JK Rowling 'practically daring police' to arrest her after new hate crime law
'Outnumbered' panelists discuss Scotland's controversial new law on hate crimes, which critics warn will have a 'chilling effect' on free speech.
J.K. Rowling has a clear message for "Harry Potter" stars Emma Watson and Daniel Radcliffe — if they someday decide to apologize for criticizing her stance on trans issues, they can "save" it for "traumatized detransitioners" and "vulnerable women" instead.
The famous author's remark came Wednesday on X in a reply to a user partially calling himself #FarRightHooligan, who speculated the two stars would eventually offer Rowling a "very public apology… safe in the knowledge that you will forgive them..."
"Not safe, I'm afraid," Rowling replied. "Celebs who cosied up to a movement intent on eroding women’s hard-won rights and who used their platforms to cheer on the transitioning of minors can save their apologies for traumatised detransitioners and vulnerable women reliant on single-sex spaces."
Rowling's relationships with Watson and Radcliffe have deteriorated in light of her viral defenses of biological women and as she became an outspoken critic of total acceptance of the transgender community on the X platform.
J.K Rowling attends the U.K. premiere of "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes Of Grindelwald" at Cineworld Leicester Square in London on Nov. 13, 2018. (Samir Hussein/WireImage)
Watson and Radcliffe, meanwhile, have stood firm in supporting the transgender community, with Watson insisting that "trans people are who they say they are" in an X post after Rowling went viral in 2020 for criticizing an article mentioning "people who menstruate" and calling for use of the word "women" instead.
"I want my trans followers to know that I and so many other people around the world see you, respect you and love you for who you are," Watson also wrote at the time.
Radcliffe, meanwhile, showed his support by writing an essay for The Trevor Project to show support for the transgender community and also apologized "for the pain" Rowling's comments may have caused, according to The Independent.
JK ROWLING TORCHES TRANS BROADCASTER WHO REPORTED HER FOR HATE CRIME: ‘MALE NARCISSIST’
Emma Watson and Daniel Radcliffe attend an event announcing Warner Bros.' purchase of Leavesden Studios at Claridges Hotel in London on Nov. 10, 2010. (Jon Furniss/WireImage)
Rowling's remarks on Wednesday also followed the release of a new report spearheaded by pediatrician Dr. Hilary Cass, which claimed that there is "remarkably weak evidence" to support gender-affirming care for minors and urged "extreme caution" before giving hormones to minors.
According to Sky News, England's National Health Service (NHS) said it would "now pause first appointments at adult clinics for teenagers under 18, and intends to carry out a major review of its adult gender services and use of hormones."
Rowling's comments on transgender issues most recently put her in the crosshairs of Scotland's controversial new hate crimes law that can jail people for up to seven years for "stirring up hatred" against groups identifiable by certain characteristics, including transgender identity, sexual orientation, age and disability, among others.
With a close eye, social media watched to see whether Scottish police would press charges against Rowling for her remarks, but police eventually declined.
At the same time, First Minister Humza Yousaf, who is behind the new law, branded her speech "offensive," but noted it fails to meet the "threshold of criminality."
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