Harry Potter Christmas lights spark backlash over JK Rowling’s plans to fund anti-trans campaign
The issue is about more than festive decorations.
A petition calling for London’s Harry Potter-themed Christmas lights to be scrapped has attracted more than 10,000 signatures, with campaigners warning the display risks generating yet more money for JK Rowling’s prominent anti-trans activism.
Launched by the Good Law Project, the petition urges London Mayor Sadiq Khan to intervene over the planned display on Oxford Street, questioning why the capital is celebrating the work of one of the world’s most prominent critics of transgender rights.
“Sadiq Khan says he’s an ally of the trans community, declaring that trans rights are human rights, and that London will remain a safe, welcoming space for trans people,” the petition states, adding:
“So why is he allowing one of the most famous anti-trans people in the world to take over Oxford Street?”
The campaign argues that a Harry Potter-themed spectacle in one of London’s busiest shopping streets risks making trans people feel unwelcome rather than included in the city’s Christmas celebrations.
Rowling has pledged to use the money she makes from the new Harry Potter television series to support the fight against trans rights.
“This will only make her more money,” the petition warns, highlighting how the commercial success of the Harry Potter franchise could help bankroll Rowling’s political campaigning.
The Telegraph was quick to cover the controversy, running the headline: “Trans campaigners launch petition against Harry Potter Christmas lights.”
Its report cites the Good Law Project’s involvement and noted that the organisation lost a High Court challenge this year concerning Equality and Human Rights Commission guidance on the exclusion of transgender women from female-only spaces.
“Trans activists have launched a petition against Harry Potter-themed Christmas lights because they will make JK Rowling ‘more money’,” the article continued.
Rather than dwelling on the substantive issue behind the protest, namely Rowling’s stated intention to channel the proceeds of her work into anti-trans campaigning, the report shifts attention towards the campaigners and the Good Law Project’s legal record.
The display is due to coincide with the opening of a new Harry Potter shop on the newly pedestrianised Oxford Street on November 4.
Khan’s office has clarified that the mayor is not responsible for arranging the Oxford Street Christmas lights. That responsibility rests with the New West End Company, which is pressing ahead with its plans.
For the Good Law Project and its supporters, however, the issue is about more than festive decorations. It’s about whether a major public shopping destination should become a showcase for a hugely profitable franchise when its creator has pledged to use the wealth it generates to advance a political cause that many trans people see as threatening their rights and dignity.
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