Tennis icon Martina Navratilova is very vocal about her beliefs. She has never shied away from expressing her opinions, as controversial as they might be. However, anytime Martina spoke about transgender individuals, particularly trans women, fans rebuked her. This time around, Navratilova responded to actor Daniel Radcliffe’s comments about trans women.
Radcliffe has always been very vocal in his support of trans people. He is also one of the very few actors from the cast of Harry Potter to publicly criticize J.K. Rowling.
The controversy dates back to 2020 when Rowling shared an article about menstruating people. The author of the beloved book series, Rowling has alienated much of her fanbase, with her anti-trans stance on social media. Rowling has come to be known as a TERF, meaning, a trans-exclusionary radical feminist.
‘People who menstruate.’ I’m sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?
Opinion: Creating a more equal post-COVID-19 world for people who menstruate https://t.co/cVpZxG7gaA
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) June 6, 2020
Radcliffe, who played the protagonist role in the movies, was not the only actor to speak out against Rowling. His costars, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint have also supported trans rights in the past.
An account recently shared Daniel’s statements from 2020, criticizing him for his comments. Radcliffe had written an essay for the Trevor Project, stating that, “Transwomen were women.” He added there were people with greater expertise than Rowling or him on this subject. Martina reposted the quote, with an acerbic, “Just be quiet Daniel. Be quiet.”
Just be quiet Daniel. Be quiet. https://t.co/0uhYLRJwHu
— Martina Navratilova (@Martina) October 2, 2023
Navratilova then went on a tirade. Fans pointed out that the cast of the movies does not owe anything to J.K. Rowling. In fact, the books would not be as popular without the movies. Navratilova responded that they owed Joanne everything.
Martina Navratilova feels very strongly about the inclusion of trans women in sports. Fans have called her out for her hateful statements, but Martina stands firm in her beliefs.
Martina Navratilova supports safe sex-based spaces
The 18-time Grand Slam champion has found herself at the center of yet another controversy. She criticized the USTA for including a trans tennis player previously, going against Billie Jean King.
When a well-known media outlet called Navratilova out for her transphobic statements, she explained her stance. Martina stated that she supports biological women’s right to a safe sex-based space.
If supporting biological women’s right to safe sex based spaces is wrong, then I am ok with being wrong. @TheAdvocateMag call it anti trans, I call it pro women and girls. Many trans people agree with me. Are they anti trans too? Thanks for your concern for women and girls.
— Martina Navratilova (@Martina) October 3, 2023
Very often, transphobic comments are veiled under the garb of sex-based issues. Martina Navratilova’s latest controversy highlights the importance of having an open dialogue.