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JK Rowling refuses to back down in essay calling trans activism 'elitist to its core'

Author J.K. Rowling reaffirmed her stance on sex and gender issues Wednesday, writing in a new essay that she would not back down from her advocacy despite facing what she described as a relentless "avalanche of death, rape and torture threats."

The British author, best known for writing the "Harry Potter" series, published the piece six years after her June 2020 essay sparked widespread debate over transgender rights and women's single-sex spaces.

Rowling wrote that her views "haven’t changed" since 2020, but that "the landscape certainly has, and my own involvement in the issue has become practical as well as theoretical, so I thought it was time for an update."

JK ROWLING CONFRONTS THE BBC FOR PUSHING 'PROPAGANDA' OVER ITS TRANSGENDER SPORTS HEADLINE

Her original essay drew criticism from LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations and transgender rights activists, along with calls to boycott her work.

In the new essay, Rowling defended her opposition to policies allowing transgender women into certain female-only spaces, arguing that they undermine protections for women. She also characterized modern transgender activism as "elitist to its core."

"It’s true, of course, that trans activism doesn’t impact all women negatively. In fact, the more privileged you are, the less it tends to affect you, and the more it might benefit you. Aside from an avalanche of death, rape and torture threats, it hasn’t noticeably affected my life," Rowling wrote.

Rowling has rejected accusations that her views are "anti-trans," maintaining that her advocacy centers on women's safety and privacy.

"Should trans people be discriminated against when it comes to housing or employment? Of course not," Rowling wrote. "Should trans people be stripped of their human rights, or denied personal safety? Again: of course not."

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Earlier this month, transgender rights activists protested a gala performance of "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child" in London. A demonstrator wore a T-shirt reading, "Rowling money kills," and security personnel eventually removed the protesters from the red carpet.

In response to Rowling’s earlier 2020 comments on sex and gender, LGBTQ+ advocacy group GLAAD criticized the author, writing on social media that "JK Rowling continues to align herself with an ideology which willfully distorts facts about gender identity and people who are trans. In 2020, there is no excuse for targeting trans people."

Actor Daniel Radcliffe, who starred as Harry Potter in the film adaptations, also publicly criticized Rowling's comments in 2020, issuing a statement through The Trevor Project.

"Transgender women are women," Radcliffe wrote. "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."

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May Mailman, director of the Independent Women's Law Center, told Fox News Digital that she agrees with Rowling's criticism of wealthy supporters of transgender activism, arguing that working-class women are more likely to be affected by policies governing single-sex spaces.

"For people in the United States who have real problems to deal with, they need to figure out how they're [going to] put food on the table," Mailman said. "They're not worried about pronouns. They're worried about improving their families and improving themselves. And so, there is this elitism that's like when you run out of problems, you start inventing them."

Rowling has also supported the campaign group For Women Scotland, which challenged the interpretation of "woman" under the U.K.'s Equality Act 2010. On April 16, 2025, the U.K. Supreme Court ruled that the terms "woman" and "sex" refer to biological sex for the purposes of the law. The court also affirmed that transgender people remain protected against discrimination under the law's gender reassignment provisions.

Mailman welcomed the British court decision but warned that she believes free speech in the country is increasingly under threat.

"I think the status of free speech in Great Britain is much more under attack than it is in the U.S.," Mailman said, adding, "I think we should treat it as a warning sign, because I think people look to Britain as where the United States could and often does head."

JK ROWLING CALLS OUT THE 'GROTESQUE' BEHAVIOR TOWARDS SOPHIE CUNNINGHAM FANS IN SCATHING POST

Jeremiah Igunnubole, U.K. legal counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom International, a Christian legal advocacy group, also welcomed Rowling’s essay in a statement to Fox News Digital.

"We welcome JK Rowling doubling down on her determination to challenge gender ideology and defend the importance of biological reality. Truth matters, and we should not be afraid to uphold it simply because doing so is controversial," Igunnubole said.

He added that Alliance Defending Freedom International would "continue to defend these principles and the protections that flow from them robustly, including through litigation in the UK where necessary."

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A representative for Rowling declined to provide additional comment to Fox News Digital.

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Judge orders Trump to give deposition for his $10 billion defamation lawsuit against BBC

A judge on Thursday ordered President Donald Trump to sit for a deposition as part of his $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).

U.S. Magistrate Judge Enjoliqué Lett said Trump must give his deposition by Dec. 11 unless the discovery deadline is extended beyond Dec. 18.

This followed complaints by the BBC's legal counsel about the delay in the deposition after Trump had canceled a previously scheduled deposition for Oct. 16. 

TRUMP THREATENED BY JUDGE WITH SANCTIONS IF HE DOESN’T SIT FOR DEPOSITION IN $10 BILLION BBC DEFAMATION SUIT

"The formerly respected and now disgraced BBC defamed President Trump by intentionally, maliciously and deceptively doctoring his speech in a brazen attempt to interfere in the 2024 presidential election," a spokesperson for Trump's legal team told Fox News Digital. 

"The BBC has a long pattern of deceiving its audience in coverage of President Trump, all in service of its own leftist political agenda. President Trump’s powerhouse lawsuit is holding the BBC accountable for its defamation and reckless election interference just as he has held other fake news mainstream media responsible for their wrongdoing."

A spokesperson for the BBC declined to comment.

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The BBC previously filed a motion to compel Trump’s deposition. The BBC had said it understood that Trump’s deposition requires "additional planning," and he "accepted the obligations of civil litigation" when he chose to file the lawsuit.

Trump filed a $10 billion lawsuit against the BBC late last year for its 2024 "Panorama" documentary that distorted his remarks to supporters on Jan. 6, 2021. Critics claim the documentary was misleading because it omitted Trump's call for supporters to protest peacefully, splicing together separate portions of a lengthy address to give a wrong impression.

"We're going to walk down to the Capitol. And I'll be there with you. And we fight — we fight like hell," the documentary showed Trump saying.

In reality, Trump said, "We're going to walk down to the Capitol. And we're going to cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women, and we're probably not going to be cheering so much for some of them, because you'll never take back our country with weakness. You have to show strength, and you have to be strong."

TRUMP WINS PERMISSION TO FILE AMENDED COMPLAINT IN $10B DEFAMATION LAWSUIT AGAINST BBC

It wasn't until 54 minutes later that Trump called on his supporters to "fight like hell" for election integrity.

The BBC previously issued an apology for the erroneous edit and said it had pulled the program from its platforms. Despite the apology, the broadcaster has insisted the mistake is not enough for a defamation claim.

The controversy led to the resignations of BBC News CEO Deborah Turness and BBC Director-General Tim Davie.

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Fox News Digital's Brian Flood contributed to this report.

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English soccer team apologizes for hosting an out of hand 'Wet & Wild' show at their clubhouse

Who would have thought a "Wet & Wild" show put on by a touring group by the name of UK Pleasure Boys would get out of hand? Not the English soccer team who allowed the 18-plus show to take place at their clubhouse last weekend.

Banbury United FC was as surprised as anyone when footage of the event hosted at The Spencer Clubhouse started popping up on social media. Now they're reviewing how this could have ever taken place.

The clips of the event that surfaced show male dancers in cowboy hats dancing and stripping on stage, reports the Daily Mail. The dancers then go into the audience where they appear to "perform sex acts on members of a raucous crowd."

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It sounds wet and wild to me, but I have no idea what they thought they were signing up for. The apology they ended up issuing after the event indicates that they were expecting a much tamer wet and wild.

"I've worked in hospitality for a long time. Whenever these events happen the women just go nuts - particularly the mums," a source told the Daily Mail. "I guess if it is your one night out in God knows how long, you are going to need to let off some steam."

That's one way to look at it. Banbury United FC had a different way of looking at it. One that required an apology to be issued.

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"We are aware of video clips circulating online from the UK Pleasure Boys' 'Wet & Wild' show held at The Spencer Clubhouse on Saturday, October 17. This was a ticketed, 18+ event," they said in a statement.

"The images suggest that part of the performance towards the end went beyond what we find acceptable at our venue. We apologise to anyone in attendance who was offended. The venue was booked for that evening by an external promoter as part of a UK-wide tour," the statement continued.

"We are reviewing what happened and will revise our hire and conduct terms for performance events as a result."

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This should be a simple fix. If the UK Pleasure Boys are coming to town for a "Wet & Wild" show, believe that they're going to deliver said show.

If a wet and wild show by a group calling themselves pleasure boys is out of your comfort zone, don't allow them to book it. Problem solved and, at the end of the day, that's all I'm trying to do is help solve problems.

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