J.K Rowling is returning her Ripple of Hope Award after the organisation’s president slammed her for being transphobic.
J.K Rowling’s transphobia has a most disappointing development for fans of her work. It’s been the cause of many shaking heads and disheartened sighs. Since her first round of transphobic tweets in June, Rowling has since released an essay and been the subject of much backlash.
Now, she has revoked a significant humanitarian award after being asked to by the president of the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Organisation.
Rowling’s proteges Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Eddie Redmayne, and Daniel Radcliffe have all spoken out against her tweets. Radcliffe even penned a letter for the Trevor Project, an organisation dedicated to supporting LGBTQI youth. He explained that “transgender women are 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.”
Addressing the generation that was raised by Harry Potter, Radcliffe finished with:
“If these books taught you that love is the strongest force in the universe, capable of overcoming anything; if they taught you that strength is found in diversity, and… if you believe that a particular character is [LGBTQI]; if you found anything in these stories that resonated with you and helped you at any time in your life — then that is between you and the book that you read, and it is sacred.”
The Harry Potter stars aren’t the only people who have condemned Rowling for her views. This month, Kerry Kennedy, the president of the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Organisation wrote:
“I have spoken with J.K. Rowling to express my profound disappointment that she has chosen to use her remarkable gifts to create a narrative that diminishes the identity of trans and nonbinary people”, and continued by saying “Trans rights are human rights. J.K. Rowling’s attacks upon the transgender community are inconsistent with the fundamental beliefs and values of RFK Human Rights and represent a repudiation of my father’s vision.”
In response, J.K. Rowling has given back her Ripple of Hope Award to the Kennedy Organisation. It was initially awarded to Rowling for her charity Lumos when she described it as “one of the highest honours I’ve ever been given.”
When addressing the reason for its return, Rowling wrote “because of the very serious conflict of views between myself and RFKHR, I feel I have no option but to return the Ripple of Hope award bestowed upon me last year”, but that “no award or honour means so much to me that I would forfeit the right to follow the dictates of my own conscience.”
It seems impossible that the woman who wrote “it matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be” would perpetuate such harmful beliefs, but just remember that Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home.
