Daniel Radcliffe, the movie star made famous for playing the title role in the Harry Potter films, has taken a stance for trans rights by speaking out against tweets made by author J.K. Rowling over the weekend.
In a statement made through the LGBT suicide prevention charity the Trevor Project, Radcliffe said “Transgender women are women. Any statement to the contrary erases the identity and dignity of transgender people and goes against all advice given by professional health care associations.”
He was however careful to point out that this was not an attack on Rowling herself, by saying, "certain press outlets will probably want to paint this as in-fighting between J.K. Rowling and myself, but that is really not what this is about, nor is it what’s important right now."
His statement was met by all round praise on social media. "Daniel Radcliffe is saving lives with this statement" a commentator posted.
In his statement Radcliffe highlighted the level of discrimination faced by the trans community. "78% of transgender and nonbinary youth reported being the subject of discrimination due to their gender identity," he said. The statistics are based on research by The Trevor Project.
