I think we should normalize acknowledging reality. JK Rowling is a POS, Neil Gaiman is a POS, many others are POS or problematic for different reasons. A lot of products are owned by problematic companies. Some have better alternatives.
Bashing people for it is just going to make people tune you out though. Just be aware. I’m really not interested in the Harry Potter show. But the movies are a staple. If I see Tom Cruise is in a movie I get a lot less interested in it. I still like Edge of Tomorrow though.
What is this, another reddit?
I mean yeah, so long as you’re not actually giving money to the evil woman that wrote those books in any way, nobody’s stopping you from enjoying your old Harry Potter books and DVDs.
Heck, if you’re missing one you can buy it on eBay second hand, just so long as you’re not supporting the evil woman with a shiny new purchase, ya know? That woman doesn’t deserve a penny.
There’s a separate conversation you might want to have with yourself on whether your can separate the author from the work while you’re reading it, of course, and whether you’re comfortable doing so or not is a personal decision you’ll have to make for yourself.
Even better, pirate it and instead donate the money to trans rights groups.
No no, haven’t you heard. Pirating stuff is actually supporting the creators!
I’m gonna need someone to explain this lol
Leftist virtue signaling where nothing you do is ever actually good enough, basically
I still don’t get it, honestly
In another comment someone said that popularity of shows etc. Is measured by torrent numbers
Not sure how that helps creators, honestly. No money from torrenters are going to the creators, by torrenting. Unless they decide to buy collectors’ merch in the end, of course.
While mostly yes, all of that affects others opinions of the books, which can increase her sales and fund her hate.
I’ll like HP again when she’s dead.
I’ll like HP again when she’s dead.
And if her estate doesn’t donate to the same kind of heinous organizations that she does
Perfection is the enemy of good.
Most consumerism is problematic and you can blame most people for something, just take your time and you will find something: Are you drinking milk? Are you eating meat? Do you drink beer or smoke cigarettes? Do you use Social Networks like Instagram, Facebook or TikTok? Do you buy stuff on Amazon? Do you use ChatGPT? Do you drive a car even though you could travel by foot, train, bus or bike? Do you watch soccer? Do you watch porn? Congratulations, you are probably supporting something shitty.
That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try to change things. But offending people for doing some of these things never helped. It often just achieves the opposite. Try to encourage others, show them alternatives. Etc.
Finding alternatives isn’t hard tho. There’s like a plethora of magic school books from 2012 onwards. alerting people isnt the problematic thing while we are literally in a wold of countless options and claiming you can’t find any is just you being difficult and lazy.
Some people actually need an angry remark to know they are being an asshole, so there’s no need to say all negative activism is bad. Sometimes, it indeed does the opposite of helping, but the same can be argued for positivity. You’ll get laughed at sharing vegan recipes if the person challenging you doesn’t think animal rights even matter. But them dismissing you isn’t necessarily your fault for doing activism “the wrong way”.
Perfection is the enemy of good.
Transphobia isn’t good.
What’s with people who are like “Let’s compromise with evil and have a little evil, then.” I’ve been dropping things I enjoyed when I find out the person is either a sex pest or bigoted. I liked Disturbed for example, then found out their front man is a zioniest.
What’s with people who are like “Let’s compromise with evil and have a little evil, then.”
Oh, that’s simple. They know it’s never just a little evil.
Even if you do none of those it just keeps going. Coffee? Using too much plastic? Drinking 90% of soda brands?
I just like to think of it like “these things are bad, what good can I do rather than trying to cut out every bad thing?” If every HP fan supported the author by buying it, but then volunteered in a soup kitchen one time, they’ve done far more good than bad.
If every HP fan supported the author by buying it, but then volunteered in a soup kitchen one time, they’ve done far more good than bad.
Good and evil aren’t interchangeable, fungible quantities. You can’t punch 20 babies in the face and then feed 100 starving orphans and expect people to forget about one due to the other. The babies stay punched and the orphans stay fed.
With respect to HP in particular, supporting someone who actively and successfully campaigns against trans right hurts trans people. (And tells us that y’all care more about a children’s story than you do living, breathing human beings). Volunteering at a soup kitchen after donating to the exterminate trans people fund doesn’t undo the donation. It does feed some hungry people, but again doing “good” doesn’t erase having done “evil”; both acts still occured.
What people are saying here is literally “please don’t donate to the trans extermination project.”
Finally, there being no ethical consumption under capitalism is an indictment of consumption, not an absolution for any/all consumption. Just because all consumption falls short of perfect ethics doesn’t mean it’s all equally unethical. This should be obvious.
That’s not wrong but I’m not expecting anyone to forget about the negatives. If you punch 0 babies but you are so worried about causing harm that you’re miserable all the time and doing less good as a result, the world is on the whole worse off. It’s not a math equation but I would rather someone eats meat if that means they’re working to change the industry rather than someone who doesn’t eat meat and does nothing. Someone actively working against transphobia and contacting whoever their officials are and canvassing does far more than their $20 does.
I’m just saying there’s no possible way to exist without doing harm, anything you can cut out you should, but if it’s to the point where it’s stopping you from doing good in the world, that might be the line you should stop at.
It’s rarely so cut and dry how the money you spend will be used to hurt people. And it’s also rare for such visible harm to be tied to something so unnecessary. You can move on from this 20 year old children’s book, I’m sure it’ll be okay.
B I L L I O N A I R E and growing in wealth again
It might work better if you recommend them an alternative.
I’ve heard good things about Discworld, for one.
If you’re looking for something to read and haven’t read it yet, try Douglas Addams The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. It’s public domain, so getting it for free isn’t even piracy (hell, if you wanted to, you could even print and sell your own copies).
It’s not even close to Harry Potter, more of a sci fi comedy, but you won’t regret reading it. When I finally got around to reading it, I couldn’t put it down after I started, and this was well into the time where I was mostly playing video games instead of reading anything. Iirc, I read the first two in that first sitting, went to sleep, then read the rest the next day.
Having read all five books of the trilogy as well as Eoin Colfer’s And Another Thing, I 100% support this suggestion even though it’s not what I’m looking for here.
Much better and funnier than anything from that witch.
Recommendations may be nice, but I doubt it can replace the childhood nostalgia for a lot of people.
If it replaces the childhood nostalgia of at least one person, it will have been worth it.
Yes you can. You don’t speak for all of us. Many of us moved on and expanded our pallet just fine and are happier for it.
It’s actually really good for your brain to keep finding new things for developing it.
Novelty is love. Variety is the spice of life.
(Pallet =/= palate)
I have a lot of nostalgia for Final Fantasy 7. Amazingly, when I played Trails in the Sky many years later, I did kind of feel that nostalgia for a well-made JRPG. I guess I’m saying it’s possible.
You can definitely experience nostalgia for things you’ve never experienced before.
Discworld is great but something else entirely. Closer comparison would be Percy Jackson or a more ya magic school would be the scholomance books
There’s a plethora of artists to choose from that aren’t assholes. These folks keep talking about opening mind to other points of view. If that’s their stance then they can open mind to new options.
No, you need to have an open mind to their opinion, they don’t need to give you the same benefit
OK, this is a tough one and what I’m about to say might get me some dislikes. Let me just say something that might soften the blow: Fuck Rowling, her transphobia, and the bigots that defend her wretched views. Even if she decided, in an alternative timeline, decided her loudmouth shut, she would still be the scum of the earth for her views on trans people. I repeat, Fuck Rowling.
Now, with that out the way, let’s address the crux of the issue. I know that many of you in the LGBTQ+ community grew up with the franchise and enjoyed it long before Rowling exposed her true colors. If you’re LGBTQ+ and you decide to reconcile, in some way, with the franchise without directly supporting Rowling, you’re well within your rights to do so. The nostalgia you feel for something that brought you joy in your youth is yours to keep. No one, not even the creator themselves, can take that from you. As for the products themselves? You can: buy the books secondhand, pirate the movies, pirate the EPUBs if you have an e reader and buy fan-made merch from LGBTQ±friendly sellers.
If decided to not reconcile with the franchise, you’re also well within your rights to do so. Rowling has to made aware of the damage her views have on people. Demonstrate the hypocrisy of writing about a group of outsiders finding a place of acceptance and discovering their true selves and espousing bigoted rhetoric towards a discriminated group wanting acceptance for their true selves. There’s plenty of other fictional universes you can draw your attention towards (more on that in a moment) that are far less problematic and worthier of your time.
If you’re an ally (like myself), it’s best that we don’t engage with the franchise all together out of support. For me, this isn’t a problem since I didn’t engage with the franchise all that much in my youth (I was more of a LOTR fan). If you do decide to reconcile, much of what I have already said still applies.
In short, the question of reconciliation is a personal matter. So long as Rowling isn’t benefiting, you should be happy with your decision and the stand you take. As for alternatives? Well…
The already mentioned Lord of The Rings
Dune series
Discworld
Elric of Melniboné
Wheel of Time
I’ve lost a lot of favorite musicians, that turned out to be either creepy abusers, or rabid zionists; I think HP fans can read another fucking book.
I think HP fans can read another fucking book.
I dunno, they apparently haven’t done it once their entire adult lives, so…
My SIL is like this and it’s so goddamned exhausting.
Man, I have literally heard people say you should burn the books and movies you probably already owned long before Rowling was known to be a TERF. The art isn’t the problem. As long as you’re not continuing to financially support the bitch herself, Harry Potter himself ain’t gonna harm trans people.
The art isn’t the problem
Yeah, it’s not like you have anything like
- Two Indian characters named after the region they’re supposed to be from
- Stereotypically named Irish character obsessed with blowing stuff up and making alcohol
- An Asian character named “cho chang”
- Bankers that are barely disguised anti-Semitic tropes
- Literally a tweet saying only “Anthony Goldstein, Ravenclaw, Jewish wizard.” in response to accusations of no Jewish wizards
- Naming the black adult “Shacklebolt”
what’s with the shacklebolt one? is it like shackles as a nod to slavery or what?
Yeah, that’s my only explanation for that kind of a name for a black person. Whether or not it was intentional, I have to assume she’s massively racist, as are all of her editors/publisher. Too many people has the opportunity to say ‘what the fuck, lady’, and it still went to print.
What’s wrong with Cho Chang?
Thet was likely overzealous religious folk. Because it had magic and witches it was deemed by them to be demonic. I’m quite sure they would be surprised to learn the author of the books they hated was an ally for one of their other beliefs.
Potheads are tiring.
This is probably a minority take, but I feel like it might be important to watch this show if you want to have conversations with people in your life about JKR. If you don’t want to have conversations, absolutely ignore it.
Obviously, don’t spend money on it supporting her, but the overwhelming likelihood is that the show will be at least passably good. For better or worse, it’s a beloved IP and HBO has a solid history.
The conversations about the show will happen, and if I want to steer that conversation in my life, I need to be able to offer and interject something other than “Hey, did you know JKR is the richest woman in Britain and a massive piece of shit?”
Know thy enemy.
My pet peeve with Harry Potter is the Confederate ideology with slaves and house elves. If I want to have that conversation (I do), I’m going to need some familiarity to offer critique and highlight how they’re treating it and if they’re treating it differently.
When I see this shit I want to read HP. Not because I like it, I hated the books, just out of spite.
I get there are workarounds like piracy and buying second-hand, but also boycotting a book-series and some merch shouldn’t be that hard surely?
Yeah. There’s a lot of literature. Don’t have to marry this one. When Gaiman was found to be a creep, I gave up some of my favorites. And yet there is still more to fill the gap.
that’s the thing. there are millions of other GOOD books. HP is slop. I say that as someone who LOVED HP. But rowling made me fall out of love with it. She’s such a bigoted POS that she deserve nothing but condemnation. I was a massive pothead, so if i can give it up, anyone can.
Just don’t pay for it and be done with it.
Enjoy Harry Potter, just don’t give money to scumbag author.
Or, maybe, look at those books with critical eyes for the first time in your life, and realise how shit it is, and how much it is littered with awful terrible takes. And read another book maybe.
3D print your own merch
how can people enjoy shit made by absolute hags?
like, if you have standards, and you should, that ought to make said products gross, because it really fucking does.
there’s so much more to this world than this one shitty, played out franchise, just move on in life people ffs
Richard Wagner was a bigtime nazi who wrote some of the best classical music ever.
ride of the Valkyries is shite and if you think it’s great, that’s prob your inner der fuhrer trying to drive the bus.
Wagner died in 1883. like 50 years before the rise of the Nazis in Germany.
You’ve got it backwards. Nazis were a big fan of his music.
And apparently Gene Roddenberry wasn’t an entirely perfect human being either.
Disliking a chefs dish based on their political stance or personal opinion no matter how wrong isnt going to solve anything about it, just a giant waste of energy
lol, keep telling yourself whatever lies you need to stay happy.
but if you had a shred of decency in you, you’d know better already.
Sure, but it’s reasonable to stop going to the restaurant because of the chef’s political stance or personal opinion.
I dont see a prpblem with it as long as you dont pay them. Some of gaiman’s stuff was genuinely good.
The problem is making it your identity. Consuming uncritically. Worshipping. Not reading any other kinds of shit.
enjoy your terfy garbage
No i dont read absolute trash. I think as a kid i stopped reading after they made a pro slavery charicature.
I think as a kid i stopped reading after they made a pro slavery charicature.
I’m confused by someone who knows it’s racist garbage, but still advocates consuming racist garbage. bone apple teat
The problem isnt that the author is a fascist monster livint in a castle full of nazis and absolutely no glorious robot body with machine gun hands that rumor is totally unsubstantiated.
Many talented authors were pieces of shit. Yukio mishima killed himself because the emperor of japan wasnt fascist enough fir him, but god damn could that deranged piece of shit write beautiful prose.
The problem is that the books are trash and people have fucking insane relationships to them.
Read some genuinely good fiction? What do you like about them? I guarantee theres better books for that.
As someone who did grow up with the series but doesn’t interact with it anymore, I’m gonna tell you that not everyone needs things to be good.
It doesn’t have to be good for you to enjoy it. Fanfiction alone wouldn’t exist if it had to be good.
I don’t understand this the same way I don’t understand burning books you already own. It’s performative but it doesn’t show any actual thought.
Lack of thought is part of the problem.
I’m not even saying she’s not a terrible person (she’s a self righteous harpy who I do believe is doing actual harm). The books weren’t great but they were okay. But like. At the same time people read for a plethora of reasons and I don’t think it’s fair to be like “it’s not good so you shouldn’t enjoy it”. People are allowed to enjoy things. They don’t have to be good.
There are plenty of reasons to avoid her books without crapping on people’s personal tastes.
Its not the books that are problem. Its the weird self gratification unchallenge cuddle-treats uncritical or even anti-critical consumption of media thats the problem.
I can agree with that up to a point.
But that’s about the psychology of human nature, how it forms memories and attached feelings to them as much as anything else.
That’s pretty much why people feel like they are personally being attacked when you ask them to avoid something that is now seen as problematic. Lots of authors (even childrens book authors) dumb down themes and use tropes that are well known on media to make broad strokes for their audience who don’t at that time understand nuance.
That’s a lot of the “controversy” that comes up around books like the red wall series. Some people think the books are sexist, classist, and possibly racist and I can see their points. At the same time there’s an argument to be made for dumbing down certain themes, removing nuance from them so that they are more palatable to a younger audience.
Either way that’s not really what you mean. I am not trying to take away from what you said. There are plenty of fans who have been critical of Harry Potter as a media franchise for various reasons including sexism, classism, racism and the allegories associated with each as they come up in the story. Accusing HP fans of not being able to do that is a bit disingenuous because they have been taking these books and movies apart to the bedrock for quite some time now.
What I think you mean is that you want them to be critical of why they enjoy the series so that they can do some introspection in order to part with it, but I’m not sure you understand exactly what you’re asking for. There are people who owe their sanity (something they almost lost to the lowest points in their lives) to HP and books like it. The escapism is important for a lot of children who are in dark places.
If the person in that comic had used HP to get them through childhood rape or other abuse, wouldn’t that make a lot of sense as to why they react that way to other people who don’t know them or their trauma trying to take that away from them?
No this is not me saying that because they have trauma they are allowed to inflict trauma on others.
I look at it this way. The way we inform people and talk to people matters. Treating people like our adversaries makes them defensive and less likely to do what we are asking.
The best way to enjoy something that may benefit a problematic person is to simply acquire it in a way that doesn’t benefit them. Perhaps whilst on board a ship with a nice barrel of grog.
