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  • SoozcatSoozcat@raphus.social
    Sep 7, 2026, 5:04 PM

    I still have my t-shirt that says "When in doubt, go to the library." It's soft and comfortable, it fits me perfectly, I like the sentiment and the design. And I have to get rid of it. Not because I think it's going to do anything to JK Rowling, who continues to rake money in with both claws, no doubt hissing happily. She will never know or care what I think of her.

    But it's not for her. It's for my nephew.

    He loved the Harry Potter books growing up, just as much as I did. He wrote fan letters to Rowling, thanking her for coming up with such a wonderful world. He came out as trans not long after Rowling went full TERF, and her attitude broke his heart.

    At this point, if I wear Harry Potter-related merchandise of any kind in public, I know the message I am giving to the kinds of people Rowling thinks shouldn't exist. They can't know I'm a safe person if I choose to wear that shirt. And while Rowling's opinion doesn't matter to me, my nephew's feelings do.

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Replies

  • SoozcatSoozcat@raphus.social
    Sep 7, 2026, 5:12 PM

    Rowling may never experience social comeuppance for her actions the way Bill Cosby faced legal jeopardy for his. Trans people are a relatively small subset of humanity, and unfortunately JK Rowling isn't the only person who thinks they shouldn't exist at all. (*ehem*Trump*ehem*) Trying to financially break someone like this by boycott is not going to make a difference to her, but that's not really the point. It will make a difference to the people who are being affected by her cruelty. It will make a difference to those who might think that my love of a pop culture character is greater than my love of real people with real lives.

    So it's time to let this shirt go. Just as a lot of people got rid of some garish "Cosby sweaters" back in the 20 teens. And for much the same reason.

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  • TattieTattie@eldritch.cafe
    Oct 3, 2026, 12:40 PM

    @Soozcat thank you, from a transgender woman and ex-Harry-Potter fan.

    I was having a conversation the other day with a classmate, who mentioned the series in passing and saw me flinch.

    "Oh, are you not a fan?", she asked.

    "It's just... what JK Rowling says about people like me. About how she uses her money to try to destroy us."

    "Oh." She was taken aback. "I've heard a little about that. And I don't want to be part of that, but... you have to understand. I grew up with the series. It means so much to me."

    "I get that," I responded. "I was also a fan. I waited for hours outside the bookshop for book number five to be released. I went to Harry Potter parties. I speculated online about plot points. All my friends were into it. And then JK came out as transphobic, and it ripped all that away from me. Overnight the entire fandom was ruined for me, because I knew what she thought about me and everyone like me."

    I know what I'm asking when I ask cis fans to step away. Not because it is easy, but because it is heartbreaking. Because it broke my heart.

    I'm asking them to gently abandon their nostalgia and their sense of belonging linked to the series, difficult tho that is, on the grounds that people are more important. I am not an abstract political position but a human being, with the capacity to suffer.

    It is difficult to step away from something that brought you comfort. It's an order of magnitude harder to have it torn from you and turned against you. That's something I hope few people have to experience in their lives.

    ❤️

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  • SoozcatSoozcat@raphus.social
    Oct 4, 2026, 7:35 AM

    @Tattie I've often wondered if it would help those who are having a hard time walking away from Harry Potter to imagine being in a huge auditorium with thousands of fellow fans, cheering as their favorite author walks to a spot behind a podium.

    "Thank you!" the author says. "Thank you so much! I'm so thrilled to be here with you today. EXCEPT FOR YOU. You there. Arthur. Arthur Philip Dent in seat 42V. How dare you come in here? I despise you! You're a jerk, Dent. A real kneebiter. And everyone within the sound of my voice should HATE YOU TOO."

    Because that, in essence, is what Rowling did to transgender Harry Potter fans.

    (with apologies to Hitchhiker's Guide fans)

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  • Jules she/herafewbugs@social.coop
    Oct 4, 2026, 9:07 PM

    @Soozcat tangential to your main, important point I know, but if the tshirt is comfy and fits perfectly, rather than getting rid of it I've seen some amazing things people have done painting, appliqueing or embroidering over Harry Potter merch to hide the original design. Have you considered trying that?

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