May I? You May.

“May I?” “You may.”

It's easy for me to tell people to erase Harry Potter from their lives, because I'm not a fan. It didn't change who I was as a person, I didn't grow up with it and it doesn't help me cope with life.

I dont know what it feels like to have something like that, and then be in the situation that interacting with it supports transphobia/transmisogyny/racism/antisemitism.

If you don't experience racism or transphobia or antisemitism it might be hard to make the connection. To feel strongly enough to severe every feeling you have for it to where it's easy to drop. You might feel strongly about the situation, but might still struggle with liking the content and wanting to find a way around it.

But interacting with the content has real world consequences. You talk about Harry Potter publicly, post fic, you are keeping her relevant.

And that gives her power and access to more people and thus helping to spread her bigoted rhetoric.

So I might not understand what fans are feeling with the situation, and I know for some it helps you get through life. But thats why you need to focus on her bigotry. Or make some effort by finding something to turn you off of it.

You have to connect things visually for yourself, about the bankers with hooked noses to the nazi drawings of Jewish people. Compare that visually.

To the transmisogyny she spews to the trans women and other trans people she's hurting, and the bills she help support. Sometimes you have to actively look at someone right in the face and then think of the discrimination they are facing due to something you like in order to remind yourself that this is real life and not just words on a screen.

When we love something or it's helped us, it's hard to sever that connection, even in extreme situations.

But that's why you have to work at it. You can't just assume you will naturally fall out of the thing you like because racism is bad. It should, but I know things can be complicated in the brain. Which is why you have to be active about it.

Eventually, when you think of Harry Potter the bigotry in it will stick out too much and it won't have the magic it had before and that's okay.

Also there are people posting alternatives, so you have new series to try and help you make the switch. Ones you can be loud and proud loving.

I see a lot of posts on here rightfully upset. But I realize most aren't fans, and most don't use it as a coping mechanism

And this post isn't coddling. It's to the people who might feel they aren't addressed in the other posts.

So this is for the people that had the book help them not kill themselves. Who kin the characters or the characters helped keep them above water. For people who are comforted by the story. Who helped them through bad things in their life.

For people who feel that if they stop interaction with the fandom and series, that they don't really know where to go and that they will feel empty and lost.

And to some this might seem ridiculous but some people need to have a post like this.

If you're this person remember that the words and the world's and the personalities and the wonder can be found somewhere else. And that this book had helped you and made you feel happy for a while, and that another series needs to take that place.

You don't have to go cold turkey and get rid of all your stuff and delete your fics and fanart

But you CAN try the other stories, get into a new series and remind yourself that moving on and switching over is the right thing to do. Eventually it'll be your new hyperfixation and your new comfort series that makes life easier

Jk rowling is a bigot in many ways and her books bare traces of that. When people see you talking or interacting with the series now, they will wonder "do they support rowling?" and I don't think that's what you want

So yeah. Just explore other series and find new stories that help you, make you feel happy and giddy and obsessed! And know that whether you feel it or not, you would be helping to make Jk irrelevant and thus making a bigot not have as much power. And I think thats good.

TERFS/RADFEMS/TRUSCUM/TRANSMEDS WILL BE BLOCKED

The year is 2021, nearly 2022, and JK Rowling has posted yet more TERF bullshit.

I'm not going to post it here. If you're trans, you've probably already seen it, and if you're cis, you don't need to see it.

It is far, far, FAR past time for you to drop Harry Potter if you haven't already.

I get it. Harry Potter was an important piece of many of our lives. It shaped many of our formative years. Choosing your house became a form of self identification for a not insignificant portion of the population. And you're allowed to feel mixed feelings. But there's one thing that needs to be clear:

Harry Potter fandom, in any form, especially done by TME people, harms trans women.

Now I understand what you may say. "Oh I'm not gonna spend any money on it but I'm still gonna make posts/fanfiction/etc about it"

And sure, not giving money that'll go to its TERF creator to fund her TERF desires is just about the bare minimum. But by continuing to engage with the work, by continuing to maintain a fandom presence, you are giving your tacit support to JK Rowling and anyone that agrees with her.

Your trans followers will see this, and the vast majority will be made to feel unsafe as a result.

But perhaps you don't care about trans women. You certainly wouldn't be the only one. So it only seems fair to mention a few other bigotries transphobia is joined by in the Harry Potter series:

Antisemitism: Goblins as a whole, trying to claim "Anthony Goldstein" as Jewish rep despite him barely being relevant and having an incredibly stereotypical name, and once again, GOBLINS AS A WHOLE

Racism: The name "Cho Chang", Lavender Brown starting out as Black in the movies before being whitewashed as soon as she became relevant to the plot

Homophobia: The use of werewolves as an HIV/AIDS metaphor, but where the infection actually IS dangerous to others, not to mention a character who actively targets children to "infect", trying to claim Dumbledore is gay and it never showing up anywhere in text

Sexism: Hermione's whole "not like other girls" schtick that's backed up by the universe itself, traditionally feminine characters being villainized (Lavender Brown, Umbridge)

These are by no means an exhaustive list, but worth mentioning nonetheless.

If you're looking to read other YA books instead, here's a few recommendations to get you started

Diane Duane's Young Wizards series is my top pick for anyone looking for another series about wizards coming of age while they face down the forces of darkness. It's been ongoing since 1983, and the author has shown an admirable willingness to go back and fix plot points that include topics she wasn't well informed enough to be sensitive about at the time. The author herself is actually active on this website, her url is @dduane

Katherine "KA" Applegate's Animorphs will always hold a special place in my heart. If you like sci-fi, aliens, and the horrors of war, this series is for you. The author is fairly vocal of her support for the trans community, and has a trans daughter herself. Her husband is Michael Grant, who both did some work on Animorphs and is the author of the Gone series which is also worth highlighting here

Tamora Pierce has multiple universes of book series largely focused on growing up in magical worlds. While her Song of the Lioness quartet and following series in the same world were great, I was always a big fan of the Circle of Magic books myself

Rick Riordan is well known for his mythology-based series. Starting with Percy Jackson, he contextualized Greek mythology in a modern setting, from the outset giving representation to people with ADHD and dyslexia. As he continued, writing series focusing on Egyptian, Roman, and Norse mythology, he added more representation into his books. While he has sometimes had issues with how he has portrayed these marginalized groups, he has largely shown himself to be receptive to criticism

Derek Landy's Skulduggery Pleasant series is another fantasy series that I quite enjoy who's author has shown explicit support for the trans community. While I am not up to date with the most recent books, it is my understanding that they include an explicitly trans and genderfluid character, and the books' magic system and themes goes into the nature of identity and names many times, in a way that even when it isn't explicitly trans, often FEELS very trans

The TL;DR is this: however you may try to justify it, participating in Harry Potter fandom in any way IS harmful to trans women, and there's a world of other series to go for instead

Taemin, thank you.

Thank you for 14 years. Fourteen years of your smiles. Fourteen years of your laughter. Fourteen years of your shenanigans. Fourteen years of your dancing. Fourteen years of your singing. Fourteen years of your heart.

Thank you for always giving it your all, for performing with all your strength, and for reaching out to us fans and showering us with love.

You have brightened up our lives in so many ways and have been there for us fans more than we could ever deserve or imagine. You are more than our SHINee maknae, dancing king, vocal powerhouse, and king of Kpop.

You are a light and love and we are so blessed to know you.

You asked us during the concert if we would stay with you, and the answer has been and always will be yes. We will be there for you and stay by your side through all of this like we always have. You can count on us. And we will be cheering the loudest and giving you the best welcome when you return.

Thank you, Lee Taemin, for everything. We love you to the moon and back. Always.

So, the women’s speed climbing world record got smashed today by Aries Susanti Rahayu (@AriesClimber). 6.995 s. First posted sub 7 sec time (with a splinted middle finger!). Amazeballs!

There are Russian citizens who understand that Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is wrong, and they are showing up & showing out.

👉🏿 https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-cracks-down-home-front-its-troops-invade-ukraine-2022-02-24/

For all the tankies and misguided “leftists” who somehow think that backing Putin is the way to show how “pure” their “communism” is—THIS is how you do it. THIS is how you rise up. These Russian protesters aren’t talking shit, while hiding behind a keyboard, in the safety of a country that’s safely not being invaded. These Russian citizens are openly protesting Putin’s war and their own government. They are putting it all on the line and literally risking everything to protest Putin’s imperialism. They are showing solidarity with the people of Ukraine.

Bravo. 👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿 Bravo. 👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿

Stand With Ukraine 🇺🇦