J.K. Rowling calls herself ‘left-leaning liberal who’s ‘anti-authoritarian,’ netizens say ‘you sound like RFK Jr’

J.K.Rowling has been bombarded with comments online for calling herself a “left-leaning liberal.”

J.K.Rowling has been bombarded with comments online for calling herself a “left-leaning liberal.” The Harry Potter author made the remark in response to a post which called her “far right.” J.K. Rowling calls herself ‘left-leaning liberal who’s fiercely anti-authoritarian, netizens say ‘you sound like RFK Jr’ (Photo by Tolga Akmen / AFP)(AFP)

Rowling shared a screenshot of the post on X, which says, “idc how many times she pretends she isn’t. She gets all of her information from neonazi publications and far right hate groups. She believes a far right conspiracy theory that is basically just ‘the protocols of the elders of zion’ but for trans people.”

In the caption, Rowling wrote, “You can keep telling yourself this, but you’re simply wrong. I’m a left-leaning liberal who’s fiercely anti-authoritarian, and if you couldn’t deduce that from my work you haven’t understood a word of it.”

“I’m not an ideologue. I mistrust ideologies. I’ve never met an ideologue who wasn’t prepared to deny a bit of inconvenient truth to keep their world view intact and I include ideologies with which I find myself in broad sympathy. On the other hand, I am an idealist. I believe in human beings. We are undeniably capable of terrible acts, but the evidence is that we are astoundingly collaborative and mutually supportive, especially when times are hard,” Rowling continued.

Rowling stressed that her values have not changed, but the “political landscape” has. “What was once my natural home (a pragmatic centre-left party focused on dealing with economic disparity, championing social liberalism and equal rights) is now dominated by an illiberal, identity-based strain of politics I consider elitist, harmful and out of touch with the day-to-day concerns of regular people, particularly women (and I’ve still lived more than half of my life as a non-wealthy woman, and some of that time was spent in poverty),” she wrote.

She added, “There are women with whom I make common cause in the TERF wars I disagree with on other things. Within obvious limits (sucking up to literal Nazis) I don’t particularly care about their personal politics. The reality is that there’s currently an assault on women’s rights unparalleled in my lifetime, and it’s coming from both left and right. If ever there was a time for women across the political spectrum to come together, it is now.”

Rowling’s post was reposted by Elon Musk.

‘You sound like RFK Jr’

Comments overwhelmed Rowling’s X post. “You sound like RFK Jr.,” one user wrote. Another user wrote, not very bitterly, “The left hates you. Why do you still identify with that side? It’s interesting to me when folks do this, but it’s especially interesting when the greatest writer of the last 50 years does. Which aspects draw you in?” Rowling replied, “By the old left/right metrics (which I accept have been massively disrupted) I am left wing. Not hard left, but definitely left of centre. However, I believe the left in the West has taken a dangerous and self-defeating turn, embracing a form of identity politics that is fundamentally destructive to values the left once respected, especially freedom of speech and fundamental liberalism. I’m not a tribal person, so I haven’t embraced those positions because ‘my team’ has decreed that’s what we’re doing now. Yes, I’ve received a lot of blowback from the left for not meekly accepting the new ethos. But principles aren’t dictated by other people’s approval. I was never in this to feel part of a team (one of the undersung benefits of being a true introvert). So I won’t be running to embrace a new team to feel good about myself, because that would be just as insincere as pretending to believe in the identity stuff to keep myself in with the left.”

“i think the metric has shifted , you may consider yourself left wing but the left wing now no longer considers you as such,” one user said. Another said, “No one’s reading all that. Keep it simple JK.”