Culture

Authors Including Stephen King And Roxane Gay Have Signed A Letter In Support Of Trans People

King Shit.

by Rebecca Shaw  11 October 2020
Stephen King

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More than 1800 literary figures from the US and Canada, including Stephen King and Roxane Gay, have signed a letter pledging their support for trans and non-binary people. 

Authors like Stephen King, Roxane Gay, and Neil Gaiman have joined almost 2000 American and Canadian writers, editors, and publishing professionals in making a public statement in support of trans and non-binary people.

In recent times we have seen transphobic opinions given credibility in news organisations, and famous figures like J.K Rowling using their platforms to espouse transphobic beliefs. In an attempt to show support for trans and non-binary communities, by using an equally public platform, a new letter has been released, with many well-known signatories publicly declaring that they agree with the contents.

It begins with a short but direct statement.

“As members of the writing and publishing community of the United States and Canada, we stand firmly in support of trans and non-binary people and their rights. We are writers, editors, journalists, agents, and professionals in multiple forms of publishing. We believe in the power of words. We want to do our part to help shape the curve of history toward justice and fairness.”

Much of the discourse around trans people and their rights is muddied by transphobic activists. They want to use semantics, and misinformation to try and get other people over to their side. The letter opening with such a strong stance cuts through all of that, and makes it clear that it comes down to fairness, and respect. The opening statement is then followed up with a more personal declaration.

“To that end, we say: non-binary people are non-binary, trans women are women, trans men are men, trans rights are human rights. Your pronouns matter. You matter. You are loved.”

The letter has been signed by almost 2000 people, and is expected to grow.

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Although the letter itself never explicitly mentions J.K Rowling by name, creator and author Maureen Johnson told Publisher’s Weekly that J.K’s involvement in the debate over transgender rights had a direct impact on the trans community.

“When J.K. got involved, it gave a lot of legitimacy to something that before seemed fringey. It became more accepted, because people know J.K. from Harry Potter,” and saying that she had organised the letter because “it’s human decency. Sometimes you need to put your name on the line and say I don’t agree with what’s going on.”