The Biggest Literary Controversies of the Last 15 Years: Part 2

J. K. Rowling Doubles Down On Transphobia (2019) Content warning: This paragraph includes quotations of anti-trans statements. It all started in 2018, when J. K. Rowling liked an anti-trans tweet and then said it was a mistake: a “middle-aged moment.” Then, in 2019, she tweeted in support of Maya Forstater, a tax specialist who claimed she was not offered a job contract because of her anti-trans statements. From there, she started to complain about anyone using trans-inclusive language (like “people who menstruate”), then began misgendering trans women like journalist India Willoughby. In 2024, she said, “There are no trans kids. No child is ‘born in the wrong body’. There are only adults like you, prepared to sacrifice the health of minors to bolster your belief in an ideology that will end up wreaking more harm than lobotomies and false memory syndrome combined.” 2024 is also when Rowling donated £70,000 (~$89,000) to the anti-trans organization For Women Scotland, which lobbied to have the Scottish government change its definition of “women” to exclude trans women. When the ruling passed, Rowling tweeted, “I love it when a plan comes together.” with a photo of herself smoking a ...