Rhianna Pratchett, daughter of late author Sir Terry Pratchett, dismissed claims of netizens who said that writer would have been “Gender Critical” or a Transphobe if he were alive.
Rhianna, who works as a video game writer, took to Twitter on Saturday and said, “This is horrifying. My father would most definitely not be a GC if he was still alive. Read. The. Books,” in response to a user who called the author of the Discworld books, “Gender Critical”.
Her response followed a dialogue between Neil Gaiman who co-authored the 1990 novel Good Omens with Terry Pratchett, and journalist Laurie Penny who posted about the intersection of anti-semitism and trans-misogyny.
During the verbal exchange on Twitter, on Friday, a user replied to Gaiman stating “I thought the fact that your write good fantasy meant that your were acquainted with reality. After learning this about you, it seems however more likely like that was Pratchett’s contribution to your partnership.”
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Another user wrote, “Honestly have no idea how anyone can read Pratchett, esp. the Witches, and think he didn’t know what ‘female’ is and means in the world.”
Gaiman came out in support and wrote, “Terry was wise and Terry was kind. Terry understood that people were complicated, contradictory and, always people, and that people can and do change. As @rhipratchett says, he would have had no time for this nonsense. (See also: Equal Rites, Monstrous Regiment, Feet of Clay.)”
The debate got polarized with supporters of Pratchett posting excerpts from his books which proved that the author was anything but a transphobe.
A user wrote, “I am *just* finishing Monstrous Regiment which own title is a dig towards a GC pamphlet of days of yore, the whole book is about the stupidity of preconceived “correct” gender roles. The gaslighting of GCs is astounding but they can’t soil Terry’s name, his work is too strong.”
Another user highlighted Pratchett’s character Cheery Littlebottom from his book Feet of Clay from the Discworld series, and wrote, “Absolutely heartbreaking, disgusting and maddening to think that TERFs would try to claim the man who wrote Cheery Littlebottom, a character openly fighting for gender recognition, who is aggressively defended by her colleagues against those who refused to accept her.”
Terry Pratchett authored several books including The Colour of Magic, The Nome Trilogy, and Good Omens, to name a few. Good Omens is currently in production for a second season with Gaiman creating the show with Amazon Prime Videos.
Pratchett died of Alzheimer’s disease in 2015.