City official fights back tears apologizing for hosting ‘Harry Potter’ event
An elected official fought back tears while apologizing for an innocent “Harry Potter” event because it hurt trans activists’ feelings.
Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioner Scott Jensen struggled to contain his emotions as he and other board members apologized for approving Harry Potter: A Forbidden Forest Experience, a “magical” nighttime walk planned for Vancouver, Canada, in November.
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Despite the event not featuring “Harry Potter” author JK Rowling, a stream of activists said it still offended them, given the best-selling writer’s outspoken views on women’s rights and trans issues.
“I’ve been really moved by your words,” Jensen said, his voice warbling as he fought back tears, video of the meeting shows.
“The lived experiences, the hurt … so on behalf of myself I do apologize,” he told those who spoke.
Fellow Commissioner Angela Haer also promised, “This will not happen again.”
Another commissioner, Tom Digby, later posted on X that the board “did the right thing” by apologizing.
“Shared some tears. Disavowed JKR. Will undertake concrete actions to rebuild trust,” he wrote.
Rowling seemed bemused at going viral yet again for an attempt to cancel her and her work, which was penned years before she became known for her views on transgender issues.
To be honest, I didn’t even know Vancouver Parks and Recreations had avowed me, so the disavowal hasn’t been much of a blow,” she wrote sarcastically as the commission’s action went viral.
“Next time, send me a certificate of avowal, wait until I’ve proudly framed it, hung it over my PC and taken a selfie with it, THEN revoke it,” she quipped.
Despite the apology — and vows to do better — Harry Potter: A Forbidden Forest Experience will still be hosted at Vancouver’s Stanley Park in November.
Ky Sargeant, of local group Qmunity, had told the board there’s nothing “that can be said that will make people happy” about anything to do with Rowling’s fantastical world.
“We just don’t agree with this particular individual’s transphobic stand on a lot of other issues,” Rob Hadley, a board member of Vancouver’s 2SLGBTQ advisory board, also said, despite the author’s repeated insistence that she is not transphobic.
The Harry Potter event, put on by Warner Bros. Discovery Global Experiences, is expected to bring in hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue, city officials told CTV News.
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