King Princess Calls Out J.K. Rowling In Response To Her Tweets About Trans Women

J.K. Rowling, as she tends to do every now and then, generated some attention with comments made on social media.

Sharing an article titled “Opinion: Creating a more equal post-COVID-19 world for people who menstruate” on Twitter, Rowling wrote, ‘People who menstruate.’ I’m sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?” This did not sit well with a lot of people, including King Princess (real name Mikaela Straus).

After that post, Straus took to Instagram to pen a lengthy response to the Harry Potter author, calling out Rowling for her views on trans women:

“I am not the person you will find calling out people on the internet, but that being said this one is personal. JK Rowling …why I find your comments so disconcerting … damn there are so many reasons. First of all, I don’t think especially now, that you realize the accidental queer haven you created in your books for so many kids within the lgbt spectrum. Right now you are telling countless trans/femme kids that they basically didn’t deserve to be a part of that Utopia. That you pretty much negate the presence of their identities in this world. And the worst part of all is that you feel attacked? You feel like your womanhood is attacked by a movement towards trans equality? What does this AT ALL have to do with you and your womanhood and why do you feel so angry? Are you scared that the inclusion of trans femme people somehow erases you? Do you see the swarths of cisgender white woman agreeing with you on twitter and basically unifying over the erasure or trans bodies? Do you see that by talking you are refusing to listen to a group of people are being murdered, beaten, and left unprotected by the law everyday. Because I know, and so many others know that you, as a white cis gender woman, have had a lot more years of systematic privilege and power than trans folks. Separating cis women from trans women is exactly what allows this systematic privilege/hierarchy to continue. So please ask yourself why you are talking, why you are disrupting this movement with your confusing words, and why, as a writer, you feel the need to attack a group of people who most likely sustained your business for many years. Bye.”

On the same day as her aforementioned tweet, Rowling also wrote, “If sex isn’t real, there’s no same-sex attraction. 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.” Straus responded to that, “Why are you doing this?” She also added, “Please stick to wizards and such. It truly suits you better.”

Find Straus’ original Instagram post below.