Earlier today I posted a reel on social media about J.K Rowlings comments on Glamour UK's "Women of the Year Cover". As always Rowlings comments were controversial, hurtful and full of hate. Always causing controversy, her comments have struck a nerve and opens up a debate about who gets to belong, who gets to define womanhood, and how we treat each other in movements meant to be about liberation.
🌪 What Happened
Earlier this month, Glamour UK featured nine trans women on their “Women of the Year” digital cover, a bold and beautiful statement celebrating inclusion.
Rowling responded on X (formerly Twitter):
“I grew up in an era when mainstream women’s magazines told girls they needed to be thinner and prettier. Now mainstream women’s magazines tell girls that men are better women than they are.”
Her words weren’t just criticism; they carried the familiar undercurrent of dismissal, implying that trans women’s visibility somehow threatens “real” women. The comment exploded online, praised by some and condemned by many, reigniting a debate that has divided feminist spaces for years.
🎙 What I Said in the Reel
In the reel, I spoke about women as community, not competition. About how feminism loses its soul when it becomes about gatekeeping; when it turns from a movement for equality into a fortress with walls and watchtowers.
I said that womanhood isn’t something to defend against others - it’s something to expand so everyone who needs it can find safety inside.
Because let’s be real: trans women aren’t “taking something away.” They’re asking for recognition, for belonging, for dignity. The same things feminism has always fought for.
🧠 Why This Matters
When Rowling says magazines are now telling girls that “men are better women,” she reduces gender to a zero-sum game, like identity is a prize that only some are worthy of holding. But being a woman has never been a fixed state. It’s a spectrum of experiences shaped by culture, race, history, body, and identity.
The feminist movement was built on fighting against people who said we weren’t women enough, too loud, too sexual, too emotional, too masculine, too brown, too queer. How quickly we forget that those same tactics of exclusion are now being used against others.
At StandUp Tees, we believe in a feminism that includes - not one that measures who belongs.
💬 Feminism That Divides Isn’t Feminism
Rowling’s stance isn’t new. It’s part of a broader movement of “gender critical” feminists who believe trans women erase sex-based rights. But this logic is built on fear, not fact. Trans women have existed as long as women have existed. They aren’t new. What’s new is visibility - and visibility makes some people uncomfortable.
Inclusive feminism doesn’t erase sex. It simply says that biological sex isn’t the only determinant of womanhood. It says that if someone’s lived reality, their safety, and their identity are tied to being seen as a woman, then our job isn’t to police it. It’s to protect it.
🕊 What StandUp Tees Stands For
We started this brand because silence helps no one. Our mission has always been to turn conversation into action - to wear your values, to Wear Your Stand.
That means when issues like this come up, we don’t look away. We speak up.
We stand with trans women.
We stand with all women.
We stand against the idea that someone else’s existence is a threat to your own.
Because feminism that excludes is just another hierarchy. And hierarchies are what we’re trying to dismantle, not rebuild in new shapes.
🌍 Why We Care
This isn’t just a social debate happening online. These comments ripple out into real life. They shape how people are treated at work, at school, in healthcare, in public bathrooms, and in the media. They give permission for hostility under the guise of “protecting women.”
And when you have power - whether it’s as an author, a brand, or a platform - you have a responsibility to use your voice for inclusion, not division.
That’s why we’ll keep platforming voices that are silenced.
We’ll keep supporting organisations like the Trans Justice Project, who are fighting for freedom, equality and safety for all trans and gender diverse people in Australia.
💡 What We Can All Do
-
Question the headlines – When someone says “protect women,” ask which women they’re protecting - and from whom.
-
Listen to trans voices – Read, follow, and support trans creators, activists, and journalists. Let them define their experiences.
-
Speak with compassion – You don’t need to have every answer. You just need to choose kindness over cruelty.
-
Use your influence – Whether you’re designing, creating, teaching, or parenting - use your voice to model inclusion.
🖤 Final Thoughts
Rowling’s comments remind us that even movements born for justice can lose their way if they forget empathy. Feminism isn’t about who gets the title “woman.” It’s about who gets to live with dignity.
So, when you wear one of our tees - whether it says All of Us, All the Time or Dismantle Racism - you’re not just wearing ink on cotton. You’re wearing an idea. That justice has no gender. That solidarity isn’t selective. That equality means everyone.
Let’s build a feminism ideal big enough for all of us.
Let’s build a world where we stop asking who counts as a woman - and start asking what kind of world women deserve.
Because when we say All of Us, All the Time, we mean it.
#WearYourStand #StandUpTees #InclusiveFeminism #TransWomenAreWomen #JKRowling #Feminism #EqualityForAll #SocialJustice #StandUpForWhatMatters #AllOfUsAllTheTime
0 comments