J.K. Rowling is in a bit of trouble for misgendering India Willoughby. In a nutshell, Rowling called Willoughby a man because he was born as a boy, then transitioned into a woman. A bit of to and fro had been going on between the two about trans women being men because they were born male. There are strong feelings on both sides of this argument. Rowling thinks that there is still an argument and feels like she is free to put her two cents in; Willoughby believes that the matter is settled and that Rowling should fall in line and, if she won’t come willingly, then the police will make her.

Willoughby is wrong. Challenging Rowling in this way isn’t the answer because Willoughby has jumped the gun. The matter isn’t settled. If it had been settled people like J.K. Rowling wouldn’t be disagreeing. Rowling’s position seems quite reasonable. Rowling will defend Trans people’s rights and thinks they should be treated with dignity and respect. What she does disagree about is that someone born male has a biological structure different from someone born female and that difference matters. I am not sure why this is even a controversy because many trans women alter their born bodies in order to obtain a body more in line with their desires. Why would you need medical intervention if your body wasn’t different?

Rowling could throw Willoughby a bone and call her a woman.Willoughby’s mind is set in stone so there really is no point in talking to her about it. It would certainly make Rowling’s life easier. But Rowling, who feels harassed by Willoughby, has reached the end of her patience and has just said fuck it. If she wants to fuck with me, I am going to fuck with her back. Whether this was a good decision on Rowling’s part is beside the point. Rowling has a right to state her opinion. Willoughby may not like being called a man but Rowling has some evidence to support her contention and has every right to speak on the matter.

I would have more sympathy for Willoughby if Rowling was following her around and calling her a man publicly just to embarrass Willoughby. But Willoughby is engaging Rowling in a debate. She is keeping the dialogue going. Indeed, she is calling Rowling a bigot. If you are calling someone names, you need to be prepared to be called something back in return. If you want to stop Rowling from calling you a man, Willoughby might consider stopping her campaign against Rowling. I’m pretty sure Rowling would then stop calling her a man. But if you continue to throw punches, you should expect people to punch back.

At any rate, calling the cops is an incredibly weak response. It suggests that she is losing the argument with Rowling and that the only way for her to win is to call in the law. She is assuming the law will side with her. She may be correct. But from where I am sitting, Rowling looks more assured. She certainly is confident enough in her position to keep this argument between the two of them and not call in the cops for back up.