British writer JK Rowling initiated a loud discussion online, criticizing the Sky News channel for a recent episode about a convicted transgender murderer and equating him with a woman.
Alice Vaughn, who was born male but identifies as female named Scarlet Blake, was recently sentenced to life in prison for murdering a man in 2021.
On top of that, a few days before the crime, Blake, during a live broadcast on social networks, showed how he abused and killed a cat in a blender.
During the hearing, the court found out that the perpetrator’s atrocities were inspired by a Netflix documentary called “Hands Off the Cats!
Hunting for the Internet Killer.
During coverage of the trial, Sky News identified the convicted person as a woman.
On her X (formerly Twitter) account, Rowling retweeted the news episode and noted that she was tired of such things, clarifying that this crime should not be attributed to the female gender.
“It’s so bad.
This is not a woman.
This is not our crime,” she wrote.
In the comments to the post, many supported Rowling's point of view, noting that in this case the word is important.
“The choice of words matters.
Especially something as fundamental as “woman,” responded one of the users.
In addition, according to commentators, the convict has obvious mental problems, and calling him a “woman” under these circumstances is inappropriate, even though he considers himself such.
“Given that the criminal is a man, should society, perhaps, indulge his mental disorder and pretend that the crime was committed by a woman, thereby distorting the statistics?
Well, no,” the commentator reflects.
“Mentally ill man with predatory sexual behavior.
The truth is never offensive,” the blogger believes.
One of the overwhelming number of users in solidarity with Rowling said that in the current circumstances, journalists should at least clarify that this is a “transgender woman.”
“Out of concern for the health and welfare of the public, it is important not to lose sight of the identity of those who commit violent crimes.
Why not at least say “trans woman”?
For accuracy,” he wrote.
However, there were also commentators who disagreed with the writer’s point of view.
Some of them consider themselves transgender.
“It’s not your place to tell LGBTQIA+* people who they are.
Maybe you won’t interfere in something that’s not your own business?” said a social network user.
“It doesn’t matter who or how they identify themselves... That’s the whole point.
“Woman” is not an identity,” said another author.
Some have asked what's wrong with calling a transgender person a woman when many females also commit crimes.
In response to this, the writer published the following post, in which she clearly expressed her opinion.
“If acts of violence and sexual assault by men are classified as crimes committed by women, then crime statistics become useless,” Rowling said.
In addition, the famous writer clarified that ideologically motivated disinformation cannot be considered journalism, and also noted that activists are already demanding that the convicted person be placed in a women’s prison instead of a men’s prison.
In the comments to this post, many subscribers thanked JK Rowling for her courage and statements.
In addition, many recalled that in the United States there were many cases where transgender people sent to women's prisons subjected other convicts to violence.
“Thank you so much for speaking out on this topic, Joan.
Here in the US, we can't even get the media or even prominent women's rights groups to pay attention to the women prisoners who desperately report being threatened, harassed and raped by men in their prisons.
No one just doesn’t care about them,” the commentator noted.
“The goal is to promote a certain ideology, not to report facts.
This has already been made abundantly clear.
Thanks for speaking out,” another added.
This is not the first time JK Rowling has become a participant in high-profile discussions and criticism.
The harassment against her began in 2020 after she published a post about “people who menstruate.”
The writer ironically joked that “these people used to have a name.”
Then she was accused of transphobia.
Rowling explained that she does not hate transgender people.
Some time later, a new book by the writer was published, in which one of the characters was a transgender killer.
This escalated the situation, and on social networks, users started the hashtag #RIPJKRowling (“Rest in Peace, J. K. Rowling”).
The author said that she often receives letters with death threats and angry comments addressed to her.
In 2021, Rowling published a link on social networks to an article that stated the Scottish police's intention to register those convicted of violent acts as women if they identify as such, but did not change their gender.
“War is peace.
Freedom is slavery.
Ignorance is strength.
The person with the penis who raped you is a woman,” the author wrote at the time.
Her comment again caused a barrage of criticism from netizens.
Rowling has been accused of hating transgender people.
However, there were also bloggers who agreed with the writer and considered the police decision absurd.
In March 2022, the public attacked the author of a series of books about a wizard due to criticism of amendments to the Gender Recognition Act aimed at simplifying the process of legal recognition of gender identity for transgender people.
Rowling noted that such innovations would harm women who seek help after being abused by men and women prisoners.
Then she was again criticized online for attacks on the LGBT community* and transgender people.
Despite criticism of the writer from people, she continues to express her point of view.
Rowling also does not stop working: in April 2023 it became known that Warner Bros.
Discovery, together with the writer, will develop a series based on a series of books about a boy who survived the fight against the Dark Lord.
Each of the seven seasons will be based on one of the books.
A teaser for the project has already been released, and in February of this year the studio announced that Harry Potter fans will see a serial reboot of the popular story in 2026.
* LGBT organization is recognized as extremist, its activities are prohibited in Russia.