Petition urges LondonMayor to scrap Harry Potter Christmas lights over transphobia

[IwantToRetire]

Thousands of people have signed a petition calling on London Mayor Sadiq Khan to cancel Harry Potter-themed Christmas lights planned for Oxford Street this year.

The display is intended to promote the forthcoming Harry Potter TV series, but campaigners object to the promotion of JK Rowling's work due to what they argue are here anti-trans views.

Signatories to the petition, which was organised by the Good Law Project, also say the lights will leave trans people feeling unwelcome and unsafe in one of London's best-known festive locations.

Article continues at https://www.localgov.co.uk/Petition-urges-Khan-to-scrap-Harry-Potter-Christmas-lights-over-transphobia-/65071

Will it be done in the manner of a pop up flash mob 😂

Seriously, I wouldn't be at all surprised. As long as the video looks good on the socials...

The idiot that spent soooo much time complaining on the phone to the wrong office could be the star of it. 😂

If any decide to try to vandalise them I hope they're careful. Messing with electricity is dangerous. I really would hate for anyone to get hurt. This is literally not a hill to die on.

Oh don't tell, I had the popcorn ready to watch and laugh at all the fuzzy pink/blue perms that the 'action' would produce.

The septum piercings should produce some pretty effects too.

Well it will be extremely useful optics if a happy and fun event with a lot of tourists and kids is disrupted. A picture in the press that would paint a thousand words. And that's before the statement about 'people are enjoying these images related to a shop and tv show and films depicting a kids story written by someone who said something at somepoint, and we can't point to exactly what or what was wrong with it exactly but the tone was definitely evil and we don't feel safe here (except to turn up and disrupt other people's enjoyment)'.

Should certainly garner public feeling.

Ah, the difference is that the people waving trans flags are the ones threatening women with rape, mutilation, decapitation etc.

Their trans flag proudly waves over women being assaulted at rallies, women’s events being cancelled through credible threats to venues, woman and allies being forced out of work and losing their livelihoods, women and children being sexually abused by those men whose crimes created the now well-known statistic that trans-identifying men are more likely than other men to be convicted of a sexual offence. Etc etc.

Neither Harry Potter nor feminists (including JK Rowling) have done any of those things.
We do say No to men trying to demolish our rights, and I know that makes them very very angry.
But we are not the people who hurt and harm others.

I very much hope they are not stupid enough to cause disruption. So far, trans activists 'protests' have been confined to attacking and hassling small groups of women and feminists.

Going for the normies, at an event that will have robust security, would be foolish in the extreme.

But as we know there are some utterly unhinged and dangerous men involved. Piss protests, bared moobs, cricket swarms, noise makers, violent threats, and smoke grenades will not go down well.

Again, I hope there is robust security.

The order of that article suggests the big switch on sometime early next week. Leicester Square kicking off the lights this evening.

Still time for Jolyon’s kids to handcuff themselves to Dumbledore or whatever!

A quick look at some of the more unhinged trans activists shows nothing about this event. Its possible that the GLP have fabricated the whole issue entirely.

Very possible!

But the Oxford Street switch on is typically eagerly anticipated for weeks, I remember it as a kid! Why haven’t they announced the date yet? They have all the others.

Some mutterings on Reddit that Harry Potter protests are some kind of psy op to make trans activists look like unhinged idiots. I can't say I disagree. Not sure whether to thank JoMa or shut up, tbh.

www.reddit.com/r/transgender/comments/1x85hvt/protrans_rights_activists_crash_harry_potter_west/

I thought it was Nov 4th to coincide with the store opening?

Ah, you are right Eresh. No date. Bit odd.

metro.co.uk/2026/11/01/full-list-london-christmas-lights-switch-on-dates-2026-29743131/amp/

I’m not sure they’ve announced a date yet. But would make sense. Doing an AI search says expected on Nov 2 - so tomorrow

Sorry x posted!

Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.

(Often misattributed to Sun Tzu, not recorded in so many words by anyone, closest approximation various words of advice by Napoleon to his generals. Whatever, it's still very wise counsel.)

Perhaps email Sadiq Khan, ask him when he's switching them on? 😉

Don't they usually have a celebrity of some sort switching on the lights? I wonder who it will be.

Haha might do 😂

They'd better make up their minds PDQ.

Well Sadiq has already posted on sm about the HP shop coming to London, so I imagine there will be further promotion of it and further toys out of prams.