J.K. Rowling said she would “happily” serve time in prison over her anti-trans views.
On Tuesday, the “Harry Potter” author tweeted a photo that read, “Repeat after us: Trans women are women” with the caption, “No.”
In response, one of her fellow English followers encouraged people to “vote” for the Labour Party following reports they want to make gender identity attacks a criminal offense punishable by up to two years behind bars.
“I’ll happily do two years if the alternative is compelled speech and forced denial of the reality and importance of sex,” Rowling replied.
“Bring on the court case, I say. It’ll be more fun than I’ve ever had on a red carpet.”
The controversial author then joked about what potential jobs she could work while in jail.
“Hoping for the library, obviously, but I think I could do ok in the kitchens,” she tweeted.
“Laundry might be a problem. I have a tendency to shrink stuff/turn it pink accidentally. Guessing that won’t be a major issue if it’s mostly scrubs and sheets, though.”
Rowling has a long history of making similar comments starting in 2017 when she liked a tweet condemning the transgender rights movement.
The following year, the author caused controversy for the second time after liking another tweet claiming that trans women were just “men in dresses”
Despite claiming that it was just an accident, Rowling found herself in hot water once again at the end of 2019 when she defended a woman who was fired from her job for tweeting “men cannot change into women.”
In the years following, Rowling has been very outspoken about her viewpoints, resulting in backlash from “Harry Potter” fans and even some of the cast and crew.
In June 2020, Daniel Radcliffe — who played Harry Potter in the franchise — posted a lengthy essay on The Trevor Project website after feeling “compelled” to speak out given his close ties to the franchise.
“Transgender women are women,” Radcliffe stated in the letter.
“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,” he added, referring to Rowling by her first name.
He went on to apologize for the “pain” Rowling’s comments may have caused any fans, noting that the “Harry Potter” books were supposed to prove that “love is the strongest force in the universe, capable of overcoming anything” — including bigotry.
“If you believe that a particular character is trans, nonbinary, or gender fluid, or that they are gay or bisexual; 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,” he wrote.
In response, Rowling posted her own lengthy essay defending her comments.
