Being nominated for a seat in the House of Lords is considered a great honor in Britain. JK Rowling has turned down an offer twice – and would do it a third time.
The successful British author JK Rowling absolutely does not want to be in the British House of Lords. She has already turned down an offer twice and would do so a third time. “It is considered bad form to talk about it, but given the special circumstances, I want to make an exception,” wrote the Harry Potter author on the platform X (formerly Twitter). “I have already turned down a Lordship twice, once under Labor and once under the Tories. If I were offered it a third time, I would not accept it again. It’s not her fault, it’s my fault,” Rowling wrote.
The writer was reacting to statements made by conservative politician Kemi Badenoch in a debate about how to deal with gender reassignment, especially among teenagers. Badenoch, who is running for the Tories’ leadership, said in an interview that she had already successfully won pediatrician Hilary Cass a seat in the House of Lords and could do the same for Rowling if she was elected leader.
The background is the bitter transgender debate in Great Britain, in which Rowling took controversial positions. The writer describes trans women as men and was sharply criticized for this, including by “Harry Potter” actor Daniel Radcliffe.
Criticism of JK Rowling
Rowling had repeatedly expressed criticism of the liberalized treatment of trans people and warned of dangers that, in her view, could come from trans women in girls’ toilets. On other issues, Rowling was heard more as a progressive voice in the kingdom’s political discourse.
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A study report by pediatrician Cass, presented in April, concluded months ago that there was insufficient research evidence to support the practice of prescribing medications for teenagers, including so-called puberty blockers, which prevent the onset of puberty characteristics such as menstruation, breast growth and voice cracking. Rowling expressed her approval of the report.
Bitter debate about trans people
The social debate about gender identity in Great Britain is increasingly being conducted as a culture war, especially by conservative circles. Commentators saw this as an attempt by the Conservatives to win more votes ahead of the general election in July. The Conservatives still lost the elections by a landslide. The previous government had, among other things, approved all-girls and boys’ schools to reject trans students without risking legal consequences for discrimination. Teachers can refuse to refer to students using pronouns of their own choosing.
Trans people or transgender people are people who do not feel like they belong to the gender they were assigned at birth.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
