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Since Rowling is trending again, I thought I'd post a small chain of resources about the trans community's response to Rowling, and trans issues in general, that I've been learning from.
If you have any others recommendations, please add them!
If you have any others recommendations, please add them!
I'll add that, in contrast to Rowling painting the picture of all of her detractors publicly wishing her ill, all I've seen in these resources are kind, thoughtful, articulate educators.
Also, content warning for basically everything under the transphobia discussion umbrella.
Also, content warning for basically everything under the transphobia discussion umbrella.
"We don't think J. K. Rowling is a bad person, but we do think she has accidentally fallen into a gender-critical echo chamber." - @jammi_dodger94 & @sherbetlemon007
"Engaging with things critically absolutely doesn't have to mean beating yourself up for liking things with problems, but it does mean not sweeping those problems under the rug." - @marysuewriter
"Given Rowling's clear skill as a writer [...] I personally find it incredibly hard to believe that she doesn't know when she is framing her arguments in a way that leaves out much needed context." - @jessiegender
"One of the most frustrating things about discussing your life openly as a transgender person is that people who are not transgender will often believe that you can never be a trustworthy narrator about your own life and experiences." - @kat_blaque
"Harry Potter taught us to stand up against oppression and do what's right, and it's a shame J. K. Rowling didn't learn her own lessons." - @shannenmichaels https://speakbeasty.com/2020/06/18/bonus-episode-gender-sex-and-identity/
"What TERFs really oppose is not trans women being feminine, or trans women being masculine, but trans women being trans women. In other words, the fundamental issue underlying all these 'concerns' is transphobia." - @ContraPoints
"[A]lthough these are plainly myths with no evidence behind them, they’ve been used in attempts to perpetuate discrimination since the Jim Crow era."
- @germanrlopez writing for @voxdotcom https://www.vox.com/identities/2016/5/13/17938088/transgender-people-rights-myths
- @germanrlopez writing for @voxdotcom https://www.vox.com/identities/2016/5/13/17938088/transgender-people-rights-myths
"[T]hey try to muddy the waters the way climate-change deniers or creationists do by throwing up a cloud of chaff and hoping no one will look any closer. "
- @BrynnTannehill writing for @HuffPost https://www.huffpost.com/entry/myths-about-transition-regrets_b_6160626
- @BrynnTannehill writing for @HuffPost https://www.huffpost.com/entry/myths-about-transition-regrets_b_6160626
Added a few new resources to this thread. As long as #JKR insists on allowing bigotry to trend, I'll continue counteracting it as best I can.
If you're feeling you don't have a grasp on either side of the issue, I *highly* suggest exploring this thread. I've learned a lot!
If you're feeling you don't have a grasp on either side of the issue, I *highly* suggest exploring this thread. I've learned a lot!
