The "Harry Potter" author slammed a newly enacted hate-crime law in Scotland in a series of posts on X in which she referred to transgender women as men.

The “Harry Potter” author slammed a newly enacted hate-crime law in Scotland in a series of posts on X  in which she referred to transgender women as men.

J.K. Rowling shared a social media thread on Monday, the day a new Scottish hate-crime law took effect, that misgendered several transgender women and appeared to imply trans women have a penchant for sexual predation. On Tuesday, Scottish police announced they would not be investigating the “Harry Potter” author’s remarks as a crime, as some of Rowling’s critics had called for.

“We have received complaints in relation to the social media post,” a spokesperson for Police Scotland said in a statement. “The comments are not assessed to be criminal and no further action will be taken.”

Scotland’s new Hate Crime and Public Order Act criminalizes “stirring up hatred” against people based on their race, religion, disability, sexuality or gender identity.

  • kaffiene@lemmy.worldEnglish
    3314·
    3 months ago

    Not everyone is a free speech extremist like many Americans. When the idea of free speech was developed, it was to protect political speech from legal consequences, not to guard some kind of right to incite hatred or violence towards minorities. These ideas are very different and shouldn’t be conflated.

    • GregorGizeh@lemmy.zip
      205·
      3 months ago

      I am not an American, in fact I am German, a country which actually has restrictions on free speech in place.

      Nowadays we use it to squash anti Israel protests.

      • kaffiene@lemmy.worldEnglish
        76·
        3 months ago

        Yeah thats not a free speech issue, that’s a German national guilt gone mad issue.

      • anon987@lemmy.world
        22·
        3 months ago

        They are cracking down on the anti Israeli protests because antisemitic hate crimes have doubled.

        • GregorGizeh@lemmy.zip
          33·
          3 months ago

          So its only antisemitic if its against Israel? We are arresting and silencing other Jews and Israelis who are against this campaign of genocide. That’s okay with you?

      • The Octonaut@mander.xyz
        39·
        3 months ago

        I fully support Palestine and yet I’m 100% OK with Germans having the sense to keep their opinions to themselves on the matter.

        • GregorGizeh@lemmy.zip
          72·
          3 months ago

          We don’t keep our opinions to ourselves, we dissolve demonstrations for Palestine and arrest even Jews who speak out against the genocide. We also confiscate their assets.