Trans Women are Women: A Refutation to JK Rowling

JK Rowling’s Tweet

Many of you already know, the Women’s National Book Association was founded in 1917 with the mission of helping women connect to each other, in what was at the time a predominantly male industry. It’s an organization rooted in the principle of inclusion, created in a time when women couldn’t even vote. So, I’d be remiss to let June – LGBTQ Pride Month – pass without mention of the transphobic comments recently made by an industry leader.

JK Rowling is without doubt one of Publishing’s greatest success stories. She has an unbelievable platform which she used earlier this month to say:

If sex isn’t real, there’s no same-sex attraction. If sex isn’t real, the lived reality of women globally is erased. I know and love trans people, but erasing the concept of sex removes the ability of many to meaningfully discuss their lives. It isn’t hate to speak the truth.

Why She’s Wrong

There are so many things to unpack in this one tweet, let alone the 3,000 word blog post Rowling wrote defending her position. So, let’s start in the most obvious place – let’s talk about sex.

I don’t know of many people who dispute the existence of sex and the biological differences that are evident between males and females. However, what people do dispute is how gender relates to sex. And, what we’ve learned from trans experiences, is that the biological sex we’re born into doesn’t always correlate with the social construct of gender that we identify with.

So, what happens when a person, born as a biological male, undergoes sexual reassignment surgery because the gender “he” identifies with is that of a woman? I ask because these are the cases that Rowling is referring to when she fears that “the lived reality of women globally is being erased.” And I have to say I disagree. Acknowledging trans women as part of the women’s rights movement does not diminish my own experiences as a woman. My identity as a woman is not so fragile to exclude others who have faced their own forms of discrimination, hardship, and inequality, but that still see a kinship with me.

Throughout her post, Rowling fails to convince me that accepting trans women as women is a way of “erasing the concept of sex.” Inclusion by virtue adds to a body of experience – it doesn’t remove. But exclusion does breed discrimination, and the only argument that Rowling seems to really offer for the cost of this exclusion is the safety of cis women. She fears that allowing trans women into gendered locker rooms and bathrooms will make cis women more susceptible to the attacks of cis men. But nowhere does she mention that 90% of sexual assault cases are perpetrated by sexual partners or acquaintances of the victims. Assault isn’t happening in Target changing rooms or at the gym lockers. So what exactly is Rowling hoping to protect through this exclusion?

Again, no one denies that biological sex exists — though there are in fact more than two sexes. And, the reality of intersex people shouldn’t be excluded from this conversation. However, I deny that there’s value in excluding trans women from identifying as women. Our ability to question the normative constructs of established gender roles is what has allowed revolutions like the Women’s Rights Movement to occur. It is a betrayal if we don’t extend those same sentiments to the most marginalized in our ranks.

Reading List

Below is a transgender reading list featuring trans authors or protagonists.

1. The Lamb Will Slaughter the Lion
2. Pet
3. An Unkindness of Ghosts
4. Trans Bodies, Trans Selves
5. Black on Both Sides: A Racial History of Trans Identity
6. I Hope We Choose Love: A Trans Girl’s Notes from the End of the World

Do you have any books you’d like to add to the reading list? Share them in the comments below.

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