J.K. Rowling’s example for Christians in Babylon

It was one headline that compelled J.K. Rowling to finally speak out. 

She’d begun to notice a subtle shift in language online related to gender identity months before she broke ranks with her liberal counterparts to call out the lies of transgenderism. 

But this time, they just went too far. 

“Creating a more equal post-COVID-19 world for people who menstruate,” read the May 2020 article that launched Rowling into a new kind of infamy, one created by cancel culture. 

The phrase “people who menstruate” prompted her to tweet, “‘People who menstruate.’ I’m sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?” Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?” 

Rowling entered the transgender conversation at one of the most high-emotion times in modern history. Her response went viral, and nothing has been the same since. 

She was immediately branded a “transphobe” and labeled “problematic” for asserting that “trans” women are not women. 

A new podcast series, The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling,  produced by the Free Press, masterfully covers the battleground scene into which the Harry Potter author reluctantly entered. 

The podcast is hosted by Megan Phelps-Roper, who 10 years ago transitioned out of her life in the infamous Westboro Baptist Church. Phelps-Roper integrates her own transformation story into the narrative of Rowling’s saga, seeking answers with genuine curiosity and respect for Rowling and the transgender-identified individuals featured in various episodes. 

Her reporting traces the origins of the rapidly growing gender identity movement back to smaller, internet subcultures found primarily on the social networking site Tumblr, acknowledging how the rise of social media amplified previously unheard voices.

At some point, those voices began making demands that they not be misgendered, that you use “preferred pronouns,” that they be legally protected on the basis of their chosen gender, that children be able to surgically transition. 

For Rowling, who escaped a physically abusive marriage and was sexually assaulted as a young woman, the fact that biological men could now simply claim the mantle of womanhood was insulting. Despite the venomous pushback to her first tweet, she didn’t back down, soon tweeting, “If sex isn’t real, the lived reality of women globally is erased. I know and love trans people, but erasing the concept of sex removes the ability of many to meaningfully discuss their lives. It isn’t hate to speak the truth.” 

If things got ugly before, now they were downright hideous. 

The podcast documents those who ritually burned Rowling’s books, removed their Harry Potter tattoos, and lashed out with accusations of hate, bigotry, and hypocrisy. Rowling became the leading face of the increasingly vitriolic term “TERF,” which means “trans-exclusionary radical feminist.” 

She remained committed to the fact that biological sex was immutable and women deserved to be safe in restrooms, domestic violence shelters, and prisons. 

Despite Rowling’s assurance that she would march arm-in-arm with trans people if they were treated badly, she was widely maligned as a threat who was “literally getting trans people killed.”

Rowling was shamed by celebrities, trashed by LGBTQ organizations, and discarded by Harry Potter actor Daniel Radcliffe himself, who assured the public that “trans women are women.”.” 

In interviews from LeakyCon, an annual fandom conference, attendees spoke enthusiastically about their love for the book series but demurred when asked about Rowling. She’s such a toxic figure that organizers of the conference announced that if people showed support for Rowling, they should be reported.  

At one point, Phelps-Roper asks Rowling what she makes of those who lament that her actions are “destroying her legacy.” Rowling is quick to assure listeners that she cares little about her legacy and far more about doing what’s right. 

Like the extremists in the Westboro Baptist Church that Phelps-Roper hails from, extremists in the transgender movement aim to silence those they disagree with. They are uninterested in civil debate, free speech, or a healthy exchange of ideas on the issue. 

Ironically, they encapsulate the very authoritarianism Rowling set out to counter in the books so many of them loved. And like so many authoritarian regimes, they see no higher power than self, having turned themselves into unquestionable gods. 

Rowling isn’t a Christian, but her willingness to stand for what is right against such massive revolt can be a lesson to those of us who are. Christians may oppose transgender extremism for different reasons, but we also have Scripture to stand on. 

“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own,” reads John 15:18–19. 

The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling beautifully showcases a woman willing to be hated for her beliefs because they are right. Christians, take note.