#Harry Potter Needs To Move On Without J. K. Rowling

The Wizarding World has had many growing pains. Its creator has retroactively altered many perceptions of its characters, simply because she can. In 2007, J.K. Rowling tried transfiguring one of her leading characters into a more progressive version of himself, casually declaring that Albus Dumbledore was gay, and had been in love with the dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald as a teenager. 

The retcons didn’t end there. In 2014, Rowling suggested that Hermione should’ve married Harry and not Ron, and she wrote the Hermione/Ron relationship for the sake of “wish fulfilment.” A year later, she responded to fan art of Hermione as a person of color by implying that Hermione’s ethnicity had always been ambiguous (“Rowling loves black Hermione”). In 2016, she revealed that Remus Lupin was written as a metaphor for HIV and AIDS. And in 2019, Pottermore, a website used by Rowling to compile “Harry Potter” lore, detailed that witches and wizards would s*** on the floor and use magic to make the evidence disappear. Basically, J.K. Rowling retconned the hell out of her published work. None of these claims — I repeat, none of them — are supported in her already-published material.

So, what is the point?

It’s a gross understatement to say that Harry’s story has been a significant part of my life. I’ve grown up with the books, I’ve watched the movies so many times I’ve lost count, I’ve purchased merchandise, attended Harry Potter conventions, visited the Wizarding World theme park, watched “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” on Broadway — I’ve done everything I considered would be fulfilling in my life as a “Harry Potter” fan. But that was before J.K. Rowling outed herself as a TERF, the final blow that has literally earned her the title of She Who Must Not Be Named. But we must continue to say it, and to hold her accountable.

Watching Rowling’s statements tarnish the beloved franchise has been disappointing, to say the least. It hurts to write this. J.K. Rowling has made so many misguided attempts at painting “Harry Potter” as if it were at the top of the “progressive and diverse literature” list. Her constant, unwarranted tinkering with already-established canon has refuted the magic brought to life in “Harry Potter.” And her repeated attacks on trans people are probably why she didn’t receive an invitation (or should we say, an owl) when the film franchise’s cast and crew reunited for a special event, years later.