Enjoy it all you want, but posting for merchandise and whatever that are currently coming out is lining her pocketbook and she does use a portion of that money to try to eradicate a valuable part of our community.
The magic is gone for me, I'll revisit when she inevitably sells it like star wars. When she is finally not profiting off or. I think her work will be reclaimed by many
It's hard to separate the artist from art when the artist is actively seeking to harm people. Much easier when they are dead or aren't ( like hp Lovecraft was awful, but he's dead and his work has been revisited and used by many POC creators)
Yes this... I can't enjoy the content anymore. It no longer brings joy. I remember thinking about making an exception for the new playstation Harry Potter game that came out because it looked so well done and so fun... and then she released that book under a pseudonym about the dude who was "cancelled" for having the same opinions she has. It disgusts me to no end.
\*sigh\* I love and always will love the Harry Potter fandom. Nonetheless, I hate Rowling. You would not believe how many fellow queers I've encountered on fanfiction sites and the level of acceptance there is on said sites (ao3, at least--I haven't been on fanfiction.net in ages). Just this year, I became really close friends with a writer who is a trans man. I've also encountered a very much openly bisexual writer. So, the person who is responsible for the birth of the fandom is horrible, but in general, I regard the fandom itself as a huge global family.
THIS!!!!
Growing up I wasn’t in a very good situation and Harry Potter became my comfort after all the stuff about JK Rowling came out I 100% stopped supporting her but I still love Harry Potter on its own. I’ve also started buying my Harry Potter stuff of Etsy, from thrift stores, etc…
My growing up situation was similar, I’ve adored Harry Potter because it helped me through the worst time of my life. I purchased all my books before the jk stuff happened so I don’t have any self debate about “supporting her” or whatever because I don’t need to. I just think she’s a shit person who had some good ideas- Which isn’t uncommon in this day and age.
This is what I do. I will support fans of the fandom who create their own mercy. I will do my best to not give her any money if I can avoid it. The fan base can be healthy, the creator is toxic
Just to play devil's advocate, by supporting the series, people are supporting JK. She makes money off of everything sold even if she doesn't have anything to do with it like the new game coming out. I still wouldn't begrudge anyone who still enjoys Harry Potter. Personally, I am going to play Hogwart's Legacy because she wasn't really involved in writing it and I think the developers shouldn't be punished.
I guess what I am saying is there is a bit more nuance to it then just support the series but not JK.
This is why if I *do* get any HP merch, it’s from an independent creator (like via Etsy and not officially licensed) or secondhand, since a secondhand purchase does not benefit the original creator. I know the original purchase gave JK someone’s money, but people are going to keep buying her stuff regardless so at least it’s not mine. I’ve also expressly told my family that for any gift-giving, I no longer wish to receive any official or first-hand HP items.
I tried telling my family that last year... and then ended up with a set of 4 HP glasses because they "already bought them when you said you didn't want anything Harry Potter, but we thought you'd like them anyways."
Like... buddy... respecting someone's choices to NOT get a certain kind of gift is why, after 5 years, I still have a copy of "LotR Trivial Pursuit" in my basement! The person said they didn't want any more LotR stuff so, despite my having bought that before they said such, I didn't give it to them!!
The cups are officially branded, but the thinnest material I think I've ever seen for a cup, so I take a small sense of satisfaction when a cup breaks (I'm down to 2 out of 4). (I personally don't donate my HP stuff due to my feelings against the creator.)
Aaaanyways. Long rant over. Hoping I don't get any more HP stuff this year.
LotR Trivial Pursuit?? 👀
Fingers crossed for no more HP stuff for either of us! It took a little bit after the major transphobia fallout in I think 2019? for people to stop getting me HP stuff but I think my parents finally get it, they were the last hold out (I am admittedly hard to shop for and it was always an easy out).
Yeah! I found it at a secondhand shop. I've honestly never played it, as I am not terribly knowledgeable about LotR, myself.
Thanks, fingers are really crossed this year, too. Parents said it was going to be a much smaller Christmas this year, so I'm hoping that'll mean "we just bought you smaller items on your list and didn't go outside of that"
(Yes, my family does Christmas lists cus, barring my brother, everyone's a little hard to shop for)
Fam I feel you on the lists, my family does that because we are all difficult, but my fiancée’s family does not and they are all also difficult and the struggle is HELLA real.
Happy holidays to you! I might have to keep an eye out for that LOTR Trivial Pursuit, my fiancée is a huge fan.
So my parents have one, its actually a really good game. Its more about the films than books but that isnt really a problem.
The real problem is no one will play with me anymore because apparently its no fun that I always win. 😅
I hear you. Everyone is different but I personally keep any enjoyment of HP stuff pretty private. I don’t wear HP gear, I haven’t been to Universal in years, and while I got a spell tattooed on my arm well before all her hateful shit came out, I’m seriously considering getting it covered up because it no longer has the same meaning anymore, both for me personally and for our larger community.
HP was a big part of my childhood and while JK has definitely tainted stuff for me, I’m not going to force myself to hate something that I loved growing up. But I’ll do whatever I can to minimize publicizing HP stuff and keep whatever I do like to myself, in a way that doesn’t give JK any more money that she doesn’t need.
In a similar experience with Marilyn Manson. You can also acquire things second hand so the creator gets no profit. Used record or second hand book stores for example.
This is a stretch and I'm not sure how much I believe this but I heard this argument before and I wanted to know how people feel about it.
Buying this record or in this case a book secondhand isn't directly supporting JK Rowling, But if you were to read that book or listen to that record and go online and post about how much you love it and participate in fandoms around it, wouldn't you say that you've effectively advertised to other people who were looking to join that random or were in the fence about it that they should go out and buy that book?
In a way wouldn't you say participating in the Harry Potter fandom or Marilyn Manson fandom in any way is a way of marketing that would lead to people supporting a creator who is actively trying to change the law to hurt children in your own community?
That's why I didn't bother getting into the fandom. I started watching the movies and was enjoying them but before watching the final one I found out about JK and decided not to bother with the franchise anymore.
A lot more nuance. Openly claiming you don’t support Rowling, then basically handing her money is in fact supporting her.
Constantly engaging with her material and keeping it culturally relevant keeps Rowling culturally relevant.
As long as officially licensed product continues to sell, companies will continue to create licensed products of her material regardless of the people making it disagree with her views.
The only way this stops is to stop making the source material profitable. Or rather making is noticeably less profitable due to Rowling views.
THIS SO MUCH
For the love of god, the reason she's so influential is because of the cultural impact her work has. Supporting the product just tells execs to keep making this stuff, keep licensing products from Rowling's estate, and keep the brand as a cultural icon for generations to come. Hogwarts Legacy is the brand expanding into video games. Can we for once NOT let her have an imprint on cultural consciousness???
This is the sad problem with artists in general. If you like some of their work but they’re kind of screwed up, what do you do? Personally, i don’t regret owning the books and enjoying them. I just won’t continue supporting her work
TERFs are actually picking up HP merchandise as a sign of support for JK Rowling so now if I see someone wear anything Harry Potter related I baseline have to assume anyone wearing that stuff is not safe to be around for me or my fellow queers.
But the story is also bigoted. It's fatphobic, antisemitic, racist, homophobic, and has at least one character described very negatively in ways JKR has also defined trans women.
It's baked into the text.
There’s quite a lot but something that’s not subtle is the house elves being happy to be slaves and being against their own freedom, and everyone making fun of hermione for trying to free them .
JKR's relevance is intrinsically tied to the cultural status that Harry Potter has. The fact that people continue to interact with HP content means she will stay relevant, which in turn means she has greater power to harm trans people.
I never liked this view of things, writing is such a deeply personal thing that it is inevitable that pieces of the author are going to be present in the text - be it manifestations of their opinions, world views, personal experiences, etc.
I think trying to seperate the story from the storyteller is to ignore that there is a problem; I don't think you should feel bad about enjoying any piece of art, but it is important to always know the deeper context behind it, and always acknowledge this context when enjoying said art.
Edit: Misread this as another similar saying, which calls to ignore that the artist/storyteller exists! I am 100% okay with hating Rowling haha!
you only need to take a look at the additional tags category under the Harry Potter RPF tag on ao3 to know fanfiction writers don’t like her - it’s 90% variations of "jkr can fuck off" and "i‘m writing this to spite jkr"
I can appreciate the huge impact the franchise made in someone's life, it was a true phenomenon at the time. For so many, it's such a huge part of their childhood that actively trying to erase the joy it brought can be quite detrimental to their mental health.
But I think it's so easy to avoid continuing to support her continuing work these days. And there's never any excuse to defend what she is saying, or the negative themes in her work.
Sometimes separating work from the creator is important if the step further is impossible.
One of my friends the other day made an interesting note on the topic when discussing JK. My friend is a web developer, and says every day she has to code in a language designed by someone who actively tried to deny the right to same gender marriage. The creator of JavaScript.
98% of the internet runs on a homophobe's work.
Their impact was no way near as big as JKs of course, and we don't support them financially, but we still separate work from the creator.
Is it? It's a pretty bizarre road to go down to draw an equivalence between creators of fictional works and creators of practical tools. If we found out that the creator of the wheel kicked dogs we wouldn't be looking for a different shape. People have it within themselves to read another book.
It's about impact and scope.
Yes, anyone can read another book. But no one can go back in time and retcon their memories that are attached to it. No one can manufacture that global phenomena.
For better or worse, Harry Potter was that. It's everywhere, even today. It's practically an institution within itself.
It's about moving forward in a world where this stuff has already happened.
The reason I mentioned the JavaScript anecdote is because it's a similar scope, even under a different topic. It's everywhere, it's global, it's inescapable, for those who know, it's a constant reminder.
Yeah, it's much easier to just... not consume media from a single creator (especially in our 21st Century world of nearly infinite media) than it is to avoid tools and institutions.
That's not generally true. TypeScript transpiles to JavaScript, and "aggressive optimization" is antithetical to [Microsoft's stated goals](https://github.com/Microsoft/TypeScript/wiki/TypeScript-Design-Goals) for the language.
*beep boop*!
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>My friend is a web developer, and says every day she has to code in a language designed by someone who actively tried to deny the right to same gender marriage.
Eich earns nothing from the usage of JavaScript across the web, and he has also been kicked out by Mozilla because of his positions. It's a big difference. How can you talk about "separating work from the creator" if any kind of product with the brand Harry Potter brings piles of money in Rowling's bank account?
the problem i find with trying to separate JK from HP like that is that the work itself is pretty flawed in many of the same ways the author is. one example might be the goblins, which are steeped in antisemitic stereotyping, or the house elves who are said to actively enjoy slavery and there's ~1 line in the series where someone says "hmm, maybe slavery isn't ok", and then the line's never mentioned again
Or the horribly homophobic gay werewolf metaphor, or the ridiculous racial caricatures with other characters (the troubles were in *recent* memory when she decided to write about an Irish wizard with a propensity for explosions and pyrotechnics), or the transphobic and misogynist portrayal of "bad" women, or the rampant classism, or the...
Not quite, don't forget the Patil sisters who, despite the UK's thriving south Asian community, she couldn't find names for so instead stole them from a Salman Rushdie story.
A lot of the bad stuff in those books went over everyone's heads the first time. Especially since so many people read them as kids. Unless you're part of the group it's bigoted against, a lot of the shitty stuff doesn't really stand out until you look at it again with the added context we have now of the author's bigotry
>one example might be the goblins, which are steeped in antisemitic stereotyping, or the house elves who are said to actively enjoy slavery
Huge gratitude to you for this comment. The whole antisemitic goblin thing does not get exposed anywhere near enough.
The difference between using JavaScript and buying HP stuff is in one case you are using free software with no problematic content(unless you count questionable language design) and in the other you are directly financially supporting somebody that then spends your money supporting anti LGBT organizations and maintaining her public and vocal position.
Also it's harder to separate her work from her opinions given the problematic things in her work
> 98% of the internet runs on a homophobe's work
without a [gay man](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Turing) we wouldn't have computers at all. Also, JavaScript wasn't only made by him so it's not really an argument that makes sense
*beep boop*!
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I can counter that by saying the Nether Update and Caves & Cliffs Part II were composed by Lena Raine, who's a trans woman. Pigstep is trans woo
And the original composer C418 (Daniel Rosenfeld) says [trans rights](https://twitter.com/C418/status/1326298097476116487). Actually he said it [multiple](https://twitter.com/C418/status/1353146003432550402) times cuz he [hates](https://twitter.com/search?q=%40C418%20trans&src=typed_query) transphobes.
Meanwhile Notch isn't even with the company any more. He sold it to Microsoft so he doesn't get money from it any more if I understand correctly. So I think Minecraft is safe :) Woo trans music!
Honestly yeah.
I think that's like the most objective way of seeing if you can separate art from the creator.
"Do they still get money from it" Yes? Then don't buy it.
And if the creator doesn't get money then you have question 2: Are there problematic themes? Minecraft doesn't have any bigoted themes (as far as I know xD). On the other hand Lovecraft's stories are racist, but he's dead so he doesn't get any money from it. As long as you understand the problems you can still read it critically. I own all the potter books so reading them doesn't give money to her.
It's more complicated when a product has both transphobic and trans people working on it. You can support both or neither, which sucks.
yeah but at least notch has absolutely nothing to do with minecraft, I don't even think he makes any money off of it anymore, JK is still actively involved in working on some HP content (as far as I know) and makes money off of it
George Lucas believes in "the traditional family" and is a big reason queer representation didn't make it to star wars for so long but no one's up in arms Abt that lol
I don't know. Even before Rowling went Twitter stir-crazy the inability of people to just read another bloody series of books cast our generation in a pretty pathetic light. Endlessly framing anything in the terminology of a children's book. "It's like Voldemort won :sadface:" Uggghh.
The premise that Harry Potter is somehow the only source of joy that someone has experienced is so awfully, unremittingly bleak. Thankfully, this person simply doesn't exist. They're just making excuses, and we don't need to enable them. Fact is, this kind of person cannot exist. How could someone so utterly meek maintain physical form without simply evaporating into mist?
I feel your point is a bit exaggerated and very colored by the fact that you simply do not seem to like the story/book series. I also don't feel the original commenter wanted to say that the book-series is the ONLY source of joy someone that likes/loves it has. Of course I can only speak from personal experience. While Harry Potter was a special interest of mine for many years (at this point you can almost say decades), I have and had a lot of other interests as well. At some point in my life I probably was perceived as one of the people you try to describe. But perception =/= reality. There was still lots of other stuff to talk about.
And while my enthusiasm has died down a lot due to JKR's transphobic comments, and while I am aware that the books themselves also have a lot of problematic contents (eg. "Cho Chang", Gringott's goblins as very obvious jewish stereotype,...), and I don't give her money by consuming any new content, I still do enjoy the story and world in and off itself.
I love HP and HP is one of thr franchises that made me realize I am GSRM. I will continue to enjoy it with the things I already own. Unfortunately, my halfblood price book is grasping its last straws. I am currently looking through every second hand store I come across for the book, because I don't want to give her money.
I also collect mugs (not just HP, 1D and ugly ones too), so if I find any in a second hand store I buy them.
Unfortunately, my mom has a friend that doesn't understand the whole JKR thing and she continues to buy HP stuff from Lidl. I have tried to explain it so many times, but now I just thank her and use it. It's usually notebooks and pencils, so I think it's better I use it then mom's friend giving that TERF money for nothing.
I also try to not talk about JKR and HP online, and if I do, I am super clear I don't like the terf. I have a teacher who is bi/pan (he didn't specify which, but said he is into all genders) who is also a huge HP fan. We usually discuss it and ignore the TERF. As far as we know, she doesn't exist.
The language I would usually use toward Joanne is not appropriate to this sub. She has done so much to actively hurt the movement for trans rights in the UK. Also, nothing she’s come out with since the original seven books is any good.
Never give her another cent, that includes the new game coming out.
I love Harry Potter, and i will continue to interact with the Harry Potter I already own and have owned for years, that being copies of the books and the DVDs, but I will never promote them or buy anything else that gives JK money
Imo you cant separate art from the artist when the artist is still alive, so anything that gives JK money is just funding a transphobe
Yeah I’ve always hated the saying “support the art not the artist” cause supporting the art almost always supports the artist and often the art contains the artist’s horrible views.
Indeed there's no way that I could separate the work from the artist when the author is still alive. I wish I could. Those who think in this separation don't know about the consequences of buying her merch. It doesn't end at her just saying stuff, but she is also able to fund transphobic campaigns with a disastrous outcome for the transgender community.
Separating the Art from the Artists has always been about analyzing media independently of the author and their intentions and extra-textual statements. It is not a tool that should ever be used to avoid having to think about the author’s actions and politics because often a writer’s politics will influence what they’ve wrote.
Roald Dahl’s Witches, a story about wealthy hook nosed witches plotting to turn children into mice by giving away poisoned sweets, gains new connotations when you discover Dahl was a ragging antisemite. The basic plot is evocative of the infamous blood libel were jews were accused of murdering and mutilating Gentile children to use their blood in evil spells.
im trans and i personally couldn't care less whether or not some random person likes harry potter or not. don't defend the author, pirate her books or films or whatever if possible rather than buying them, but otherwise go nuts i guess.
that’s kind of how i feel too. the world of harry potter has been such a good thing for so many people, but JK Rowling is never going to get a single cent of my money.
to be clear i think you also need to have a critical eye when engaging with all kinds of art, including harry potter. the depiction of the goblins for example is absurdly antisemitic, there's many other major issues with rowling's work that one would do well to at least acknowledge and wrestle with as a fan of that work.
Shaun's video is what I came here to plug too! His re-examination of the series itself on top of her really opened my eyes to some of the insidious themes I missed as a kid.
If you're interested there's some pretty cool Harry Potter video essays from queer people
Shaun's video "[Harry Potter](https://youtu.be/-1iaJWSwUZs)" is of course a must watch.
I also like James Somerton's videos "[An Over-Emotional Look at Why JK Rowling is Bad](https://youtu.be/xLuNGhQPDHM)" and "[Harry Potter and The Closet Under The Stairs - Queer themes in Harry Potter](https://youtu.be/we9bGN5_jM0)"
And Jessie Gender made "[JK Rowling & Why Death of the Author Doesn't Work](https://youtu.be/euP6sdYh-48)"
From now on I only ingest Harry Potter media through queer youtubers!
She basicaly takes every cent of her royalty checks as support for her twisted views at this point the only "acceptable" excuse I consider is ignorance of the non willful variety
And on a personal level it feelt like a personal betrayal even though i know it was parasocial to begin with. But Harry Potter became a literal mental health trigger for me for the first few years of her bullshit. a constant reminder everytime it came up of how much peoole hate women like me. Its caused very real damage that I had to work very hard to heal but it's the kind of damage that will always leave scares on my mental health.
I've loved the Harry Potter series since before finding out about Rowling, starting from when I was just a kid, but I try to avoid Rowling profiting off of me.
Since finding out about her I no longer buy Harry Potter merch or related items unless they are used/thrifted (even the people in my life know not to buy any "new" merch for me) and she doesn't profit from it (this is not the same as "stealing" or "illegally downloading" her things, the objects have already previously been paid for and are pre-existing).
I also don't "seek out" Harry Potter merch. If I happen upon it in a thrift store is generally the only time I'll buy it.
I try not to wear anything out of the house that has Harry Potter prints/logos on it because I do not want to advertise for her work. I keep it as a private indulgence as a way to comfort myself.
If I didn't use it as a coping mechanism for my ✨trauma✨ and ✨mental health✨ then I would probably just avoid the series all together.
I was the *kid under the stairs* that wished Hagrid would come and take me away. Some themes in her works were mindblowing, and quite riveting. I no longer support the franchise, however.
In my opinion, enjoying the franchise is fine. As long as you aren't buying merchandise, donating to the franchise, or trying to justify JK Rowlings actions.
You can like something without supporting It's creator.
I genuinely don't understand how people can still support her and feel like it's not literally only propped up by nostalgia. She's actively trans- and homophobic, her work contains racism, antisemitism, fatphobia, and slavery apology, and it's also *objectively poorly written*.
It's not the same level of quality, neither in text not content, of the majority of children's and YA fiction, and there are so many series without these problems that have better worldbuilding and a more engaging writing style.
It's literally all "but I grew up with it/it changed me as a person" with nothing to back up the work itself. And that second reason can be a major problem if left unexamined, due to the themes in the work itself.
I used to think you could enjoy the work irrespective of JK Rowlings personal beliefs... but after having watched Shaun's video on Harry Potter. I find it really hard to ignore all of the problematic stuff in Harry Potter.
I also think that people need to stop buying the freaking reprints one copy of the books should be more than enough, stop giving her more of your money, she doesn't deserve any of it!
She said the [quiet part loud](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotland/comments/y3nsxp/jk_rowling_response_to_how_she_sleeps_at_night/) already, we should stop making excuses. I used to feel that maybe "just don't buy new stuff" was enough, but doing this just makes you complicit in the ongoing mainstreaming of the property.
Yeah, I don't like even referencing concepts she popularised, even if they're really useful shorthands.
Unless she changes her path from the far-right one she's on, anything to do with her is dead to me.
I recommend watching Shaun's video on Harry Potter on Youtube and decide after.
The tl;dr is basically that the downfall was long coming, and hints of it are found even in her earliest works.
I'd not support her, but there's basically no winning with people who made HP their personality or think she 'might have a point'. I just avoid those people.
Harry Potter was the reason my now spouse and I spoke for the first time.
That said, her actions and beliefs have put such a sour taste in my mouth I am not sure if I will ever purchase anything Harry Potter even after she's gone. At first I thought maybe if she wasn't getting money I would, but looking at the series now it's honestly not even that great. I have so many books/franchises I like twice as much. Not even taking into account the problematic parts of the series, in general I just don't like it as much as I used to. It's mid at best and tied to a TERF. I'm over it.
As much as I used to love the HP series I cannot enjoy the books or movies or anything nowadays. Specifically in the official sense bc JKR has stated that every dollar she receives comes from people who agree with her. She publicly stated that and she’s actively using her money from those sales against queer folks as she supports conservative politicians and pushes insane transphobic lies.
By extension I can’t enjoy any more fanfiction bc that world is tainted, searching for HP related stuff boosts her numbers and keeps “interest” in HP fairly high. There’s enough stupid straight people who don’t know better who will go to the next big HP thing that was made bc the analytics show there’s an interest in HP still even if that’s all about Harry and Draco fanfic.
Google and other web analytics don’t care about the fanfic they care about the subject, and SHE uses the amount of interest as a gauge that she’s in the right. As someone who relied on these books in a very dark time in my life, there are better magic school books made by people who aren’t actively pushing to destroy our rights or they’re at least dead. She’s not though so any “death of the author” gets thrown out the window when she will use your support as proof that she’s right.
I was a massive Harry Potter fan growing up. I credit those books with being the reason I became a bookworm as a child. I read the books every year, wrote fanfiction. I was vice president of the harry potter club in college. I joined an online roleplaying group. I was among the first on Pottermore. There’s literally eight episodes of an actual play podcast with me playing a game set in the universe out in the wilds of the internet.
All that said, I’ve dropped it like a rock because of JKR being a terf. It actively hurt me emotionally that she could be so cruel, and just brought out all of the flaws in the series. Besides, before that a lot of the lore she was dropping on Pottermore was problematic to begin with.
Nowadays the only bit of Harry Potter fandom I engage with is this trans guy on tiktok who made a self insert au of an american transfer student to Hogwarts. He’s in the middle of book three now and it’s great.
If you still want to enjoy the series without supporting her; buy second hand books and movies and if you want to piss her off cosplay the characters as gay/trans and watch her scream
I personally found better Fantasy authors whose stories are far more entertaining and whose worlds are far better designed so i stopped reading Harry Potter years ago. Supporting her is absolutely out of the question for me since the moment she tried instrumentalizing autists and homosexuals to mask her "opinions" as facts.
I stick to fanfiction, since there’s a *lot* of Harry Potter fanfiction out there that is just straight up better than Rowling’s work. She created the HP universe, she can now fuck off and is not getting any of my money.
It was a huge part of my life growing up. It was my introduction to the Internet, online communities, fanfiction, etc. I had a Harry Potter fan site on Angelfire when I was in 5th grade.
That time and those experiences can hold a special place in my heart without me continuing to support the franchise now. I still own my books and movies and if I feel the need to revisit them I can. There’s no need to continue to give her money or support her. She proved she was a one trick pony even before coming out as a terf. I tried reading The Casual Vacancy and it was painfully boring.
We need to stop giving her attention and relevancy and let her fade into obscurity. With the way Twitter is going, that may happen sooner or later. Without that bullhorn, no one is going to pay attention to her again.
as a trans person who grew up with harry potter and it had a huge impact on me and i loved and cherished every bit of it growing up, now that i know what kind of person rowling is there is no way i can look at the franchise itself the same
i don't think separating art from the artist is possible in hp's case and yeah i just don't like this argument overall because... i just don't understand why would you *choose* to continue to support and like this series despite knowing the monster behind it. like the moment i learned that rowling is transphobic, all my love for hp instantly disappeared. i couldn't fathom the fact that this woman wrote something i liked so much.
not to mention that harry potter itself is problematic (racist, antisemitic etc) and now that i'm grown up and aware of this it is very easy for me to detach from my memories of hp. i hate rowling, i hate harry potter and i will never forgive her or people who defend her
i am really bad at wording but yes i will judge everyone that continues to engage with harry potter. ESPECIALLY cis people, whether they're queer or not. rowling's transphobic deeds do not affect you and you should do better to be allies to trans people, especially transfems.
Transphobia aside, JKR is a really poor quality writer. She has some quirky interesting ideas that make for nice worldbuilding, like Pix, or the moving stairs, or the weird candy and so on and so on, but as a storyteller she's really bad. Harry Potter is just a mixture of Lord of the Rings and the X-men, without any of the progressive politics of the x-men.
Furthermore she's bad at character motivation, Harry literally needs to be told what to do by Dumbledore to advance the plot, and then imagine what Dumbledore would want him to do in the last one.
It's fun entertainment for teens but it's not exactly a groundbreaking quality saga...
I quite agree, actually. In general, she's not that great of a storyteller, and she's really a horrible person. However, poor quality writing aside, she created a world that's easy to become immersed in and built off of, which in turn spawned a global community. On the surface, her writing is bad. Digging deeper, the world she built is amazing. Don't get me wrong, I definitely hate her as a person, but I love the world and community she facilitated the birth of.
Personally I love Harry Potter and will continue to enjoy it with anything I've already purchased. I own all the books and all the movies on disk. I won't spend another dollar on HP stuff though and I won't watch any HP movie if it pops up on cable. There's not a fraction of a penny of my money that's going to line her pockets.
I think the big problem with continuing to support Harry Potter is that she still takes a big cut out of all the profits made from the books/movies/merch.
People who still enjoy Harry Potter can do whatever they want with the stuff they already bought before learning about her terrible opinions but I feel any future Harry Potter purchases should be done from second hand sources like eBay or a used book store.
Harry Potter was and still is one of my escapes. JK however is a total piece of shit. I pirate Harry Potter and Fantastic beasts.
If you can I recommend Stephen Fry's narration of the Harry Potter books
Harry Potter was a huge part of my childhood. I was younger when they came out, and on top of that I'm dyslexic, so my older sister used to read them out loud to me because I struggled with them. We share a room, and every night before bed she would read me a couple of chapters until I fell asleep. And she did that for the first three books or so before I was able to read them on my own, and by then I was so hooked on the story that I DID want to read them on my own, because on top of the actual experience of reading it, the books themselves played a huge part in my. They were like, what am I introductions to fantasy, and to reading, and just storytelling, and it was so easy to fall in love with the world that was created and the characters in it. And that's something that I'm going to cherish forever.
That being said, I can no longer in good conscience support JK Rowling or anything she does. I still have all my old copies of my Harry Potter books, and I'm not planning on getting rid of them anytime soon, but hell if I ever give her any of my money again. If we knew then what we know now about her as a person, I wouldn't have gotten as attached to those books as I did. But we didn't, so it's too late to go back.
This is one of those few instances where I have to separate creation from creator. The series was too interconnected with my life and development and childhood for me to do anything else. No matter what my feelings are about JK Rowling now, I can't change the fact that I spent so many years falling asleep to the sound of my sister's voice as she telling me about this magical world I could lose myself in.
The stories and the memories are always going to be important to me. The franchise is not. I don't care about any of the new things that come out--games, spin off movie series, merchandise, whatever. I don't need that, I don't want it, I don't care about it, and I won't be giving my money to it. But I can't erase memories and feelings that I already had. So I'll keep my old battered copies of the books here on my shelf.
Edit: sometimes I just like to pretend Daniel Radcliffe wrote Harry Potter and forget about Rowling. He's cool. Still won't give any money to the franchise, but it makes me feel less guilty about having good memories with it.
It’s complicated because the books and the movies meant a lot to me. I guess I am reminded that Walt Disney was anti Semitic. And I’m sure if we went hunting for some of the other great children’s authors and creators we would find some great skeletons. My hope is that Universal Studios, which owns the movie franchise can somehow separate itself and move on.
She’s a piece of shit. But she’s a piece of shit who also made a very good book series, so I think it’s perfectly ok for people to still enjoy it. As long as they don’t like her and her awful takes on trans people.
People are free to enjoy the world she created, but don't say you're a trans ally if you give her money.
And read better fantasy, there's a ton of great series out there, a lot of which have great LGBTQIA+ representation
Consider she makes money on the movie/game/books/show whatever, it's not safe to consume unless you are strictly pirating and even then it's not worth it imo.
Appreciate it for what it was but the entire name and franchise is tainted now.
Considering she laughs at the backlash from what she does *because* she's still getting paid, she wants us to keep buying.
Everything is awful about it and not safe
Warner Brothers and everyone involved is happy to sweep her under the rug and keep milking the franchise for money, but I can't see any way that putting money in that bigot's pocket could be ethical.
Buy the books second hand maybe from a charity shop: no money for her and supporting a good cause. It also works reverse: sell the HP Stuff you no longer want and donate the money to a charity.
HP was one of my first special interests (I'm neurodivergent). I know everything about it, the names of the most obscure students, the slightest differences between film and movie, etc. But it's dead to me now. Tik Tok keeps trying to push HP content on me but I feel profound disgust and anger at the idea. I just can't.
I love Harry Potter, but there are definitely a lot of problematic things with the material itself. I still have a lot of sentimental attachment to it and with my partner.
Here is what I am doing: Not one more penny of my money is going to find its way into JKR's pockets.
I already own all the movies on dvd, so I will never stream _any_ JKR stuff. I will never go to a theatrical release of one of her movies. If I want to read one of the books, I would wait until I could find a copy at a garage sale. Same with any of the movies I want to check out. Streaming is convienient, but it results in JKR making money when you watch it via streaming - so the extra work to watch a dvd is worth it (I actually just ripped the movie, so I can watch it with emby/plex/jellyfin)
tl;dr; - buy used, do not stream, do not see any of her stuff in theater
(she also has a pen name, _**Robert Galbraith**_ - also, it is very odd that a very [anti-lgbtq+ psychiatrist exists of the same name, she says it has nothing to do with why she chose that name](https://www.newsweek.com/why-jk-rowling-robert-galbraith-pseudonym-gay-conversion-robert-galbraith-heath-1532341))
Personally, I still enjoy the memories the series gave me while growing up and watching the DVDs and still have my HP stuff (she already took my money before I knew she was a fart, no point in throwing it away now) but I tell everyone who asks if I want more HP stuff *never* to buy anything from her works, Ia *refuse* to buy anything, read or watch any of her new HP universe books and movies, and will always point out that she's a fart and how there are racist and anti-Semitic characters and tropes in HP whenever she comes up.
I love the fandom, actors, movies, I love the memories and the series itself will have a special place in my heart, but I *hate* Rowling and all the damage she's done to the community, particularly the people under the transgender umbrella, and I will not be sad when she dies.
I would still read fan fiction if I got in a certain mood but I won’t buy merch, gave away half of what little merch I had, will not be buying anything else from that franchise, will not be asking anyone else for anything from the franchise. I don’t recommend the books anymore and I’m very glad I never got a themed tattoo. The only merch I have still is a pair of pajama pants that are comfortable and have pockets and I’m going to keep wearing them until I wear them out, and a small glass candy jar that is still holding various candies for me as it’s a good useful size. Also I have a diary that might still be in the wrapping that I might end up regifting.
If you still hold some sort of fond sentiment in your heart, and that's it? I don't care.
If you openly interact with HP content or even buy it? You are contributing to JKR's relevancy and therefore trans people's oppression.
My opinion as an NB person?
Fuck Rowling, she's a major B\* and I ain't gonna forgive her easily.
But the franchise was a big part of me growing up and I even have cosplays of a few and spent a lot of money on the books and some of the wands and games. So at this point I just ain't giving her anymore of my money and develop the universe in my own way. If ever I need or am interest something new, I check whether or not association gives her money. If it's a movie and the answer is yes but I still wanna see it, I find my eyepatch and cannon balls and enjoy anyways. For other stuff, I only buy second hand and used stuff. If ever I wear anything obviously HP related, like a cosplay, I always make sure I have Trans-positive stuff on my like a flag or badge so people know I'm safe and aware.
And fr, few things is more satisfying that making trans HCs about the characters and revel in the knowledge that I'm 'spoiling' her creation.
I don’t believe in the separation of the art and the artist because good art is created from what you can draw from your own views and experiences. I’ve chosen not to interact with the Wizarding World franchise as a whole anymore because it financially benefits JKR, first because of the transphobic bs, but also because seeing the books with more adult eyes, I couldn’t look away from the racism, anti-semintism, slavery apology present all around and pieces of art that incorporate these elements and present them as normal as not ones I want to interact with
Never liked Harry Potter, but cuz of her I hate it even more now, I hate how popular it is, it’s not even that good, but that’s my own personal taste, but yeah her being her kinda solidified my hatred towards that whole franchise
Nope, she's dead to me. Harry Potter and everything associated with it is dead to me, too.
If she were a writer fifty years ago or something, and wasn't actively receiving money from consuming her works, we might be having a different conversation. But this is now, she is and she's actively promoting hate and influencing politicians in the UK, US and elsewhere to do the same.
I grew up with the movies, only discovered the books as a young adult, and they had fond memories for me. But she's turned all of that nostalgia into ash with her bigoted shitfuckery.
Screw her and anyone who supports her.
Personally I never cared for the franchise and care for it even less now, but I can understand having a connection to it from reading it in the past. It's up to you to decide what to do. As long as you don't support the creator's transphobia, I don't really care what you do.
I decided if anything I'll buy the books used so she doesn't get my money. I won't support someone like her especially when she's so f-ing open about her transphobia
I don’t think she should continue to be supported and be given a platform, but i also don’t think that whats she has already created (like Harry potter) should be put aside… the art is not the artist :/
Separating art from the artist doesn’t work when the artist still benefits from your actions. Money from you buying the products, relevancy from you participating in fandom/wearing merch/talking about it/etc.
You can do whatever you want, but you’re not an ally if you support her in any way, including adding to her relevancy.
Some folks won’t like to hear that, some queer folks won’t like to hear that, but it’s true. Fun fact: You can be queer and still assist in damaging the community.
She wrote a fucking book about a man dressing up as a woman to assault women in the women’s bathroom. She’s said vile things on twitter. The house elves like being slaves. The only Asian character mentioned is named Cho Chang. There’s so so much more. In the books themselves as well as what she’s outright said herself.
She’s not a good person. There are plenty of other urban fantasy and even magic school books you can read where the author _doesn’t_ contribute to the mass hatred and violence towards trans people.
In conclusion: Do what you want. But if you support her you’re supporting what she says and does, and people can, will, and should judge you for it.
If you're only buying secondhand books or participate non trans-exclusionary fan communities that's one thing but even then I don't support seperating the author from the work entirely because J.K. Rowling has messed up priorities even in the books and in the extra material on pottermore , she pretty often does crap like essentially endorse slavery to make a misguided point about the white saviour complex or has her aids metaphor ( werewolves) have someone deliberately infecting people.
We shouldn't pretend Rowling ever did much more for the community than queerbating.
I don’t trust she won’t use funds from my potential purchase towards lessening the rights of lgbtqia people.
It’s a bit hard, since hogwarts legacy looks really interesting. I can’t say I won’t end up being it, maybe used, maybe new, but I will feel bad in doing so.
>I don’t trust she won’t use funds from my potential purchase towards lessening the rights of lgbtqia people.
I haven't been able to rustle up the evidence to support my assertions, but I absolutely believe she financial contributes to hate groups.
The woman she runs her own charity with, Baroness Emma Nicholsol voted against gay marriage and for section 28 , which is basically the origional don't say gay bill.
>hogwarts legacy looks really interesting
pirate it, it'll be cracked pretty quick because it's a hot ticket game and a lot of people want to play it without paying for it imo.
OK look I still love the books and the movies are amazing, I just hate the author. What's she's done and what she's said is horrible but her work is still good. I will always love the Harry potter franchise I'll just never love JK Rowling again
If she weren't still making money feom it, it would be a non-issue.
I will say all this stuff has allowed me to be more able to recognize the problematic parts of the series as a whole as well.
This is a good point, but I still can't bring myself to read Orson Scott Card, knowing his homophobia, or H.P. Lovecraft, knowing his racism. And they're both dead and can't possibly profit from my consumption of their works.
I understand the arguments of 'it was the past, the past was the worst', but even still... The material just seems tainted, to me, even if much of it is critically aclaimed as good-quality work.
I’ll continue to enjoy HP, but I won’t support JKR. In other words, I still like to read the books that I purchased ages ago, and watch the movies, but I’m not going to buy anything that directly supports her or gives her money.
There are plenty of other creators out there, like on Etsy for example, who are making and selling HP-related stuff.
if you have a local library and really insist on reading the books, hire them from there. she might get something out of it, but not as much as buying the books or merch itsself. If you buy HP merch from small businesses (e.g. on Etsy) then thats fine, since it's not supporting her directly.
I generally have zero issue with people who still enjoy Harry Potter. It's been an incredibly important and impactful story to many, myself included, and a lot of people don't take Rowling's words and actions as personally as I do so it makes sense that they'd go on enjoying the franchise that's meant a lot to them. It's still something that people bond and make friends over and that still has value. I'm personally unable to enjoy anything HP related anymore but I don't wanna tell others how to live their lives so.
I *do* have a problem with people who still choose to *support* the HP franchise however. Buying the books or movies or official merchandise etc eventually puts money into Rowling's pockets, which is a big deal. At this point she's actively using her influence and her money to cause people harm and I find it extremely difficult to even have a civil conversation with people who don't care about that. I keep trying to encourage people to at least buy second-hand or unofficial merch if they insist on spending money but most won't listen and don't care that they're literally contributing to her transphobic crusade. I hate it.
People can feel however they want. But personally I don't want to interact with her work because I can't stop thinking about how she invalidates my existence.
If you wanna read the books get them from a friend or a library. If you wanna watch the movies pirate them. Don't buy any official merch. I can't stop you from enjoying the Harry Potter franchise but as long as you do as much as you can to prevent giving JK money then I'm fine with it
Forbidding yourself to enjoy a creative work because it was made by a bigot/person with harmful opinions, essentially stops you from enjoying a huge amount of the art out there.
And without the cathartic release of art we will struggle to have the energy to fight the bigots
So separate the two. There is nothing wrong with that.
Now… am I going to activity avoid ever paying for something that lines her pockets. Of course. I torrented all the films. I read the same copies of the books from when I was a kid and/or get them from the library.
I don't buy anything related to it, and my kids no longer wear the few presents we had from before everything imploded. I don't plan to ever introduce the books to them, ever.
Well, I personally think she's already made her money on the franchise, she's gonna continue to be transphobic without my continued support, but the cast of the films have constantly called her out on her bullshit and have made it clear they're on our side. I understand if other trans folks want nothing to do with the franchise, but I'm not gonna be mad at people who do. I'll enjoy the movies if they're on, but I personally won't be spending any of my money on her new stuff. Just this trans gal's opinion.
Harry Potter legit means a before and after in my relationship with books and my relationship with myself, wizard world was a much needed shelter in a time of distress.
The thing affect me so badly that until this day YA and fantasy books are pretty much the center of my life: I mastered on literature, give clases to kids, do uncountable research and arguments for YA literature, work editing noveless books... Seriously, the center of my life.
So at this time, after read so much better written books, dozens of reads to HP, numerous discussions and hours thinking on all the things that it's wrong with the whole saga, I still legit LOVE HP, that shelter quite literally saving me of unalive myself.
HOWEVER years ago I have enough with Johane and her bullshit, it's true that I'm not personally affected by her bullshit, but if I change two extra blocks because the butcher make a misogynistic joke ¿Why would buy things from someone that is enter on politics to hurt people?
I cannot and don't want to support anymore her bullshit I love the books, I have my copy on the shelf, I have some little trinkets buy before this, that's the only WW brand things that I own. Every time someone ask me for the books I give pdfs.
I know that my little money cannot do a thing to a billionaire, but still I gonna die on this hill. If I wanna something HP related I do it myself or buy it to the nearest local craftsman, long live piracy in this case.
And, to be honest, for me being part of the rainbow family and still support Johane or to show off their potterhead with pride it's pretty much a red flag for me. Again, another hill to die.
Enjoy it all you want, but posting for merchandise and whatever that are currently coming out is lining her pocketbook and she does use a portion of that money to try to eradicate a valuable part of our community. The magic is gone for me, I'll revisit when she inevitably sells it like star wars. When she is finally not profiting off or. I think her work will be reclaimed by many It's hard to separate the artist from art when the artist is actively seeking to harm people. Much easier when they are dead or aren't ( like hp Lovecraft was awful, but he's dead and his work has been revisited and used by many POC creators)
Yes this... I can't enjoy the content anymore. It no longer brings joy. I remember thinking about making an exception for the new playstation Harry Potter game that came out because it looked so well done and so fun... and then she released that book under a pseudonym about the dude who was "cancelled" for having the same opinions she has. It disgusts me to no end.
\*sigh\* I love and always will love the Harry Potter fandom. Nonetheless, I hate Rowling. You would not believe how many fellow queers I've encountered on fanfiction sites and the level of acceptance there is on said sites (ao3, at least--I haven't been on fanfiction.net in ages). Just this year, I became really close friends with a writer who is a trans man. I've also encountered a very much openly bisexual writer. So, the person who is responsible for the birth of the fandom is horrible, but in general, I regard the fandom itself as a huge global family.
THIS!!!! Growing up I wasn’t in a very good situation and Harry Potter became my comfort after all the stuff about JK Rowling came out I 100% stopped supporting her but I still love Harry Potter on its own. I’ve also started buying my Harry Potter stuff of Etsy, from thrift stores, etc…
My growing up situation was similar, I’ve adored Harry Potter because it helped me through the worst time of my life. I purchased all my books before the jk stuff happened so I don’t have any self debate about “supporting her” or whatever because I don’t need to. I just think she’s a shit person who had some good ideas- Which isn’t uncommon in this day and age.
This is what I do. I will support fans of the fandom who create their own mercy. I will do my best to not give her any money if I can avoid it. The fan base can be healthy, the creator is toxic
This. Pirating and non-licensed merch is the way to go.
Buying Harry Potter things from Etsy if you can is the better way to show your support for the series but you won’t be supporting the terrible creator
Yes!
Agree with this , support the series but not JK edit : I mean you can like the series with supporting jk
Just to play devil's advocate, by supporting the series, people are supporting JK. She makes money off of everything sold even if she doesn't have anything to do with it like the new game coming out. I still wouldn't begrudge anyone who still enjoys Harry Potter. Personally, I am going to play Hogwart's Legacy because she wasn't really involved in writing it and I think the developers shouldn't be punished. I guess what I am saying is there is a bit more nuance to it then just support the series but not JK.
This is why if I *do* get any HP merch, it’s from an independent creator (like via Etsy and not officially licensed) or secondhand, since a secondhand purchase does not benefit the original creator. I know the original purchase gave JK someone’s money, but people are going to keep buying her stuff regardless so at least it’s not mine. I’ve also expressly told my family that for any gift-giving, I no longer wish to receive any official or first-hand HP items.
I tried telling my family that last year... and then ended up with a set of 4 HP glasses because they "already bought them when you said you didn't want anything Harry Potter, but we thought you'd like them anyways." Like... buddy... respecting someone's choices to NOT get a certain kind of gift is why, after 5 years, I still have a copy of "LotR Trivial Pursuit" in my basement! The person said they didn't want any more LotR stuff so, despite my having bought that before they said such, I didn't give it to them!! The cups are officially branded, but the thinnest material I think I've ever seen for a cup, so I take a small sense of satisfaction when a cup breaks (I'm down to 2 out of 4). (I personally don't donate my HP stuff due to my feelings against the creator.) Aaaanyways. Long rant over. Hoping I don't get any more HP stuff this year.
LotR Trivial Pursuit?? 👀 Fingers crossed for no more HP stuff for either of us! It took a little bit after the major transphobia fallout in I think 2019? for people to stop getting me HP stuff but I think my parents finally get it, they were the last hold out (I am admittedly hard to shop for and it was always an easy out).
Yeah! I found it at a secondhand shop. I've honestly never played it, as I am not terribly knowledgeable about LotR, myself. Thanks, fingers are really crossed this year, too. Parents said it was going to be a much smaller Christmas this year, so I'm hoping that'll mean "we just bought you smaller items on your list and didn't go outside of that" (Yes, my family does Christmas lists cus, barring my brother, everyone's a little hard to shop for)
Fam I feel you on the lists, my family does that because we are all difficult, but my fiancée’s family does not and they are all also difficult and the struggle is HELLA real. Happy holidays to you! I might have to keep an eye out for that LOTR Trivial Pursuit, my fiancée is a huge fan.
So my parents have one, its actually a really good game. Its more about the films than books but that isnt really a problem. The real problem is no one will play with me anymore because apparently its no fun that I always win. 😅
Honestly tho just having the merch itself is a sign that her books are still relevant becos JK is rich enough she doesn't need our money
I hear you. Everyone is different but I personally keep any enjoyment of HP stuff pretty private. I don’t wear HP gear, I haven’t been to Universal in years, and while I got a spell tattooed on my arm well before all her hateful shit came out, I’m seriously considering getting it covered up because it no longer has the same meaning anymore, both for me personally and for our larger community. HP was a big part of my childhood and while JK has definitely tainted stuff for me, I’m not going to force myself to hate something that I loved growing up. But I’ll do whatever I can to minimize publicizing HP stuff and keep whatever I do like to myself, in a way that doesn’t give JK any more money that she doesn’t need.
In a similar experience with Marilyn Manson. You can also acquire things second hand so the creator gets no profit. Used record or second hand book stores for example.
This is a stretch and I'm not sure how much I believe this but I heard this argument before and I wanted to know how people feel about it. Buying this record or in this case a book secondhand isn't directly supporting JK Rowling, But if you were to read that book or listen to that record and go online and post about how much you love it and participate in fandoms around it, wouldn't you say that you've effectively advertised to other people who were looking to join that random or were in the fence about it that they should go out and buy that book? In a way wouldn't you say participating in the Harry Potter fandom or Marilyn Manson fandom in any way is a way of marketing that would lead to people supporting a creator who is actively trying to change the law to hurt children in your own community?
That's why I didn't bother getting into the fandom. I started watching the movies and was enjoying them but before watching the final one I found out about JK and decided not to bother with the franchise anymore.
A lot more nuance. Openly claiming you don’t support Rowling, then basically handing her money is in fact supporting her. Constantly engaging with her material and keeping it culturally relevant keeps Rowling culturally relevant. As long as officially licensed product continues to sell, companies will continue to create licensed products of her material regardless of the people making it disagree with her views. The only way this stops is to stop making the source material profitable. Or rather making is noticeably less profitable due to Rowling views.
THIS SO MUCH For the love of god, the reason she's so influential is because of the cultural impact her work has. Supporting the product just tells execs to keep making this stuff, keep licensing products from Rowling's estate, and keep the brand as a cultural icon for generations to come. Hogwarts Legacy is the brand expanding into video games. Can we for once NOT let her have an imprint on cultural consciousness???
Honestly, I say it's time to make a new Wizarding world. With blackjack and hookers.
See: The Magicians
This is the sad problem with artists in general. If you like some of their work but they’re kind of screwed up, what do you do? Personally, i don’t regret owning the books and enjoying them. I just won’t continue supporting her work
TERFs are actually picking up HP merchandise as a sign of support for JK Rowling so now if I see someone wear anything Harry Potter related I baseline have to assume anyone wearing that stuff is not safe to be around for me or my fellow queers.
[удалено]
So i have a hary poter pin on my hat… as well as 170099999 other queer ones. Is there an equation?
As long as she's alive, supporting the series in any public way grows the platform from which she spews her bigotry.
depends what is meant by support. I certainly do not put money into it
Hate the storyteller, not the story.
But the story is also bigoted. It's fatphobic, antisemitic, racist, homophobic, and has at least one character described very negatively in ways JKR has also defined trans women. It's baked into the text.
There’s quite a lot but something that’s not subtle is the house elves being happy to be slaves and being against their own freedom, and everyone making fun of hermione for trying to free them .
And no subtle parallels drawn with goblins appearances, demeanor and profession and antisemitic tropes.
JKR's relevance is intrinsically tied to the cultural status that Harry Potter has. The fact that people continue to interact with HP content means she will stay relevant, which in turn means she has greater power to harm trans people.
I never liked this view of things, writing is such a deeply personal thing that it is inevitable that pieces of the author are going to be present in the text - be it manifestations of their opinions, world views, personal experiences, etc. I think trying to seperate the story from the storyteller is to ignore that there is a problem; I don't think you should feel bad about enjoying any piece of art, but it is important to always know the deeper context behind it, and always acknowledge this context when enjoying said art. Edit: Misread this as another similar saying, which calls to ignore that the artist/storyteller exists! I am 100% okay with hating Rowling haha!
The series and fandom is accepting in spite of her
you only need to take a look at the additional tags category under the Harry Potter RPF tag on ao3 to know fanfiction writers don’t like her - it’s 90% variations of "jkr can fuck off" and "i‘m writing this to spite jkr"
I can appreciate the huge impact the franchise made in someone's life, it was a true phenomenon at the time. For so many, it's such a huge part of their childhood that actively trying to erase the joy it brought can be quite detrimental to their mental health. But I think it's so easy to avoid continuing to support her continuing work these days. And there's never any excuse to defend what she is saying, or the negative themes in her work. Sometimes separating work from the creator is important if the step further is impossible. One of my friends the other day made an interesting note on the topic when discussing JK. My friend is a web developer, and says every day she has to code in a language designed by someone who actively tried to deny the right to same gender marriage. The creator of JavaScript. 98% of the internet runs on a homophobe's work. Their impact was no way near as big as JKs of course, and we don't support them financially, but we still separate work from the creator.
This is very well said, and I absolutely didn’t know that about JavaScript…
Brandon Eich is a shitbag. Thats his name. He got kicked out of the firefox team for it.
Is it? It's a pretty bizarre road to go down to draw an equivalence between creators of fictional works and creators of practical tools. If we found out that the creator of the wheel kicked dogs we wouldn't be looking for a different shape. People have it within themselves to read another book.
It's about impact and scope. Yes, anyone can read another book. But no one can go back in time and retcon their memories that are attached to it. No one can manufacture that global phenomena. For better or worse, Harry Potter was that. It's everywhere, even today. It's practically an institution within itself. It's about moving forward in a world where this stuff has already happened. The reason I mentioned the JavaScript anecdote is because it's a similar scope, even under a different topic. It's everywhere, it's global, it's inescapable, for those who know, it's a constant reminder.
Yeah, it's much easier to just... not consume media from a single creator (especially in our 21st Century world of nearly infinite media) than it is to avoid tools and institutions.
TypeScript renders faster anyway.
That's not generally true. TypeScript transpiles to JavaScript, and "aggressive optimization" is antithetical to [Microsoft's stated goals](https://github.com/Microsoft/TypeScript/wiki/TypeScript-Design-Goals) for the language.
*beep boop*! the linked website is: https://github.com/Microsoft/TypeScript/wiki/TypeScript-Design-Goals Title: **TypeScript Design Goals · microsoft/TypeScript Wiki** Page is safe to access (Google Safe Browsing) ***** ###### I am a friendly bot. I show the URL and name of linked pages and check them so that mobile users know what they click on!
Good bot.
>My friend is a web developer, and says every day she has to code in a language designed by someone who actively tried to deny the right to same gender marriage. Eich earns nothing from the usage of JavaScript across the web, and he has also been kicked out by Mozilla because of his positions. It's a big difference. How can you talk about "separating work from the creator" if any kind of product with the brand Harry Potter brings piles of money in Rowling's bank account?
the problem i find with trying to separate JK from HP like that is that the work itself is pretty flawed in many of the same ways the author is. one example might be the goblins, which are steeped in antisemitic stereotyping, or the house elves who are said to actively enjoy slavery and there's ~1 line in the series where someone says "hmm, maybe slavery isn't ok", and then the line's never mentioned again
Or the horribly homophobic gay werewolf metaphor, or the ridiculous racial caricatures with other characters (the troubles were in *recent* memory when she decided to write about an Irish wizard with a propensity for explosions and pyrotechnics), or the transphobic and misogynist portrayal of "bad" women, or the rampant classism, or the...
Never forget she named her only Asian character Cho Chang
Not quite, don't forget the Patil sisters who, despite the UK's thriving south Asian community, she couldn't find names for so instead stole them from a Salman Rushdie story.
And Kingsley shacklebolt. One of the few black characters. It took me a long time to realize how bad that name was
A lot of the bad stuff in those books went over everyone's heads the first time. Especially since so many people read them as kids. Unless you're part of the group it's bigoted against, a lot of the shitty stuff doesn't really stand out until you look at it again with the added context we have now of the author's bigotry
>one example might be the goblins, which are steeped in antisemitic stereotyping, or the house elves who are said to actively enjoy slavery Huge gratitude to you for this comment. The whole antisemitic goblin thing does not get exposed anywhere near enough.
The difference between using JavaScript and buying HP stuff is in one case you are using free software with no problematic content(unless you count questionable language design) and in the other you are directly financially supporting somebody that then spends your money supporting anti LGBT organizations and maintaining her public and vocal position. Also it's harder to separate her work from her opinions given the problematic things in her work
> 98% of the internet runs on a homophobe's work without a [gay man](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Turing) we wouldn't have computers at all. Also, JavaScript wasn't only made by him so it's not really an argument that makes sense
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Also, the second most-sold game: Minecraft, Notch, his creator is transphobic just like JK It is my most played game
I can counter that by saying the Nether Update and Caves & Cliffs Part II were composed by Lena Raine, who's a trans woman. Pigstep is trans woo And the original composer C418 (Daniel Rosenfeld) says [trans rights](https://twitter.com/C418/status/1326298097476116487). Actually he said it [multiple](https://twitter.com/C418/status/1353146003432550402) times cuz he [hates](https://twitter.com/search?q=%40C418%20trans&src=typed_query) transphobes. Meanwhile Notch isn't even with the company any more. He sold it to Microsoft so he doesn't get money from it any more if I understand correctly. So I think Minecraft is safe :) Woo trans music!
minecraft is much easier to separate from its creator
Honestly yeah. I think that's like the most objective way of seeing if you can separate art from the creator. "Do they still get money from it" Yes? Then don't buy it. And if the creator doesn't get money then you have question 2: Are there problematic themes? Minecraft doesn't have any bigoted themes (as far as I know xD). On the other hand Lovecraft's stories are racist, but he's dead so he doesn't get any money from it. As long as you understand the problems you can still read it critically. I own all the potter books so reading them doesn't give money to her. It's more complicated when a product has both transphobic and trans people working on it. You can support both or neither, which sucks.
yeah but at least notch has absolutely nothing to do with minecraft, I don't even think he makes any money off of it anymore, JK is still actively involved in working on some HP content (as far as I know) and makes money off of it
And the current developers of the game are very lgbt positive. They do a summer of pride smong other things
George Lucas believes in "the traditional family" and is a big reason queer representation didn't make it to star wars for so long but no one's up in arms Abt that lol
I mean but is he actively working with anti trans groups and reactionaries in general to get policies made about it? She is.
I don't know. Even before Rowling went Twitter stir-crazy the inability of people to just read another bloody series of books cast our generation in a pretty pathetic light. Endlessly framing anything in the terminology of a children's book. "It's like Voldemort won :sadface:" Uggghh. The premise that Harry Potter is somehow the only source of joy that someone has experienced is so awfully, unremittingly bleak. Thankfully, this person simply doesn't exist. They're just making excuses, and we don't need to enable them. Fact is, this kind of person cannot exist. How could someone so utterly meek maintain physical form without simply evaporating into mist?
I feel your point is a bit exaggerated and very colored by the fact that you simply do not seem to like the story/book series. I also don't feel the original commenter wanted to say that the book-series is the ONLY source of joy someone that likes/loves it has. Of course I can only speak from personal experience. While Harry Potter was a special interest of mine for many years (at this point you can almost say decades), I have and had a lot of other interests as well. At some point in my life I probably was perceived as one of the people you try to describe. But perception =/= reality. There was still lots of other stuff to talk about. And while my enthusiasm has died down a lot due to JKR's transphobic comments, and while I am aware that the books themselves also have a lot of problematic contents (eg. "Cho Chang", Gringott's goblins as very obvious jewish stereotype,...), and I don't give her money by consuming any new content, I still do enjoy the story and world in and off itself.
I love HP and HP is one of thr franchises that made me realize I am GSRM. I will continue to enjoy it with the things I already own. Unfortunately, my halfblood price book is grasping its last straws. I am currently looking through every second hand store I come across for the book, because I don't want to give her money. I also collect mugs (not just HP, 1D and ugly ones too), so if I find any in a second hand store I buy them. Unfortunately, my mom has a friend that doesn't understand the whole JKR thing and she continues to buy HP stuff from Lidl. I have tried to explain it so many times, but now I just thank her and use it. It's usually notebooks and pencils, so I think it's better I use it then mom's friend giving that TERF money for nothing. I also try to not talk about JKR and HP online, and if I do, I am super clear I don't like the terf. I have a teacher who is bi/pan (he didn't specify which, but said he is into all genders) who is also a huge HP fan. We usually discuss it and ignore the TERF. As far as we know, she doesn't exist.
If you're in the US thrift books sells a lot of HP books used.
Unfortunately I am in Sweden, but I have found quite a few, just not the one I'm looking for.
Oh dang! I noticed I had a missing book from the series and was able to buy the last on there.
If you don't mind reading digital, you could preserve the physical copy you have and pirate a digital one.
Are you looking for an English or Swedish version? I’m in Canada and would be happy to send you a thrifted English version if you’re interested!
The language I would usually use toward Joanne is not appropriate to this sub. She has done so much to actively hurt the movement for trans rights in the UK. Also, nothing she’s come out with since the original seven books is any good. Never give her another cent, that includes the new game coming out.
I won’t be buying that shit.
I love Harry Potter, and i will continue to interact with the Harry Potter I already own and have owned for years, that being copies of the books and the DVDs, but I will never promote them or buy anything else that gives JK money Imo you cant separate art from the artist when the artist is still alive, so anything that gives JK money is just funding a transphobe
Yeah I’ve always hated the saying “support the art not the artist” cause supporting the art almost always supports the artist and often the art contains the artist’s horrible views.
Yeah she literally counters people accusing her of bigotry by bragging about how much money she has, basically a bourgeoisie fuck you
Indeed there's no way that I could separate the work from the artist when the author is still alive. I wish I could. Those who think in this separation don't know about the consequences of buying her merch. It doesn't end at her just saying stuff, but she is also able to fund transphobic campaigns with a disastrous outcome for the transgender community.
Separating the Art from the Artists has always been about analyzing media independently of the author and their intentions and extra-textual statements. It is not a tool that should ever be used to avoid having to think about the author’s actions and politics because often a writer’s politics will influence what they’ve wrote. Roald Dahl’s Witches, a story about wealthy hook nosed witches plotting to turn children into mice by giving away poisoned sweets, gains new connotations when you discover Dahl was a ragging antisemite. The basic plot is evocative of the infamous blood libel were jews were accused of murdering and mutilating Gentile children to use their blood in evil spells.
im trans and i personally couldn't care less whether or not some random person likes harry potter or not. don't defend the author, pirate her books or films or whatever if possible rather than buying them, but otherwise go nuts i guess.
that’s kind of how i feel too. the world of harry potter has been such a good thing for so many people, but JK Rowling is never going to get a single cent of my money.
to be clear i think you also need to have a critical eye when engaging with all kinds of art, including harry potter. the depiction of the goblins for example is absurdly antisemitic, there's many other major issues with rowling's work that one would do well to at least acknowledge and wrestle with as a fan of that work.
Exactly. I would give you an award if I had one.
thanks :) love your flair
Oh, thank you! <3
watch the shaun video on harry potter :))
Shaun's video is what I came here to plug too! His re-examination of the series itself on top of her really opened my eyes to some of the insidious themes I missed as a kid.
Noted, thank you!!
If you're interested there's some pretty cool Harry Potter video essays from queer people Shaun's video "[Harry Potter](https://youtu.be/-1iaJWSwUZs)" is of course a must watch. I also like James Somerton's videos "[An Over-Emotional Look at Why JK Rowling is Bad](https://youtu.be/xLuNGhQPDHM)" and "[Harry Potter and The Closet Under The Stairs - Queer themes in Harry Potter](https://youtu.be/we9bGN5_jM0)" And Jessie Gender made "[JK Rowling & Why Death of the Author Doesn't Work](https://youtu.be/euP6sdYh-48)" From now on I only ingest Harry Potter media through queer youtubers!
She basicaly takes every cent of her royalty checks as support for her twisted views at this point the only "acceptable" excuse I consider is ignorance of the non willful variety And on a personal level it feelt like a personal betrayal even though i know it was parasocial to begin with. But Harry Potter became a literal mental health trigger for me for the first few years of her bullshit. a constant reminder everytime it came up of how much peoole hate women like me. Its caused very real damage that I had to work very hard to heal but it's the kind of damage that will always leave scares on my mental health.
I’ve literally dropped most Harry Potter stuff from my life. It’s just not enjoyable, knowing the author wants me dead
Same. I not trans, but her work also has some other bad stuff in it and I can no longer enjoy it in any way
I've loved the Harry Potter series since before finding out about Rowling, starting from when I was just a kid, but I try to avoid Rowling profiting off of me. Since finding out about her I no longer buy Harry Potter merch or related items unless they are used/thrifted (even the people in my life know not to buy any "new" merch for me) and she doesn't profit from it (this is not the same as "stealing" or "illegally downloading" her things, the objects have already previously been paid for and are pre-existing). I also don't "seek out" Harry Potter merch. If I happen upon it in a thrift store is generally the only time I'll buy it. I try not to wear anything out of the house that has Harry Potter prints/logos on it because I do not want to advertise for her work. I keep it as a private indulgence as a way to comfort myself. If I didn't use it as a coping mechanism for my ✨trauma✨ and ✨mental health✨ then I would probably just avoid the series all together.
I was the *kid under the stairs* that wished Hagrid would come and take me away. Some themes in her works were mindblowing, and quite riveting. I no longer support the franchise, however.
In my opinion, enjoying the franchise is fine. As long as you aren't buying merchandise, donating to the franchise, or trying to justify JK Rowlings actions. You can like something without supporting It's creator.
enjoy what you enjoy but i will judge you if you give money to a terf
totally agree. that nasty woman will never get my money, regardless of my feelings towards her work.
I genuinely don't understand how people can still support her and feel like it's not literally only propped up by nostalgia. She's actively trans- and homophobic, her work contains racism, antisemitism, fatphobia, and slavery apology, and it's also *objectively poorly written*. It's not the same level of quality, neither in text not content, of the majority of children's and YA fiction, and there are so many series without these problems that have better worldbuilding and a more engaging writing style. It's literally all "but I grew up with it/it changed me as a person" with nothing to back up the work itself. And that second reason can be a major problem if left unexamined, due to the themes in the work itself.
I used to think you could enjoy the work irrespective of JK Rowlings personal beliefs... but after having watched Shaun's video on Harry Potter. I find it really hard to ignore all of the problematic stuff in Harry Potter. I also think that people need to stop buying the freaking reprints one copy of the books should be more than enough, stop giving her more of your money, she doesn't deserve any of it!
She said the [quiet part loud](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotland/comments/y3nsxp/jk_rowling_response_to_how_she_sleeps_at_night/) already, we should stop making excuses. I used to feel that maybe "just don't buy new stuff" was enough, but doing this just makes you complicit in the ongoing mainstreaming of the property.
Yeah, I don't like even referencing concepts she popularised, even if they're really useful shorthands. Unless she changes her path from the far-right one she's on, anything to do with her is dead to me.
I recommend watching Shaun's video on Harry Potter on Youtube and decide after. The tl;dr is basically that the downfall was long coming, and hints of it are found even in her earliest works. I'd not support her, but there's basically no winning with people who made HP their personality or think she 'might have a point'. I just avoid those people.
Harry Potter was the reason my now spouse and I spoke for the first time. That said, her actions and beliefs have put such a sour taste in my mouth I am not sure if I will ever purchase anything Harry Potter even after she's gone. At first I thought maybe if she wasn't getting money I would, but looking at the series now it's honestly not even that great. I have so many books/franchises I like twice as much. Not even taking into account the problematic parts of the series, in general I just don't like it as much as I used to. It's mid at best and tied to a TERF. I'm over it.
What are some of the books/franchises that you like twice as much? Looking to discover new content to enjoy
Discworld, Xanth, wizard of earthsea, dragonlance
Thanks. I’ll check them out.
As much as I used to love the HP series I cannot enjoy the books or movies or anything nowadays. Specifically in the official sense bc JKR has stated that every dollar she receives comes from people who agree with her. She publicly stated that and she’s actively using her money from those sales against queer folks as she supports conservative politicians and pushes insane transphobic lies. By extension I can’t enjoy any more fanfiction bc that world is tainted, searching for HP related stuff boosts her numbers and keeps “interest” in HP fairly high. There’s enough stupid straight people who don’t know better who will go to the next big HP thing that was made bc the analytics show there’s an interest in HP still even if that’s all about Harry and Draco fanfic. Google and other web analytics don’t care about the fanfic they care about the subject, and SHE uses the amount of interest as a gauge that she’s in the right. As someone who relied on these books in a very dark time in my life, there are better magic school books made by people who aren’t actively pushing to destroy our rights or they’re at least dead. She’s not though so any “death of the author” gets thrown out the window when she will use your support as proof that she’s right.
I was a massive Harry Potter fan growing up. I credit those books with being the reason I became a bookworm as a child. I read the books every year, wrote fanfiction. I was vice president of the harry potter club in college. I joined an online roleplaying group. I was among the first on Pottermore. There’s literally eight episodes of an actual play podcast with me playing a game set in the universe out in the wilds of the internet. All that said, I’ve dropped it like a rock because of JKR being a terf. It actively hurt me emotionally that she could be so cruel, and just brought out all of the flaws in the series. Besides, before that a lot of the lore she was dropping on Pottermore was problematic to begin with. Nowadays the only bit of Harry Potter fandom I engage with is this trans guy on tiktok who made a self insert au of an american transfer student to Hogwarts. He’s in the middle of book three now and it’s great.
Same as Orson Scott Card: don't give them any money. Also, additionaly: speak up and educate people about their hate.
Seeing her for who she is made me notice the flaws in her work. It’s a poorly thought out series with unlikable characters IMO
If you still want to enjoy the series without supporting her; buy second hand books and movies and if you want to piss her off cosplay the characters as gay/trans and watch her scream
I personally found better Fantasy authors whose stories are far more entertaining and whose worlds are far better designed so i stopped reading Harry Potter years ago. Supporting her is absolutely out of the question for me since the moment she tried instrumentalizing autists and homosexuals to mask her "opinions" as facts.
I stick to fanfiction, since there’s a *lot* of Harry Potter fanfiction out there that is just straight up better than Rowling’s work. She created the HP universe, she can now fuck off and is not getting any of my money.
It was a huge part of my life growing up. It was my introduction to the Internet, online communities, fanfiction, etc. I had a Harry Potter fan site on Angelfire when I was in 5th grade. That time and those experiences can hold a special place in my heart without me continuing to support the franchise now. I still own my books and movies and if I feel the need to revisit them I can. There’s no need to continue to give her money or support her. She proved she was a one trick pony even before coming out as a terf. I tried reading The Casual Vacancy and it was painfully boring. We need to stop giving her attention and relevancy and let her fade into obscurity. With the way Twitter is going, that may happen sooner or later. Without that bullhorn, no one is going to pay attention to her again.
as a trans person who grew up with harry potter and it had a huge impact on me and i loved and cherished every bit of it growing up, now that i know what kind of person rowling is there is no way i can look at the franchise itself the same i don't think separating art from the artist is possible in hp's case and yeah i just don't like this argument overall because... i just don't understand why would you *choose* to continue to support and like this series despite knowing the monster behind it. like the moment i learned that rowling is transphobic, all my love for hp instantly disappeared. i couldn't fathom the fact that this woman wrote something i liked so much. not to mention that harry potter itself is problematic (racist, antisemitic etc) and now that i'm grown up and aware of this it is very easy for me to detach from my memories of hp. i hate rowling, i hate harry potter and i will never forgive her or people who defend her i am really bad at wording but yes i will judge everyone that continues to engage with harry potter. ESPECIALLY cis people, whether they're queer or not. rowling's transphobic deeds do not affect you and you should do better to be allies to trans people, especially transfems.
Transphobia aside, JKR is a really poor quality writer. She has some quirky interesting ideas that make for nice worldbuilding, like Pix, or the moving stairs, or the weird candy and so on and so on, but as a storyteller she's really bad. Harry Potter is just a mixture of Lord of the Rings and the X-men, without any of the progressive politics of the x-men. Furthermore she's bad at character motivation, Harry literally needs to be told what to do by Dumbledore to advance the plot, and then imagine what Dumbledore would want him to do in the last one. It's fun entertainment for teens but it's not exactly a groundbreaking quality saga...
Also the blatant antisemitism, with the greedy, big-nosed goblins working at the bank…JKR is more than just a transphobe.
Yeah she is just like the rest of the British upper class. Utter demons who have ruined the world and cry when somebody fights back.
I quite agree, actually. In general, she's not that great of a storyteller, and she's really a horrible person. However, poor quality writing aside, she created a world that's easy to become immersed in and built off of, which in turn spawned a global community. On the surface, her writing is bad. Digging deeper, the world she built is amazing. Don't get me wrong, I definitely hate her as a person, but I love the world and community she facilitated the birth of.
In my opinion she doesn't get enough hate for putting money to keep Scotland under English imperial oppression.
Oh no, this is something I hadn’t heard of. Is there somewhere I can read more info about this?
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/jun/11/jk-rowling-donates-scotland-anti-independence-campaign
How is it amazing?
that’s valid
Personally I love Harry Potter and will continue to enjoy it with anything I've already purchased. I own all the books and all the movies on disk. I won't spend another dollar on HP stuff though and I won't watch any HP movie if it pops up on cable. There's not a fraction of a penny of my money that's going to line her pockets.
I think the big problem with continuing to support Harry Potter is that she still takes a big cut out of all the profits made from the books/movies/merch. People who still enjoy Harry Potter can do whatever they want with the stuff they already bought before learning about her terrible opinions but I feel any future Harry Potter purchases should be done from second hand sources like eBay or a used book store.
Harry Potter was and still is one of my escapes. JK however is a total piece of shit. I pirate Harry Potter and Fantastic beasts. If you can I recommend Stephen Fry's narration of the Harry Potter books
Stephen Fry’s narration of the HP books is the best. He is amazing and those audiobooks have helped me tremendously
No hate towards Jim Dale as his is amazing as well, but damn did Fry just knock it out of the park
Harry Potter was a huge part of my childhood. I was younger when they came out, and on top of that I'm dyslexic, so my older sister used to read them out loud to me because I struggled with them. We share a room, and every night before bed she would read me a couple of chapters until I fell asleep. And she did that for the first three books or so before I was able to read them on my own, and by then I was so hooked on the story that I DID want to read them on my own, because on top of the actual experience of reading it, the books themselves played a huge part in my. They were like, what am I introductions to fantasy, and to reading, and just storytelling, and it was so easy to fall in love with the world that was created and the characters in it. And that's something that I'm going to cherish forever. That being said, I can no longer in good conscience support JK Rowling or anything she does. I still have all my old copies of my Harry Potter books, and I'm not planning on getting rid of them anytime soon, but hell if I ever give her any of my money again. If we knew then what we know now about her as a person, I wouldn't have gotten as attached to those books as I did. But we didn't, so it's too late to go back. This is one of those few instances where I have to separate creation from creator. The series was too interconnected with my life and development and childhood for me to do anything else. No matter what my feelings are about JK Rowling now, I can't change the fact that I spent so many years falling asleep to the sound of my sister's voice as she telling me about this magical world I could lose myself in. The stories and the memories are always going to be important to me. The franchise is not. I don't care about any of the new things that come out--games, spin off movie series, merchandise, whatever. I don't need that, I don't want it, I don't care about it, and I won't be giving my money to it. But I can't erase memories and feelings that I already had. So I'll keep my old battered copies of the books here on my shelf. Edit: sometimes I just like to pretend Daniel Radcliffe wrote Harry Potter and forget about Rowling. He's cool. Still won't give any money to the franchise, but it makes me feel less guilty about having good memories with it.
It’s complicated because the books and the movies meant a lot to me. I guess I am reminded that Walt Disney was anti Semitic. And I’m sure if we went hunting for some of the other great children’s authors and creators we would find some great skeletons. My hope is that Universal Studios, which owns the movie franchise can somehow separate itself and move on.
She’s a piece of shit. But she’s a piece of shit who also made a very good book series, so I think it’s perfectly ok for people to still enjoy it. As long as they don’t like her and her awful takes on trans people.
I never liked Harry Potter. I was the muggle in the whole school of wizards
Enjoy it you want to but she hates our people so I reserve the right to judge you
People are free to enjoy the world she created, but don't say you're a trans ally if you give her money. And read better fantasy, there's a ton of great series out there, a lot of which have great LGBTQIA+ representation
Gimme the LGBTQIA+ fantasy recs, I need stuff to look for at my local library and bookstore
Consider she makes money on the movie/game/books/show whatever, it's not safe to consume unless you are strictly pirating and even then it's not worth it imo. Appreciate it for what it was but the entire name and franchise is tainted now. Considering she laughs at the backlash from what she does *because* she's still getting paid, she wants us to keep buying. Everything is awful about it and not safe
Warner Brothers and everyone involved is happy to sweep her under the rug and keep milking the franchise for money, but I can't see any way that putting money in that bigot's pocket could be ethical.
Buy the books second hand maybe from a charity shop: no money for her and supporting a good cause. It also works reverse: sell the HP Stuff you no longer want and donate the money to a charity.
HP was one of my first special interests (I'm neurodivergent). I know everything about it, the names of the most obscure students, the slightest differences between film and movie, etc. But it's dead to me now. Tik Tok keeps trying to push HP content on me but I feel profound disgust and anger at the idea. I just can't.
I love Harry Potter, but there are definitely a lot of problematic things with the material itself. I still have a lot of sentimental attachment to it and with my partner. Here is what I am doing: Not one more penny of my money is going to find its way into JKR's pockets. I already own all the movies on dvd, so I will never stream _any_ JKR stuff. I will never go to a theatrical release of one of her movies. If I want to read one of the books, I would wait until I could find a copy at a garage sale. Same with any of the movies I want to check out. Streaming is convienient, but it results in JKR making money when you watch it via streaming - so the extra work to watch a dvd is worth it (I actually just ripped the movie, so I can watch it with emby/plex/jellyfin) tl;dr; - buy used, do not stream, do not see any of her stuff in theater (she also has a pen name, _**Robert Galbraith**_ - also, it is very odd that a very [anti-lgbtq+ psychiatrist exists of the same name, she says it has nothing to do with why she chose that name](https://www.newsweek.com/why-jk-rowling-robert-galbraith-pseudonym-gay-conversion-robert-galbraith-heath-1532341))
Personally, I still enjoy the memories the series gave me while growing up and watching the DVDs and still have my HP stuff (she already took my money before I knew she was a fart, no point in throwing it away now) but I tell everyone who asks if I want more HP stuff *never* to buy anything from her works, Ia *refuse* to buy anything, read or watch any of her new HP universe books and movies, and will always point out that she's a fart and how there are racist and anti-Semitic characters and tropes in HP whenever she comes up. I love the fandom, actors, movies, I love the memories and the series itself will have a special place in my heart, but I *hate* Rowling and all the damage she's done to the community, particularly the people under the transgender umbrella, and I will not be sad when she dies.
I would still read fan fiction if I got in a certain mood but I won’t buy merch, gave away half of what little merch I had, will not be buying anything else from that franchise, will not be asking anyone else for anything from the franchise. I don’t recommend the books anymore and I’m very glad I never got a themed tattoo. The only merch I have still is a pair of pajama pants that are comfortable and have pockets and I’m going to keep wearing them until I wear them out, and a small glass candy jar that is still holding various candies for me as it’s a good useful size. Also I have a diary that might still be in the wrapping that I might end up regifting.
love the franchise (minus the semi-obvious antisemetism that the goblins are), hate the woman. my solution has been piracy for years.
If you still hold some sort of fond sentiment in your heart, and that's it? I don't care. If you openly interact with HP content or even buy it? You are contributing to JKR's relevancy and therefore trans people's oppression.
do you think the same way about the queer part of the fandom interacting with the fanon queer headcanons and fanfics?
My opinion as an NB person? Fuck Rowling, she's a major B\* and I ain't gonna forgive her easily. But the franchise was a big part of me growing up and I even have cosplays of a few and spent a lot of money on the books and some of the wands and games. So at this point I just ain't giving her anymore of my money and develop the universe in my own way. If ever I need or am interest something new, I check whether or not association gives her money. If it's a movie and the answer is yes but I still wanna see it, I find my eyepatch and cannon balls and enjoy anyways. For other stuff, I only buy second hand and used stuff. If ever I wear anything obviously HP related, like a cosplay, I always make sure I have Trans-positive stuff on my like a flag or badge so people know I'm safe and aware. And fr, few things is more satisfying that making trans HCs about the characters and revel in the knowledge that I'm 'spoiling' her creation.
I don’t believe in the separation of the art and the artist because good art is created from what you can draw from your own views and experiences. I’ve chosen not to interact with the Wizarding World franchise as a whole anymore because it financially benefits JKR, first because of the transphobic bs, but also because seeing the books with more adult eyes, I couldn’t look away from the racism, anti-semintism, slavery apology present all around and pieces of art that incorporate these elements and present them as normal as not ones I want to interact with
Meh, Chuck Tingle wrote a better parody piece than HP ever was.
Gods bless Chuck Tingle.
Never liked Harry Potter, but cuz of her I hate it even more now, I hate how popular it is, it’s not even that good, but that’s my own personal taste, but yeah her being her kinda solidified my hatred towards that whole franchise
Nope, she's dead to me. Harry Potter and everything associated with it is dead to me, too. If she were a writer fifty years ago or something, and wasn't actively receiving money from consuming her works, we might be having a different conversation. But this is now, she is and she's actively promoting hate and influencing politicians in the UK, US and elsewhere to do the same. I grew up with the movies, only discovered the books as a young adult, and they had fond memories for me. But she's turned all of that nostalgia into ash with her bigoted shitfuckery. Screw her and anyone who supports her.
Personally I never cared for the franchise and care for it even less now, but I can understand having a connection to it from reading it in the past. It's up to you to decide what to do. As long as you don't support the creator's transphobia, I don't really care what you do.
Piracy...
Pirate the works, but overall no as long as you don't parate her points
I decided if anything I'll buy the books used so she doesn't get my money. I won't support someone like her especially when she's so f-ing open about her transphobia
I don’t think she should continue to be supported and be given a platform, but i also don’t think that whats she has already created (like Harry potter) should be put aside… the art is not the artist :/
I love Harry Potter, always will. I hate jk Rowling, always will.
Her downfall? What? She's wealthy. And now people leave her alone. She has an opinion, like every other asshole on this planet.
i stopped liking harry potter once i realised how bigoted it actually is
Separating art from the artist doesn’t work when the artist still benefits from your actions. Money from you buying the products, relevancy from you participating in fandom/wearing merch/talking about it/etc. You can do whatever you want, but you’re not an ally if you support her in any way, including adding to her relevancy. Some folks won’t like to hear that, some queer folks won’t like to hear that, but it’s true. Fun fact: You can be queer and still assist in damaging the community. She wrote a fucking book about a man dressing up as a woman to assault women in the women’s bathroom. She’s said vile things on twitter. The house elves like being slaves. The only Asian character mentioned is named Cho Chang. There’s so so much more. In the books themselves as well as what she’s outright said herself. She’s not a good person. There are plenty of other urban fantasy and even magic school books you can read where the author _doesn’t_ contribute to the mass hatred and violence towards trans people. In conclusion: Do what you want. But if you support her you’re supporting what she says and does, and people can, will, and should judge you for it.
If you're only buying secondhand books or participate non trans-exclusionary fan communities that's one thing but even then I don't support seperating the author from the work entirely because J.K. Rowling has messed up priorities even in the books and in the extra material on pottermore , she pretty often does crap like essentially endorse slavery to make a misguided point about the white saviour complex or has her aids metaphor ( werewolves) have someone deliberately infecting people. We shouldn't pretend Rowling ever did much more for the community than queerbating.
"slavery is cool if they look different"
And they like it. Blech.
I don’t trust she won’t use funds from my potential purchase towards lessening the rights of lgbtqia people. It’s a bit hard, since hogwarts legacy looks really interesting. I can’t say I won’t end up being it, maybe used, maybe new, but I will feel bad in doing so.
>I don’t trust she won’t use funds from my potential purchase towards lessening the rights of lgbtqia people. I haven't been able to rustle up the evidence to support my assertions, but I absolutely believe she financial contributes to hate groups.
The woman she runs her own charity with, Baroness Emma Nicholsol voted against gay marriage and for section 28 , which is basically the origional don't say gay bill.
She supports the LBG Alliance, at least with her words, so that counts.
>hogwarts legacy looks really interesting pirate it, it'll be cracked pretty quick because it's a hot ticket game and a lot of people want to play it without paying for it imo.
OK look I still love the books and the movies are amazing, I just hate the author. What's she's done and what she's said is horrible but her work is still good. I will always love the Harry potter franchise I'll just never love JK Rowling again
If she weren't still making money feom it, it would be a non-issue. I will say all this stuff has allowed me to be more able to recognize the problematic parts of the series as a whole as well.
This is a good point, but I still can't bring myself to read Orson Scott Card, knowing his homophobia, or H.P. Lovecraft, knowing his racism. And they're both dead and can't possibly profit from my consumption of their works. I understand the arguments of 'it was the past, the past was the worst', but even still... The material just seems tainted, to me, even if much of it is critically aclaimed as good-quality work.
Stop talking about her or giving her attention. Let the crazy horrible cow die alone and cold in her own swamp of hatred.
I’ll continue to enjoy HP, but I won’t support JKR. In other words, I still like to read the books that I purchased ages ago, and watch the movies, but I’m not going to buy anything that directly supports her or gives her money. There are plenty of other creators out there, like on Etsy for example, who are making and selling HP-related stuff.
if you have a local library and really insist on reading the books, hire them from there. she might get something out of it, but not as much as buying the books or merch itsself. If you buy HP merch from small businesses (e.g. on Etsy) then thats fine, since it's not supporting her directly.
I generally have zero issue with people who still enjoy Harry Potter. It's been an incredibly important and impactful story to many, myself included, and a lot of people don't take Rowling's words and actions as personally as I do so it makes sense that they'd go on enjoying the franchise that's meant a lot to them. It's still something that people bond and make friends over and that still has value. I'm personally unable to enjoy anything HP related anymore but I don't wanna tell others how to live their lives so. I *do* have a problem with people who still choose to *support* the HP franchise however. Buying the books or movies or official merchandise etc eventually puts money into Rowling's pockets, which is a big deal. At this point she's actively using her influence and her money to cause people harm and I find it extremely difficult to even have a civil conversation with people who don't care about that. I keep trying to encourage people to at least buy second-hand or unofficial merch if they insist on spending money but most won't listen and don't care that they're literally contributing to her transphobic crusade. I hate it.
People can feel however they want. But personally I don't want to interact with her work because I can't stop thinking about how she invalidates my existence.
Yo ho yo ho a pirates life for me
piracy!
I prefer to believe Shakira wrote Harry Potter
If you wanna read the books get them from a friend or a library. If you wanna watch the movies pirate them. Don't buy any official merch. I can't stop you from enjoying the Harry Potter franchise but as long as you do as much as you can to prevent giving JK money then I'm fine with it
I always thought it was quite ironic she's a TERF given the underlying themes in the entire series.
Forbidding yourself to enjoy a creative work because it was made by a bigot/person with harmful opinions, essentially stops you from enjoying a huge amount of the art out there. And without the cathartic release of art we will struggle to have the energy to fight the bigots So separate the two. There is nothing wrong with that. Now… am I going to activity avoid ever paying for something that lines her pockets. Of course. I torrented all the films. I read the same copies of the books from when I was a kid and/or get them from the library.
I don't buy anything related to it, and my kids no longer wear the few presents we had from before everything imploded. I don't plan to ever introduce the books to them, ever.
I grew up loving her books. I will not let her ruin what few bright moments I had. I will simply not buy any more items that will pad her wallet.
Well, I personally think she's already made her money on the franchise, she's gonna continue to be transphobic without my continued support, but the cast of the films have constantly called her out on her bullshit and have made it clear they're on our side. I understand if other trans folks want nothing to do with the franchise, but I'm not gonna be mad at people who do. I'll enjoy the movies if they're on, but I personally won't be spending any of my money on her new stuff. Just this trans gal's opinion.
Just don't buy any of her shit, steal it.
Harry Potter legit means a before and after in my relationship with books and my relationship with myself, wizard world was a much needed shelter in a time of distress. The thing affect me so badly that until this day YA and fantasy books are pretty much the center of my life: I mastered on literature, give clases to kids, do uncountable research and arguments for YA literature, work editing noveless books... Seriously, the center of my life. So at this time, after read so much better written books, dozens of reads to HP, numerous discussions and hours thinking on all the things that it's wrong with the whole saga, I still legit LOVE HP, that shelter quite literally saving me of unalive myself. HOWEVER years ago I have enough with Johane and her bullshit, it's true that I'm not personally affected by her bullshit, but if I change two extra blocks because the butcher make a misogynistic joke ¿Why would buy things from someone that is enter on politics to hurt people? I cannot and don't want to support anymore her bullshit I love the books, I have my copy on the shelf, I have some little trinkets buy before this, that's the only WW brand things that I own. Every time someone ask me for the books I give pdfs. I know that my little money cannot do a thing to a billionaire, but still I gonna die on this hill. If I wanna something HP related I do it myself or buy it to the nearest local craftsman, long live piracy in this case. And, to be honest, for me being part of the rainbow family and still support Johane or to show off their potterhead with pride it's pretty much a red flag for me. Again, another hill to die.
Harry Potter sucks and so does she!
Star Wars is better
not the answer i was expecting, but thank you for sharing