Finally good news for JK Rowling, in turmoil for a few days after sharing comments deemed transphobic. Her publishing house Hachette UK has announced that it will not allow its staff to boycott The Ickabog , a children's tale by the British author due to be published in November 2020.
"Freedom of expression is the cornerstone of publishing," Hachette said in a statement. “We fundamentally believe that everyone has the right to express their own thoughts and beliefs. This is why we never comment on the personal opinions of our authors and we respect the right of our employees to have a different opinion. ”
"Freedom of expression"
Several employees of the English publishing house had expressed their refusal to work on The Ickabog, after the novelist published a series of tweets. She stated in particular that only women could be menstruating, attracting the wrath of many Internet users.
Read also: JK Rowling publishes tweets deemed transphobic and attracts the wrath of Harry Potter
But Hachette UK let staff members know that differing opinions with an author did not allow them to refuse to work on his works. "We will never make our employees work on a book whose content bothers them for personal reasons, but we make a distinction between that and the refusal to work on a book because they disagree with the point of view of an author outside of his writing, which goes against our belief in freedom of expression. ”
A spokesman for the publishing house said that the employees concerned would be received by their managers for treatment "on a case-by-case basis" . "We will approach all of these interviews with empathy and understanding," he told The Bookseller.
I have never spoken publicly about having survived domestic violence and sexual assault
JK RowlingFaced with strong reactions on social networks, the author of the successful saga split a long text on his official website, published Wednesday, June 10, to put in context his controversial comments. "I have been in the spotlight for over twenty years now, and I have never spoken publicly about having survived domestic violence and sexual assault," she said.
Read also: JK Rowling reveals having been the victim of domestic violence and sexual assault
She also explains that this sexual assault helped convince her of the need to maintain spaces reserved for women. Before arguing that biological sex has meaning and that certain groups in the transgender community "seek to erode women as a political and biological class" . A position that did not receive the support of Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson or Rupert Grint, actors who became famous thanks to their roles in Harry Potter.