What motivates a seemingly once-brilliant person who appeared to share my values (as an artist, a writer, a thinker), to double, triple down on intolerance? Then of course there are the likeminded so-called leaders who build brands off of persecuting trans kids (and adults), amongst other vulnerable minorities. That some bigoted “leaders” will literally sacrifice certain groups of seemingly less-powerful people for their own benefit isn’t itself surprising, if one has read history (or Harry Potter).

As another example, I’ve often contemplated those once-beloved comedians who are so apparently fixated on bullying trans people that they’re willing to sacrifice their careers to it. (Just the other night, I couldn’t make it more than a few seconds into the Eddie Murphy doc when I saw Chappelle and had to stop.)

I do (still) fantasize about Rowling one day just waking up and saying, Hey you know what? I was wrong and I’m sorry. I felt backed into a corner and it made me say some really terrible stuff. I hope I can work to learn better and to put my resources to good use.

Imagine how people would celebrate Harry Potter, if she just got real with us, said, whoops, mea culpa.

Cynically, one hopes she realizes it’d be great for business, if she just surrendered. These days I do sense even cis people are pretty tired of her crap. I read this summer about a bookstore back home in San Francisco that at long last stopped selling her titles, given she now publicly donates and coordinates anti-trans persecution campaigns. Given how much her evil’s already affected her country—and beyond.