Rowling book elicits trans community ire
J.K. Rowling has again come under fire from transgender rights activists, this time for her new crime novel, which features a cross-dressing serial killer.
Published Tuesday, “Troubled Blood” by Robert Galbraith — Rowling’s crime writer pseudonym — is the fifth installment in the Cormoran Strike series.
A review of the novel in Britain’s Daily Telegraph on Sunday described the “meat of the book” as an investigation into the cold case of a missing doctor who is believed to have fallen victim to a murderous cross-dresser.
“One wonders what critics of Rowling’s stance on trans issues will make of a book whose moral seems to be: never trust a man in a dress,” reviewer Jake Kerridge wrote.
Mermaids, a U.K.-based charity that supports transgender children and their families, said it was “concerned” by reports that the book features a character presenting as another gender in order to carry out attacks.
“This is a long-standing and somewhat tired trope, responsible for the demonization of a small group of people, simply hoping to live their lives with dignity,” a spokesperson said in a statement to CNN.
The spokesperson cited an example from Rowling’s second book in the Strike series, “The Silkworm,” which featured a transgender character as a suspect.
Rowling’s management told CNN that it would not be commenting on the latest controversy.
Rowling’s comments and views on gender have made headlines several times this year.
Last month, the author said she would be handing back a prestigious human rights award after Kerry Kennedy, president of the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights organization, said Rowling’s viewpoint “diminishes the identity” of transgender people. In June, Rowling sparked controversy after mocking a headline about “people who menstruate.”
“‘People who menstruate.’ I’m sure there used to be a word for those people,” she tweeted. “Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?”
Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Eddie Redmayne of the “Harry Potter” movie series have publicly opposed her views.