JK Rowling has suggested that she would “happily” spend two years in prison for misgendering a transgender person.
The Harry Potter author, 58, is known for her outspoken and repeated criticisms of trans rights.
She made the comment in response to a report in the Mail on Sunday suggesting that hypothetical law changes under a Labour governnment could result in gender-related “aggravated offences” carrying sentences of up to two years. The report claimed that misgendering – to address or refer to someone by the wrong gender – could be classified as an “aggravated offence” under future legislation.
Sharing the report on X/Twitter, Rowling commented: “I’ll happily do two years if the alternative is compelled speech and forced denial of the reality and importance of sex.”
While Rowling claimed she would “happily” spend time in prison for the hypothetical crime, she also suggested she would fight the charge in court, writing: “Bring on the court case, I say. It’ll be more fun than I’ve ever had on a red carpet.”
The author then riffed on the idea of imprisonment in an interaction with a follower, joking about her preferred prison work assignments.
“Hoping for the library, obviously, but I think I could do ok in the kitchens,” she wrote. “Laundry might be a problem. I have a tendency to shrink stuff/turn it pink accidentally. Guessing that won’t be a major issue if it’s mostly scrubs and sheets, though.”
“I‘m ok at ironing. It’s the not checking there’s a random red sock in amongst the sheets that’s the issue,” she quipped in a follow-up tweet.
Despite the speculation published in the report shared by Rowling, the Labour party has faced criticism from the LGBT+ community over its stance on trans rights under leader Sir Keir Starmer.
In July, the opposition party U-turned on its plans to introduce self-identification for trans people, which would allow people to legally identify as their chosen gender without a medical diagnosis.
Rowling pictured in 2018— (AFP via Getty Images)
Speaking on Nicky Campbell’s BBC Radio 5 Live show in July, Starmer also stated that “a woman is an adult female, so let’s clear that one up”.
Deputy Labour leader Angela Raynor subsequently claimed that the party is committed to creating more supportive proccesses for trans people.
Asked about Labour’s fluctuating stance on trans rights, Rayner told Radio 4’s Today: “I still stand by they are not in conflict with women’s rights. We have talked about the Gender Recognition Act, we have talked about reform, we have talked about a process.
“Of course there has to be a process for people that is supportive and that is when you get into the weeds of how you ensure that we do have trans rights that are compatible and compassionate and humane.
“At the moment the process isn’t, and we have acknowledged that, that there are problems with the process, and therefore there has to be a process that is a supportive process that recognises that people can transition and that we do that in a way that is supportive of those people.”
