Arts & Entertainment
Transphobic interaction between J.K. Rowling and Matt Walsh enrages Twitter users
J.K. Rowling continues getting herself involved in gender-related debates.

J.K. Rowling continues getting involved in gender-related debates. Her recent interactions with right-wing commentator Matt Walsh were condemned by Twitter users.
Last week, American singer Macy Gray appeared on British TV show “Piers Morgan Uncensored'” and made controversial comments about transgender women. She first defined women as “a human being with boobs” and “a vagina,” and further stated, “and I will say this, and everybody’s gonna hate me, but as a woman, just because you go change your parts doesn’t make you a woman. Sorry.”
Gray afterwards apologized for her comments on NBC’s Today Show. “I said some things that didn’t go over well, but my intention was never to hurt anybody. I feel bad that I did hurt some people,” she said.
Conservative commentator Matt Walsh described Gray’s latest statement as “gutless cowardice.”
Walsh posted a tweet on July 9 and wrote, “Sorry but women who publicly renounce the definition of “woman” for fear of mean comments from trans activists deserve all the scorn they get. That kind of gutless cowardice is exactly what got us into this position in the first place.”
Sorry but women who publicly renounce the definition of “woman” for fear of mean comments from trans activists deserve all the scorn they get. That kind of gutless cowardice is exactly what got us into this position in the first place. https://t.co/dM9mk1ej5d
— Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) July 9, 2022
The next day, Rowling chimed in on the discussion and criticized Walsh’s post against Gray, “Endless death and rape threats, threats of loss of livelihood, employers targeted, physical harassment, family address posted online with picture of bomb-making manual aren’t ‘mean comments’. If you don’t yet understand what happens to women who stand up on this issue, back off.”
Endless death and rape threats, threats of loss of livelihood, employers targeted, physical harassment, family address posted online with picture of bomb-making manual aren’t ‘mean comments’. If you don’t yet understand what happens to women who stand up on this issue, back off. https://t.co/qWTcGZML97
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) July 10, 2022
Walsh praised Rowling’s “courage” in speaking out, and said “many people have simply caved to the demands of trans activists and completely surrendered truth and reality to them. The cowards are also villains in this story. They need to be held accountable.”
Rowling tweeted back and praised Walsh’s latest film What is a Woman?, which was largely condemned due to its transphobic content.
“And your film did a good job exposing the incoherence of gender identity theory and some of the harms it’s done. Many institutions I used to admire have uncritically embraced this dogma, but I reserve my ire for them rather than shouting ‘coward’ at individual women,” Rowling wrote.
And your film did a good job exposing the incoherence of gender identity theory and some of the harms it’s done. Many institutions I used to admire have uncritically embraced this dogma, but I reserve my ire for them rather than shouting ‘coward’ at individual women.
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) July 10, 2022
These interactions between Rowling and Walsh got blasted online. Numerous Twitter users criticized Rowling for her positive feedback toward Walsh’s anti-trans work.
My new favorite genre is TERF’s like JK Rowling praising christofascists for their transphobia.
People need to wake up at how transphobia is being used as a gateway to radicalize wealthy white women into reactionary fascist views. pic.twitter.com/OgXWsskp17
— Alejandra Caraballo (@Esqueer_) July 10, 2022
JK Rowling knows she can’t be harsh on Matt Walsh because Gender Critical and TERFs are so cozied up to right wing anti-feminism that they are inseparable.
When orgs like WoLF (terf group) partner with the Heritage Foundation (anti abortion group), this should surprise no one. pic.twitter.com/Ttdt4lai0Y
— Erin Reed (@ErinInTheMorn) July 11, 2022
Just JK Rowling, praising self-described “theocratic fascist” Matt Walsh. Terfs and fascists, united. I’ll keep saying it: the anti-trans radicalisation pipeline to right wing extremism and open fascism is a short one. pic.twitter.com/mOMJKlJfpB
— Annika Brockschmidt (@ardenthistorian) July 10, 2022
J.K. Rowling has long been known for her “trans-exclusionary radical feminist,” or TERF, perspectives.

For the person on your gift list who’d love a boy-meets-boy story, wrap up “Bellies: A Novel” by Nicola Dinan (Hanover Square Press), the tale of a playwright and the man who loves him wholly, until a transition threatens to change everything.
If there’s a romantic on your list, then you’re in luck: finding a gift is easy when you wrap up “10 Things That never Happened” by Alexis Hall (Sourcebooks), the story of Sam, whose job is OK, and his boss, Jonathan, who should have never hired Sam. Too late now, except for the romance. Wrap it up with “Time Out” by Sean Hayes and Todd Milliner with Carlyn Greenwald (Simon & Schuster), the story of a basketball player who’s newly out of the closet, and a politically minded boy who could easily get his vote.
For the person on your list who likes to read quick, short articles, wrap up “Inverse Cowgirl: A Memoir” by Alicia Roth Weigel (HarperOne). It’s a collection of essays on life as an intersex person, and the necessity for advocating for others who are, too.

When it gets dark early, it’s cold outside and you want to spice up your life, what’s more intriguing than a book? Here are some holiday gift ideas for book lovers of all ages.
Who isn’t fascinated by the dark, twisty, sometimes, mordantly witty, movies of Alfred Hitchcock, or by Grace Kelly, Tippi Hedren, Ingrid Bergman and the other actresses in his films? “Hitchcock’s Blondes: The Unforgettable Women Behind the Legendary Director’s Dark Obsession” by Laurence Leamer, author of “Capote’s Women,” is an engrossing story not only of Hitchcock, but of the iconic “blondes” he cast in some of his most beloved movies from “39 Steps” to “Rear Window” to “Vertigo” to “Psycho.” $29. G.P. Putnam’s Sons.
Reading about Hitchcock, no matter how intriguing the book, is never as good as watching his films. “Alfred Hitchcock: The Essentials Collection” (Blu-ray $39.96. DVD: $32.40) features “Rear Window,” “North by Northwest,” “Psycho” and “The Birds.”
“Corona/Crown,” by D.C.-based queer poet Kim Roberts in collaboration with photographer Robert Revere, is a fab present for lovers of photography, museums, and poetry. Revere and Roberts were deeply affected by the closure of museums during the COVID pandemic. In this lovely chapbook, they create a new “museum” of their own. “This is what I learned when the pandemic struck,” Roberts writes, “when I couldn’t stop thinking about the artwork in all the museums, bereft of human eyes.” $21.25 WordTech Editions
Few things are as scary and/or captivating as a good ghost story. “The Night Side of the River,” by acclaimed lesbian writer Jeanette Winterson, author of “Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?” and “Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit,” is a provocative and engrossing collection of ghost stories. These deliciously chilling stories feature spirits, avatars, a haunted estate, AI and, pun intended, lively meetings between the living and the dead. $27. Grove.
“Blackouts,” a novel by queer writer Justin Torres that received this year’s National Book Award for fiction, is a breathtaking book about storytelling, queer history, love, art, and erasure. A perfect gift for aficionados of characters that become etched into your DNA. $30. Farrar, Straus & Giroux.
“The Woman in Me,” the memoir by Britney Spears will be devoured by queers of all ages – from tweens to elders. Much of Spears’s story is known – from her youth in Louisiana to her rapid rise to fame to her conservatorship (when her father controlled her life). Yet the devil, as the saying goes, is in the details. In this riveting memoir, Spears reveals the horrifying and exhilarating aspects of her life: from how her father controlled what she ate and when she took a bath to the restrictions put on her ability to see her sons to her love of singing, dancing, and creating music. Spears writes of the queer community’s “unconditional” love and support for her. $32.99. Gallery.
Few memoirs have been more eagerly anticipated than Barbra Streisand’s “My Name Is Barbra.” In its nearly 1,000 pages, EGOT-winning (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony), divine, queer icon Streisand, 81, tells seemingly everything about her life. She quarreled with Larry Kramer over filming “The Normal Heart.” It didn’t work out: Streisand thought mainstream audiences would be turned off by explicit sex scenes. Marlon Brando and Streisand were good friends, she loves Brazilian coffee ice cream and her mother was a horror show. Contrary to how some lesser mortals see her, she doesn’t see herself as a diva. The print version of “My Name is Barbra” is fab. The audio version, a 48-hour listen, which Streisand narrates, is even better. $47. Viking. $45 on Audible.
“Chasing Rembrandt,” by Richard Stevenson is a terrific gift for mystery lovers. Richard Stevenson was the pseudonym for Richard Lipez, the out queer author, who wrote witty, engaging mysteries featuring the openly gay detective Donald Strachey. Sadly, Stevenson died in 2022. But, “Chasing Rembrandt,” a novel featuring Strachey and his romantic partner Timmy, was published this year. The idea for the story was sparked by a real-life incident when paintings were stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. “Robbers wreak havoc, smashing the glass covers protecting masterpieces and slicing paintings out of their frames,” Stevenson writes at the beginning of this entertaining story, “They make off with thirteen works, including three Rembrandts and a Vermeer, worth more than half a billion dollars and beloved in the world of art. It is arguably the greatest property theft in human history.”
With the repartee of Nick and Nora and the grit of Philip Marlowe, Strachey works to solve this mystery. $16.95. ReQueered Tales.
Some books never get old. “The Wild Things,” the beloved children’s picture book written and illustrated by acclaimed gay writer and illustrator Maurice Sendak, was published in 1963. Sixty years later, the Caldecott Medal-winning classic is still loved by three to five-year-olds, their parents, siblings, aunts, and uncles. A new digital audio version of “Where the Wild Things Are,” narrated by Michelle Obama, was released this fall. Who can resist the Wild Things, when they plead: “Oh, please don’t go–we’ll eat you up–We love you so!”? Widely available in hard cover, paperback and e-book format. Audio: $5.50.
What’s more fun than playing a festive album while you’re reading during the holidays? Deck the halls! This year, queer icon Cher has released “Christmas,” her first holiday album. Highlights of the album include: Cher singing with Cyndi Lauper on “Put A Little Holiday In Your Heart,” Stevie Wonder on “What Christmas Means to Me” and Darlene Love on “Christmas (Baby, Please Come Home)” and the rapper Tyga on “Drop Top Sleigh Ride.” The perfect gift for Cher aficionados.
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Whitman-Walker Health held its 37th annual Walk to End HIV on Saturday, Dec. 2. Participants gathered in Anacostia Park in heavy fog to run or walk along the Anacostia River Walk Trail. A short stage program at the finish line was emceed by NBC4 Washington’s Chuck Bell and included speakers from Whitman-Walker Health, Gilead Sciences and AARP. Whitman-Walker Health CEO Naseema Shafi announced from the stage that over $550,000 had been raised to help fund programs and research to combat HIV.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

















Covering the @whitmanwalker Walk to End HIV for @WashBlade pic.twitter.com/zJYUoH77Bu
— Michael Patrick Key (@MichaelKeyWB) December 2, 2023
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