rowling’s cinematic fantasy children’s wizard world – joined the avalanche of voices condemning Ms Rowling for what she has dubbed as wrong think. The actor – who is not a scientist – declared “transgender women are women” and accused Rowling of erasing the identity of transgender 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 said. Rowling rejected the comments saying she had been showered with emails of support since speaking out against the bullying of “institutions and organisations I once admired, who’re cowering before the tactics of the playground”. “What I didn’t expect in the aftermath of my cancellation was the avalanche of emails and letters that came showering down upon me, the overwhelming majority of which were positive, grateful and supportive,” she said. “They came from a cross-section of kind, empathetic and intelligent people, some of them working in fields dealing with gender dysphoria and trans people, who’re all deeply concerned about the way a socio-political concept is influencing politics, medical practice and safeguarding. They’re worried about the dangers to young people, gay people and about the erosion of women’s and girl’s rights”. Rowling went on to explain her chief concern was the increasing number of people detransitioning to their original sex but in some cases, after irrevocably altering their bodies, can no longer have children. “I’m concerned about the huge explosion in young women wishing to transition and also about the increasing numbers who seem to be detransitioning (returning to their original sex), because they regret taking steps that have, in some cases, altered their bodies irrevocably, and taken away their fertility,” she said. “Some say they decided to transition after realising they were same-sex attracted, and that transitioning was partly driven by homophobia, either in society or in their families. “Most people probably aren’t aware – I certainly wasn’t, until I started researching this issue properly – that ten years ago, the majority of people wanting to transition to the opposite sex were male. That ratio has now reversed. The UK has experienced a 4400% increase in girls being referred for transitioning treatment. Autistic girls are hugely over-represented in their numbers.” Rowling said as an author who had repeatedly been placed on the banned author list, she would always fight for the right of people to speak freely about difficult topics. “As a much-banned author, I’m interested in freedom of speech and have publicly defended it, even unto Donald Trump,” she said. Image: AP

from World | Daily Telegraph https://ift.tt/30wQKua