Three authors have left the Blair Partnership, a literary agency that also represents Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling after it reportedly refused to affirm its support for trans equality.
While Rowling has attacked the transgender community repeatedly over the past year, the company is standing behind their prized author. In a statement, the company said the authors were fleeing because “we did not meet their demands to be re-educated to their point of view.”
Related: Staff at J.K. Rowling’s publisher won’t work on her new book after her anti-trans rants
“This decision is not made lightly, and we are saddened and disappointed it has come to this,” the authors wrote in a statement posted online.
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“We stand in solidarity with LGBTQIA — and allied — staff in all areas of publishing who are working incredibly hard to champion diverse voices and experiences to challenge the homogeneity of the industry.”
Ugla Stefanía Kristjönudóttir Jónsdóttir, one of the writers who left, said the group’s request for a statement of solidarity with the trans community “weren’t met positively by the management.”
“We support the rights of all of our clients to express their thoughts and beliefs, and we believe in freedom of speech,” the Blair Partnership said in response. “Publishing and the creative arts are dependent on these things. It is our duty, as an agency to support all of our clients in this fundamental freedom and we do not comment on their individual views.”
““We are disappointed by the decision that four clients have taken to part ways with the agency. To reiterate, we believe in freedom of speech for all; these clients have decided to leave because we did not meet their demands to be re-educated to their point of view. We respect their right to pursue what they feel is the correct course of action.”
The company later claimed it “champion[s] equality and inclusivity.”
Nowhere does the company’s statement mention transgender people.
Instead, it waffles in a sentence reminiscent of Donald Trump’s infamous “good people on both sides” comment: “We remain committed to making the agency the most welcoming environment it can be for everyone.”
