Page 2 | JK Rowling featured in Guardian person of the year

Notahandmaid · 31/12/2021 13:03

Excellent news. And it's a good list overall (though I've never heard of Ranboo - am I too old??).

SirVixofVixHall · 31/12/2021 12:47

@Whatiswrongwithmyknee

Healthcare worker here and v happy with JKRs place on this!

Me too! The NHS is far from an equitable employer and every day we see the impact of misogyny and sexism. We need people who stand up to that as if we accept the current dogma NHS staff, and our patients, pay the price.

Really agree with this. Women and girls all over Britain, whatever their job or situation, are facing losing the right to single sex spaces, female provision of health care, safety from males in refuges etc It is a massive threat to the rights of women that affects all female people.

Berkspolix · 31/12/2021 10:54

@CrispAndFrosty

When I read that Ranboo had raised money for the Trevor Project, I immediately thought of Daniel Radcliffe. He has some kind of link with that charity - perhaps a celeb ambassador? - and referenced them while biting the hand that fed him. Apparently he (Radcliffe) put a statement out on their website distancing himself from the wicked witch.

Anyway. Brilliant that she made the list!

I think putting him on the list was an underhanded way for The Guardian to snub JKR & women whilst making out that they'd listened to us.

Mummyoflittledragon · 31/12/2021 10:03

@Whatiswrongwithmyknee

Regardless of whether she got more votes or not I think we can agree that the binary concepts of winning and not winning do not properly encompass the relationship which a person has with winning or not winning. This is definitive proof that there no longer is any winning or not winning in any scientific or mathematical sense. If JK feels like a winner then she is. If we, are JK fans, feel like she is a winner, then she is and it is bigoted of anyone to suggest otherwise.

Basically, I think she won. Moral victory at the very least (in terms of what she stands for, not in relation to the other nominees).

Brilliant. She definitely won.

CrispAndFrosty · 31/12/2021 10:00

When I read that Ranboo had raised money for the Trevor Project, I immediately thought of Daniel Radcliffe. He has some kind of link with that charity - perhaps a celeb ambassador? - and referenced them while biting the hand that fed him. Apparently he (Radcliffe) put a statement out on their website distancing himself from the wicked witch.

Anyway. Brilliant that she made the list!

pepperminttaste · 31/12/2021 09:02

Oh fantastic! And, as others have said, Michelle summed it up perfectly. Slightly surprised they printed it.

Some really deserving names on that list.

SolasAnla · 31/12/2021 08:48

@stucklnAChimneyCantGetOutOflt

The assembler of the list was pulling a conclusion from the Twitter feed.
It looked like the nomination was first because someone was a fan. Then it was pointed out he made the donations to charity. Some tweeters were trying to use him as a counter protest because he would have a large number of followers.
It was both funny and sad to see the comments of how a donation rather than his social contribution was seen important.

Theeyeballsinthesky · 31/12/2021 08:21

Richard Ratcliffe is also on the list

Mudday · 31/12/2021 08:17

I will always appreciate women like Rowling who brave insane death threats when defending women and their right to be respected. However, there's an exhausted, bewilderingly ignored man out there called Richard Ratcliffe who has been fighting for his wife's rights for years. Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was unnecessarily and unjustly dropped into an outrageously horrifying political nightmare by our effing PM when he was being even more incompetent (I kid you not) as Foreign Secretary. Making him Person of the Year will expose the absolute corruption at the core of our wretched government and hopefully force a desperately needed change and shame Boris Johnson's utter incompetence LOUDLY.

ErrolTheDragon · 31/12/2021 06:47

@WarriorN

This is great.

Do they usually do a list of many like that or focus on one?

I'm wondering if she had many more votes and this was the compromise?!

I don't know what they've done in the past, but this piece is entirely congruent with what I expected on the basis of the piece asking for nominations.

WarriorN · 31/12/2021 06:24

This is great.

Do they usually do a list of many like that or focus on one?

I'm wondering if she had many more votes and this was the compromise?!

StucklnAChimneyCantGetOutOflt · 31/12/2021 06:22

But as to why he has been placed in that gender debate sentence is a weird one because afaik he hasn't ever commented, other than to be supportive of his fans full-stop. The guy is not even out as an unmasked public figure let alone a vocal activist for trans rights. I think his LGBTQ teen fandom have adopted him as an ally in terms of him being able to explain gender envy without being judgy.
I am way too old for this world.

StucklnAChimneyCantGetOutOflt · 31/12/2021 06:13

Ah - penny drops - responses on twitter makes more sense. He has 2 and a half million rabid followers. Must be older than my kid I guess.
Do the young people even do twitter, mind? Thought it was all insta now.

StucklnAChimneyCantGetOutOflt · 31/12/2021 06:06

As far as I can make out, 18 year old Ranboo (pronouns he/him) is a minecraft youtuber/twitch streamer, with a massive LGBT following including many transmasc/non binary fans, who nicknamed him Genderman (I assume originally this is because Ranboo the character was half ghast, half enderman) and it became a joke - he said something about lots of people wanting to steal his gender cos of gender envy - him being so masculine. Said fans lapped it up/had a lot of banter about it. He is really just a nerdy, sweet young man making $$$$ from his bedroom, having played minecraft for 9 years, living his dream I guess...and confused as to how he won/was listed.
As am I...his demographic does not fit with the nominating for a Guardian poll at all, unless it was just the one, sole anonymous aussie rando. Or there are loads of transboys in adulation. He does the kind of schtick my son adores. Hint - he would not be filling in a poll.

A580Hojas · 31/12/2021 05:23

Very pleasing to see. I do hope Michelle from Wiltshire is a Mumsnetter.

JaneEyress · 31/12/2021 05:10

Amazed and glad they actually printed it. This really is progress from where we were last year.

AryaStarkWolf · 31/12/2021 04:57

So happy JK Rowling can see how many people agree with her and stand with her. Yes she's a multi millionaire but she was still so brave to speak out and risk her legacy, we women need very famous people to do this so everyone else feels brave enough

NotTerfNorCis · 31/12/2021 03:45

And in a sign of the ongoing debate overgender issues, many readers also nominated the author JK Rowling, and online content creator Ranboo.

Looks to me like the phrase 'and in a sign of the ongoing debate over gender issues ' was hurriedly added at the last minute and not checked. ('overgender')

Also, whoever Ranboo is, they clearly think he was picked because he represents a side of this debate.

ArabellaScott · 30/12/2021 23:13

Great
Well done JKR and Michelle, and well done Guardian for gracious inclusion.

Whatiswrongwithmyknee in my view your post wins the thread.

Doyoumind · 30/12/2021 23:07

Interesting that, as far as I can see, they didn't tweet about this. I'm certain if JKR hadn't featured they would have. They've done the article but aren't promoting it.

Berkspolix · 30/12/2021 22:57

I'm also a fan of JKR but I don't think she'd think like you on this.

Like me she doesn't support men in women's single sex spaces so she wouldn't support a charity that helps them.

There's plenty of LGB organisations that could do with support - LGB Alliance for one.

RufustheFloralmissingreindeer · 30/12/2021 22:52

Interesting to note they did so with more grace than I expected

Yes they did

2319inprogress · 30/12/2021 22:50

Bahahaha! Fabulous

Interesting to note they did so with more grace than I expected.

saraclara · 30/12/2021 22:40

@Berkspolix

And great to see that Ranboo made the list because he got a lot of votes on Twitter too!!

I'm not so sure, Ranboo raises money for The Trevor Project which is an LGBTQ charity which is a shame and goes against what JKR stands for.

Do you want these organisations not to exist? Do you want to deprive gay and lesbian young people (let's leave trans completely out of it just for clarity) of support and guidance because you approve of JKR's stance?

You have a problem with some trans issues. So you resent someone who supports an organisation that helps LGBTQ people being put forward by some Guardian readers?

I'm also a fan of JKR but I don't think she'd think like you on this.

Berkspolix · 30/12/2021 22:28

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