Daniel Radcliffe responds to J.K Rowling's tweets on gender identity

[EddyF]

Daniel Radcliffe responds to JK Rowling’s tweets: “Transgender women are women. Any statement to the contrary erases the identity and dignity of transgender people”

Daniel Radcliffe Responds to J.K. Rowling’s Tweets on Gender Identity – The Trevor Project

FULL STATEMENT

I realize that certain press outlets will probably want to paint this as in-fighting between J.K. Rowling and myself, but that is really not what this is about, nor is it what’s important right now. While Jo is unquestionably responsible for the course my life has taken, as someone who has been honored to work with and continues to contribute to The Trevor Project for the last decade, and just as a human being, I feel compelled to say something at this moment.

Transgender women are women. Any statement to the contrary erases the identity and dignity of transgender people and goes against all advice given by professional health care associations who have far more expertise on this subject matter than either Jo or I. According to The Trevor Project, 78% of transgender and nonbinary youth reported being the subject of discrimination due to their gender identity. It’s clear that we need to do more to support transgender and nonbinary people, not invalidate their identities, and not cause further harm.

I am still learning how to be a better ally, so if you want to join me in learning more about transgender and nonbinary identities check out The Trevor Project’s Guide to Being an Ally to Transgender and Nonbinary Youth. It’s an introductory educational resource that covers a wide range of topics, including the differences between sex and gender, and shares best practices on how to support transgender and nonbinary people.

To all the people who now feel that their experience of the books has been tarnished or diminished, I am deeply sorry for the pain these comments have caused you. I really hope that you don’t entirely lose what was valuable in these stories to you. If these books taught you that love is the strongest force in the universe, capable of overcoming anything; if they taught you that strength is found in diversity, and that dogmatic ideas of pureness lead to the oppression of vulnerable groups; if you believe that a particular character is trans, nonbinary, or gender fluid, or that they are gay or bisexual; if you found anything in these stories that resonated with you and helped you at any time in your life — then that is between you and the book that you read, and it is sacred. And in my opinion nobody can touch that. It means to you what it means to you and I hope that these comments will not taint that too much.

Love always,
Dan

SweetPetrichor how good of you to drop in from the 17th century. JK is certainly a woman, but most definitely not ‘foul.’ Back off to 1640 with you

@JGACC I’ve just seen that. It also referenced that DR was criticised last year for defending someone (maybe Maya?) “who had lost their job for saying children cannot change their biological sex”.

In many ways that makes his statement yesterday worse: he knows the truth, he has spoken out before but was frightened by the criticism he received so has backed down and is showing penance by rounding on the one woman (other than his own mother) to have had a huge personal impact on his life.

I mean, let this sink in.

Transactivist lobby: Death threats, rape threats, pressure to remove all female only provision from 100% of females despite the effect of this excluding and harming a large proportion of females, exceptional homophobia, some racism, some use of female spaces and non consenting females for sexual experiences. Violent threats, rage and appalling behaviour is norm.

This is supposed to be perfectly ok.

Female rights people: female people have needs based on biology which should not be abandoned.

This is supposed to be foul and appalling and violent and etc etc etc.

Please, someone explain this to me. Please.

@dickkerrladies actually i think it was because she defined women as people who menstruate. it was somewhat thoughtless as lots of women born women don't menstruate for hormonal reasons so unfortunately she caused irritation for that reason too.

DR has to be careful not to alienate the 'woke' agenda that seems to pervade the celebrity world.
It's like something out of the Ministry of Truth.

I said upthread that bullying anyone isn't ok. vile abuse at jkr isn't ok. vile comments or abuse here isn't ok either. can you not see that? neither is ok @thisisawful. I didn't ask you whether you thought it was okay. I asked you if you'd gone on Twitter to complain about the abusive messages to JKR on there.

@thisisawful - one of the main arguments of the TRAs is that males with gender dysphoria find it upsetting to not be called women. i.e. the whole point is that they cannot manage their uncomfortable emotions and women should accommodate this regardless of how uncomfortable it makes them.

Why should women have to be accommodating and prioritise male feelings over their own feelings, reality and compromise legal and social norms which protect them because of their female biology?

Obnoxious shite. He said years ago with a chip on his shoulder that social media was beneath him.

But he chose not to call off the attack dogs, make a plea for civility or defend her as a person. So in the interests of his own profile he threw her under the bus

Yes this

I wouldn’t have had a massive issue with Him saying TWAW etc if thats his belief but its the complete lack of acknowledgement of transmen and the lack of acknowledgement of the abuse JKR is receiving for her belief that’s particularly galling

Please, someone explain this to me. Please. see it as you would see bullying in the playground. other child is threatening violence to your child. do you tell your child to be abusive to them and make threats back or do you find other ways to achieve safeguarding for your child?

@thisisawful

nope - its not because she defined women as people who menstruate - her position is that the only people who can menstruate are women.

Which is, well, true.

Posted too soon.
I read JKR's comments as only women (as a sex) can menstruate, not that to be considered a woman you have to nenstruate. I've probably worded that badly, what with my feeble womanly mind.

Sex is immutable. Why are people so offended by that?

Thanks for mansplaining Daniel! 🙄🙄🙄🙈🙈🙈

Oh here we go, a MAN telling women that they are wrong and trying to shut us up.

I’m fed up of arguing with stupid

Yes, but so much of what has been argued over for the past few years has gone unnoticed. At last these things are now being TALKED about at all - largely thanks to the courage & tenacity of many women, many on here.

When the sunlight first hits, lo the stupidity shall come up to meet it.

I think it's part of the process we'll have to go through. Radcliffe's response is possibly something I might have agreed to, a few years back. It all sounds lovely and sparkly and kind and brave. And doesn't mention any of the troublesome issues that have been thrown up as the ideology actually gets translated from the Woobrain, via the Wokemouth, into the messy, grubby, difficult light of everyday life and reality.

Hopefully the raising of the issue as something it's acceptable to actually discuss will now prompt people to start asking questions. And we know what happens when people ask questions ...

Deep breath, womens. We're getting there.

Reality is not abusive, and trying to convince people that it is is gaslighting.

@thisisawful what utter tosh. Everyone with two brain cells to rub together knows that the word “woman” refers to the sex class of human with the potential ability to procreate.

Being prepubescent, having an illness or medical condition that prevents it, taking medication to actively or as a side effect stop it, or going through the menopause does not mean they are not of the female sex.

How can you hope to be seen and treated as fully human if you don't show others the same thing?

Let me think. In Australia, in the last 24 hours, two women were murdered by men. I’m not sure that’s kind or respectful, but we’re not having a conversation whether there is such a thing as a man or whether they deserve to be considered fully human.

But I accept that a group of women calling an actor an entitled twit, is fathoms worse.

she defined women as people who menstruate. it was somewhat thoughtless as lots of women born women don't menstruate for hormonal reasons

Sorry, this is a lot of hogwash. Women are people who menstruate at some time in their lives, and women who don't menstruate at the appropriate part of their lives have medical investigation as this is cause for concern. This ridiculous 'every word must include every single possible eventuality or Wrong' is something that exists only online amongst woke idiots who are too hard work to have a conversation with. The ones insisting everyone jumps every single word through hoops to be Properly Right are never the ones who actually have the characteristics they are so busy scolding everyone else for not being as Good and Right as they are about.

It's the new puritanism, it really is.

"@merrymouse women who have gone through the menopause are still women - jk accepted that her comments were thoughtless, I think, and she followed them up clarifying that she wasn't anti trans. not sure she'd appreciate the sort of "support" she is getting here either"

Yes. Only women go through menopause and only women have periods and only women can become pregnant, regardless of how they identify. I'm not really sure what point you are trying to make. Because these things only affect women, they can be used to oppress women.

Because women's fertility is time limited, it is likely that Emma Watson, being female, will have a baby in the next 15 years. This will affect her ability to work. It is likely that Daniel Radcliffe, being male, could have a child at any point over the next 40 years, and it won't affect his ability to work at all. Therefore Emma Watson needs rights and protections that Daniel Radcliffe doesn't. All this is true regardless of how they identify.

More than that, casting directors can make assumptions about Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson, because regardless of how they identify, their sex is clear.

This is how sexism works. It has affected women throughout history. It is not going away because some privileged people want to pretend that sex is optional.

How can you hope to be seen and treated as fully human if you don't show others the same thing?

Who is not treating trans people as 'fully human'? I want examples please.

Not going along with what someone else demands is not 'inhumane' just so you know.

As a women your ego must be terribly fragile to think a transgender woman erases your dignity and identity or even concerns you? Is you life that boring transgender people are a topic to rile you?

see it as you would see bullying in the playground. other child is threatening violence to your child. do you tell your child to be abusive to them and make threats back or do you find other ways to achieve safeguarding for your child?

Oh I SEE. You just popped onto this thread to do some general head girling for no particular reason or purpose. Yes, you're a very very virtuous person. Point made. Cookies awarded. Ffs.

• I'd also like to point out that yet again, this is all being seen through the lens of US culture.

JK Rowling is in the UK. Radcliffe is in the US, I think?

This has happened before - American opinion rages over something that isn't equivalent and has different cultural context and history, but US commentators can't seem to see beyond the view that the US is the default position.

Hark at the man telling us what a women is. Shhhhh