JK Rowling weighs in on the debate about transgender issues

JK Rowling recently discussed about the backlash she had faced over her views on gender and trans rights.

Speaking on the latest episode of podcast The Witch Trials of JK Rowling on March 14, the Harry Potter author said, “When I first became interested in, and then deeply troubled by, what I saw as a cultural movement that was illiberal in its methods and questionable in its ideas.”

The writer continued, “I absolutely knew that if I spoke out, many people who love my books would be deeply unhappy with me.”

“I knew that, because I could see that they believed that they were living the values I had espoused in those books. I could tell that they believed that they were fighting for underdogs and difference and fairness. And I thought it would be easier not to,” explained Rowling.

While talking about her concerns, the author pointed out, “I knew that this could be really bad and it has been bad personally, it has not been fun, and I have been scared at times for my safety and, overwhelmingly, for my family’s safety.”

Rowling mentioned, “Time will tell whether I’ve got this wrong.”

“I can only say that I’ve thought about it deeply and hard and long and I’ve listened, I promise, to the other side, and I believe, absolutely, that there is something dangerous about this movement and that it must be challenged,” she concluded.