Following JK Rowling's latest round of transphobic tweets, more and more celebrities are starting to distance themselves from the once-beloved children's author and her transphobia—and it even looks like some educational institutions are starting to follow suit.
According to Pink News, The Weald School in England's West Sussex county wanted to name one of their houses after the longtime writer, but after a recent, bizarre Twitter thread from Rowling where she tried to separate trans women from cis women and openly mocked/took issue with the term "people who menstruate" that was used in a news article went viral, they are now taking back their decision.
"We wanted to use this as an opportunity to update the house names to make them more representative of gender, ethnicity and sexuality/gender identity. The names we chose were DaVinci, Seacole, Mercury, Attenborough, Rowling, and Thompson," wrote deputy headteacher Sarah Edwards in an open letter to parents and students that went out yesterday explaining the reasoning behind the decision to no longer name a school house after Rowling. "However, in recent days it has come to light that one of our new names may in fact no longer be an appropriate role model for our community. JK Rowling has tweeted some messages which are considered to be offensive to the LGBT+ community (specifically, trans-phobic) and we feel that we do not wish to be associated with these views. The Weald is a school which always seeks to be inclusive of people across all of the protected characteristics, and we would not want to cause offence, even inadvertently."
Offering up an alternative to Rowling, Edwards continued:
"We have therefore taken the decision to remove the name Rowling from our new house and it will be called Blackman instead. Malorie Blackman is a prolific author of children’s and young adult literature, writer of television and radio dramas, was the Children’s Laureate between 2013-2015 and uses her writing as a way of exploring social and ethical issues. We feel that she fits the bill as an excellent replacement for a modern-day female author, so that we retain our aim of having a combination of historical and modern significant figures."
"I’m sure you will understand that this has been a difficult decision to make, but we are confident it is the right one."
The fallout from JK Rowling's transphobia has been swift in recent days. Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Eddie Redmayne, big-name acting stars who have made careers and names for themselves with help from the Harry Potter universe and fandom, have all denounced Rowling's transphobia and have spoken up in defense of the trans community.
"Transgender women are women," Radcliffe said in an open letter on The Trevor Project website. "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."
"Trans people are who they say they are and deserve to live their lives without being constantly questioned or told they aren’t who they say they are," Watson, who famously played Hermione in the HP film series tweeted. "I want my trans followers to know that I and so many other people around the world see you, respect you and love you for who you are."
"Respect for transgender people remains a cultural imperative, and over the years I have been trying to constantly educate myself. This is an ongoing process. As someone who has worked with both JK Rowling and members of the trans community, I wanted to make it absolutely clear where I stand<" Redmayne told Variety. "I disagree with Jo’s comments. Trans women are women, trans men are men and non-binary identities are valid. I would never want to speak on behalf of the community but I do know that my dear transgender friends and colleagues are tired of this constant questioning of their identities, which all too often results in violence and abuse. They simply want to live their lives peacefully, and it’s time to let them do so."
See, it all just goes to show...
