Harry Melling said the topic is “very simple” to him: “transgender women are women and transgender men are men”
Harry Melling is sharing how he feels about J.K. Rowling’s divisive views on gender.
“I can only speak for myself, and what I feel, to me, is very simple, which is that transgender women are women and transgender men are men. Every single person has the right to choose who they are and to identify themselves as what’s true to themselves,” he said.
“I don’t want to join the debate of pointing fingers and saying, ‘That’s right, that’s wrong,’ because I don’t think I’m the correct spokesperson for that,” added Melling. “But I do believe that everybody has the right to choose.”
Rowling, 57, came under fire in June 2020 when she appeared to support anti-transgender sentiments in a series of tweets. Though she denied that her views on feminism are transphobic, she doubled down on her controversial standpoints in a lengthy essay shared on her website days later.
Potter actors Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint each spoke out against Rowling’s much-criticized remarks regarding the transgender community. Radcliffe, 33, stated definitively in a previous essay for The Trevor Project that “transgender women are women.”
“Any statement to the contrary erases the identity and dignity of transgender people and goes against all advice given by professional health care associations who have far more expertise on this subject matter than either Jo or I,” Radcliffe wrote at the time.
J.K. Rowling Says Her New Book About Celeb Deemed Transphobic Was Not Based on What ‘Happened to Me’
“According to The Trevor Project, 78 percent of transgender and nonbinary youth reported being the subject of discrimination due to their gender identity,” he added. “It’s clear that we need to do more to support transgender and nonbinary people, not invalidate their identities, and not cause further harm.”
Responding to backlash back in June 2020, Rowling wrote that she refuses to “bow down to a movement that I believe is doing demonstrable harm in seeking to erode ‘woman’ as a political and biological class and offering cover to predators like few before it.”
Other Potter actors have weighed in too, including Bellatrix Lestrange actress Helena Bonham Carter, who told The Sunday Times Magazine in November that she feels Rowling “has been hounded” and the responses directed toward her have “been taken to the extreme.” The actress, 56, added, “You don’t all have to agree on everything — that would be insane and boring. She’s not meaning it aggressively, she’s just saying something out of her own experience.”
Ralph Fiennes Calls ‘Verbal Abuse’ Directed at J.K. Rowling ‘Disgusting’ and ‘Appalling’
Jason Isaacs, who played Lucius Malfoy, told The Telegraph last January: “There’s a bunch of stuff about Jo. You know, I play complicated people, I’m interested in complicated people. I don’t want to get drawn into the trans issues, talking about them, because it’s such an extraordinary minefield. She has her opinions, I have mine. They differ in many different areas.”
“But one of the things that people should know about her too — not as a counter-argument — is that she has poured an enormous amount of her fortune into making the world a much better place, for hundreds of thousands of vulnerable children, through her charity Lumos,” added Isaacs, 59. “And that is unequivocally good. Many of us Harry Potter actors have worked for it, and seen on the ground the work that they do.”
“So,” he added, “for all that she has said some very controversial things, I was not going to be jumping to stab her in the front — or back — without a conversation with her, which I’ve not managed to have yet.”
News
Do you remember this 2012 ad featuring Trump, Taylor Swift, Martha Stewart and Diddy?
Donald Trump may say he hates her now, but back in 2012, the pair were featured in a Macy’s commercial together – along with Martha Stewart and Sean “Diddy” Combs.
Taylor Swift heads to Florida for ‘The Eras Tour’ in 17 days. Everything you need to know
“Florida!!!” Are you ready to welcome Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour” shows the Sunshine State way? The second U.S. leg of Swift’s super-successful “Eras Tour” is kicking off in Florida this month. “Miss Americana” will play three shows here in a little…
Dan Reynolds Attacks Eminem: Rap Legend Eminem Called Enemy of the LGBTQ+ Community Because of ‘Hateful’ Lyrics
Imagine Dragons lead singer Dan Reynolds has bluntly criticized Eminem for his “hateful” anti-gay lyrics, not hesitating to call the rap icon an enemy of the LGBTQ+ community. The American rapper surprise-released his 10th studio album, Kamikaze, to critical acclaim…
What’s Going On With Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce After She Skipped Games? ‘Nothing Has Changed’ (Exclusive)
Taylor Swift fans believe the singer has dropped hints about which track will be the next single from her latest album, after the release of ‘The Taylor’s Version’ of ‘The Tortured Poets Department’ Taylor Swift’s followers are buzzing with speculation…
Travis Kelce speaks out on NFL troubles as girlfriend Taylor Swift takes flack for poor performance
Taylor Swift fans believe the singer has dropped hints about which track will be the next single from her latest album, after the release of ‘The Taylor’s Version’ of ‘The Tortured Poets Department’ Taylor Swift’s followers are buzzing with speculation…
JK Rowling and Kirstie Allsopp Lock Horns Over Trans Issues: A Heated Debate on ‘Understanding’ Sparks Outrage
TV presenter Kirstie Allsopp has called for “listening and understanding” as she came head-to-head with JK Rowling during an online exchange about trans issues and the tone of the discourse around them. Location, Location, Location and Channel 4 presenter Allsopp has…
End of content
No more pages to load