Opinion of J.K. Rowling

[Crane]

Hurts to say but HP.

[Crane]

I'm a fan of Harry Potter, but...politically I'd now support schools banning Harry Potter books because Rowling is a TERF.

Oh come on. Rowling has some of the most repulsive views of any nominally leftist and feminist public figure in the English-speaking world (Linda Sarsour I guess would be another such example), but when your typical English curriculum includes or might include stuff by a convicted rapist (Thomas Malory), a man most of whose literary corpus revolves around someone he was stalking (Dante), multiple Stalinists (Lillian Hellman, Dashiell Hammett, others whose names I'm forgetting), and someone who supported reestablishing slavery (Charlotte Perkins Gilman), why exactly would this be where you draw the line?

Multiple Stalinists? Outrageous. My children will only be reading Hoxhaist, maybe Luxembergists.

[Crane]

To expand on my earlier thoughts, I definitely think she's a HP for her recent comments. Her new Cormoran Strike book, which is a series I've enjoyed in the past, isn't necessarily transphobic in a vacuum, but given her stance it makes it seem that was certainly her intent.
So I probably won't partake in it, or in the fourth book which is apparently written from an anti-Palestinian point of view.

Now as for cancelling Harry Potter, I don't think that's necessary. Lots of people, including LGBT, have been inspired by the books to be advocates and stand up for themselves. The author being a TERF later doesn't change that. Just think how many great book series had problematic authors. I highly doubt C.S. Lewis or rad-trad J.R.R. Tolkien would have been in favor of trans-positivity. But kids still read those books.

[Crane]

To expand on my earlier thoughts, I definitely think she's a HP for her recent comments. Her new Cormoran Strike book, which is a series I've enjoyed in the past, isn't necessarily transphobic in a vacuum, but given her stance it makes it seem that was certainly her intent.

This. The relative lack of outrage about, say, The Silence of the Lambs is because Thomas Harris is not a transphobic political actor as well as a potboiler author.

Now as for cancelling Harry Potter, I don't think that's necessary. Lots of people, including LGBT, have been inspired by the books to be advocates and stand up for themselves. The author being a TERF later doesn't change that. Just think how many great book series had problematic authors. I highly doubt C.S. Lewis or rad-trad J.R.R. Tolkien would have been in favor of trans-positivity. But kids still read those books.

I have to stick up for Tolkien here and say that he wasn't really a radtrad as we understand that term today, since he accepted the legitimacy of the Second Vatican Council despite openly disliking many of its decisions. There's also circumstantial evidence in his letters that he was noticeably less homophobic than you'd expect from a severely conservative British Catholic of his generation, although relative mildness on gay issues is not the same thing as outright wokeness on trans issues.

Interesting, I didn't know that about Tolkien. The only thing I really knew was that he preferred Latin and refused to switch to English, and that he wasn't a fan of the 60s "counterculture" that had grown around LOTR. Thanks for the background!

[Crane]

...and that he wasn't a fan of the 60s "counterculture" that had grown around LOTR.

This is a misunderstanding. It wasn't that he didn't like it - though he did not appreciate being rung up in the early hours of the morning by Californians curious about details of the book but sadly ignorant of time zones - but that he was a bit bemused by it.

Hmmz interesting. Guess I know less about him than I thought I did. Would you say my point still holds up in general?

[Crane]

Oops

The anti-trans merchandise shop she linked to uses very offensive language so apologies;

https://mobile.twitter.com/youngvulgarian/status/1308709858775048193

Yikes.