Attitude editor: Warner Bros. should be ashamed for giving a platform to JK Rowling
"What a sad little life, Joanne" writes Attitude's Cliff Joannou in an op-ed, as he challenges the Harry Potter creator and speaks out in support of our asexual family
Has JK Rowling been on the rosé again? Although her latest anti-LGBTQIA+ attack is far away from that “clumsy and middle-aged moment” in 2018, when she liked a tweet that referred to trans women as ‘men in dresses’, she seems to have now moved beyond her anti-trans views to targeting others in the queer community.
Taking to X on 6 April to project further judgement on anybody who doesn’t conform to her view of how another human being should identify, this time she took a stab at the asexual community. Already infamous for her anti-trans views, Joanne Kathleen Rowling seems to be picking her way through the LGBTQIA+ rainbow, one letter at a time.
“Happy International Fake Oppression Day to everyone who wants complete strangers to know they don’t fancy a shag,” she wrote in an insensitive post that targets the men, women and non-binary people who identify under the broad identity of asexuality. Her words smack of ignorance.
For those not fully aware of asexuality, it is generally defined as a person who experiences little-to-no sexual attraction towards anyone, regardless of their gender. As with all sexuality — gay, lesbian, pansexual or otherwise — asexuality exists on a spectrum. It’s why we as LGBTQIA+ people embrace the rainbow as our symbol — the colours blend and blur, they can be distinct and different, yet at the same time they are still connected.
The first International Asexuality Day was established in 2021, and its aims are simple: advocacy, celebration, education and solidarity. It’s about uplifting and spotlighting the estimated 1 per cent of the population who don’t experience sexual attraction in the commonly accepted way. And its advocates are becoming more vocal, from Heartstopper creator Alice Oseman and actor Michaela Coel, who identifies as aromantic, to activists Yasmin Benoit and David Jay.
“All JK Rowling’s attempt to hijack International Asexuality Day succeeded in doing was to show that she doesn’t actually stand for anything. All she wants to do is attack small, marginalised groups of people who are minding their own business and spread misinformation,” Benoit told Attitude.
She continued: “It was the government’s own research which revealed the disparities in what asexual people experience in our society — from our conversion therapy rates being higher, us being more likely to experience negative reactions at work, to having less access to healthcare. The research I conducted with Stonewall dug deeper into that, revealing how asexual conversion therapy is perpetuated by the healthcare system and the impact of acephobia in the workplace. Of course, I don’t expect someone like JK Rowling to be educated about what she’s talking about.”
“This is a community trying to establish its voice in a world that is lurching towards extreme conservative far-right beliefs” – Cliff Joannou
On 8 April, JK Rowling followed up with a crass tweet that implied asexuality could be cured by ‘turning on’ those who identify as asexual. It implies asexual people can be ‘converted’, which is deeply problematic.
This is a community trying to establish its voice in a world that is lurching towards extreme conservative far-right beliefs, with dear Joanne appearing to join the likes of Trump and Musk in becoming a herald of oppression for anyone who doesn’t conform to their narrow viewpoint. She’s so far down the rabbit hole now, that Mike White might want to consider casting her as his next disillusioned middle-aged white rich person in White Lotus series four.
What sits uneasily with me is the incoming platform that Warner Bros. and HBO seems happy to offer Joanne Kathleen Rowling with the reboot of Harry Potter. Turning a blind eye to her anti-queer rants, the studio has included her in the wizarding revival. Harry Potter’s entire premise is set in a school, a place where intimidation should not be tolerated. Yet its creator seems to find joy in punching down at marginalised people that are not like her. Those are the tactics of a bully — behaviour that Warner Bros. is endorsing.
Her views have tarnished Hogwarts since that “clumsy and middle-aged moment” in 2018. HBO and Warner Bros. seem happy to allow that to continue for their profit margin and at the expense of the people that suffer.
What a sad little life, Joanne.
This editor’s letter appears in the upcoming issue 364 of Attitude magazine, available to pre-order here. Read 15 years of back issues of the magazine on the Attitude app.