JK Rowling returns award over trans comments criticism
https://www.msn.com/en-xl/news/world/jk-rowling-returns-award-over-trans-comments-criticism/ar-BB18sSsE
"Harry Potter" creator JK Rowling said on Friday she would give back an award presented by the US Kennedy family after one of its members criticised her views on gender issues.
The Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights organisation gave Rowling its Ripple of Hope honour last year.
But the group's president, Kerry Kennedy, said this month the British writer's outspoken views on gender "diminished the identity" of trans people.
"Kerry Kennedy recently felt it necessary to publish a statement denouncing my views," Rowling said in a statement on her website.
"The statement incorrectly implied that I was transphobic, and that I am responsible for harm to trans people," she added. "I absolutely refute the accusation.
"In solidarity with those who have contacted me but who are struggling to make their voices heard, and because of the very serious conflict of views between myself and RFKHR, I feel I have no option but to return the Ripple of Hope Award."
Rowling sparked controversy in June for tweeting about the use of the phrase "people who menstruate" instead of women.
"I'm sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?", she wrote.
It led to a string of denunciations, including from the actor Daniel Radcliffe, who played Potter in the blockbuster film franchise, and other actors who starred in the series.
Rowling had earlier expressed support for a woman who had lost her job over what her employer deemed to be "transphobic" tweets.
Rowling said "accusations and threats from trans activists have been bubbling in my Twitter timeline" ever since but she had also been "overwhelmed" by private messages of support.
She said the "toxicity" around the discussion was damaging and frightening for people within and outside the trans community.
"I've been particularly struck by the stories of brave detransitioned young women who've risked the opprobrium of activists by speaking up about a movement they say has harmed them," she said on Friday.
"I've been forced to the unhappy conclusion that an ethical and medical scandal is brewing."
Rowling's comments are the latest controversy surrounding her work. In some parts of the world, they have been banned for being linked to witchcraft and the occult.
J. K. Rowling
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._K._Rowling
Joanne Rowling CH, OBE, HonFRSE, FRCPE, FRSL (/ˈroʊlɪŋ/ ROH-ling; born 31 July 1965), better known by her pen name J. K. Rowling, is a British author, screenwriter, producer, and philanthropist. She is best known for writing the Harry Potter fantasy series, which has won multiple awards and sold more than 500 million copies,becoming the best-selling book series in history. The books are the basis of a popular film series, over which Rowling had overall approval on the scripts and was a producer on the final films. She also writes crime fiction under the pen name Robert Galbraith.
J.K. Rowling
https://www.famousbirthdays.com/people/j-k-rowling.html
About
English author who wrote the bestselling Harry Potter fantasy books. Her first novel in the series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, was followed by six equally popular installments, all of which were made into feature films.
Before Fame
She began writing as a child, creating stories about a rabbit family for her younger sister's enjoyment. In her early adulthood, Rowling studied Classics and French at the University of Exeter and subsequently accepted a job offer with Amnesty International.
Trivia
She went from depending on welfare programs to becoming a millionaire within five years, and was ranked the 12th richest woman in the UK in 2008.
Family Life
She was born in Gloucestershire, England to Anne Volant Rowling and engineer Peter James Rowling. J.K. Rowling was married twice: first, to Portuguese broadcast journalist, Jorge Arantes, and, later, to anesthesiologist Neil Michael Murray. Her two marriages resulted in three children: Jessica Isabel Rowling Arantes, David Gordon Rowling Murray, and Mackenzie Jean Rowling Murray.
Associated With
Daniel Radcliffe played the titular character in the film adaptation of her Harry Potter books.
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Kerry Kennedy
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerry_Kennedy
Mary Kerry Kennedy (born September 8, 1959) is an American human rights activist and writer. She is the seventh child and third daughter of Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Skakel. During her 15-year marriage to current New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, she was known as Kerry Kennedy Cuomo from 1990 to 2005. She is the president of Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, a non-profit human rights advocacy organization. Kennedy is the niece of President John F. Kennedy and Senator Ted Kennedy.
On June 9, 1990, she married Andrew Cuomo at age 30 in the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington, DC. They have three daughters: twins, Cara Ethel Kennedy-Cuomo and Mariah Matilda Kennedy-Cuomo (born 1995), and Michaela Andrea Kennedy-Cuomo (born 1997). Kennedy and Cuomo divorced in 2005.
https://www.nickiswift.com/205415/the-real-reason-andrew-cuomo-and-kerry-kennedy-divorced/
Kerry Kennedy
https://marriedbiography.com/kerry-kennedy-biography/