The All-Star is speaking out about her Harry Potter sneaker release after facing backlash from fans.
When most players were focused on competing in the WNBA All-Star Game or partying with the StudBudz on their viral 72-hour livestream, New York Liberty star Breanna Stewart was busy releasing controversial new Harry Potter-themed sneakers.
Stewart has been partnering with Puma on her signature “Stewie” line of basketball shoes for the past few years, but the Stewie 4s are once again being met with pushback from fans confused as to why a queer basketball star would release Harry Potter sneakers amid author J.K. Rowling’s increased anti-trans rhetoric and decision to use her personal fortune to fund anti-trans causes, Them reports.
This is not the first time the Liberty power forward has gotten backlash from fans for aligning herself with Rowling. Last year’s “Stewie 3s” included a pair featuring Harry Potter symbols, which were released just weeks after Rowling publicly accused Olympic boxer Imane Khelif of being trans and cyberbullied the gold medal winner alongside right-wing bigots like Elon Musk.
Despite the fan response, Stewart released her Stewie 4s to coincide with this past weekend’s All-Star Game. This year, she added another Harry Potter version of the sneakers featuring Hedwig and Nagini. The $130 sneakers were accompanied by a complete collection of Harry Potter athleisure wear from Puma, and while the clothing doesn’t bear her name, Stewart is pictured in the promotional photos.
It’s unknown what portion of the profits Rowling will receive because the sneakers and clothing line are officially licensed, but in an interview with The Next, Stewart admitted that she understands she is putting money in Rowling’s pockets, which undermines her support of the trans community.
“How can I have a world where I can do both, where I can talk about my shoes of Hedwig and [Nagini], but also continuing to actively show support in the transgender community and making it so these shoes are a direct reflection of that, to counterbalance everything that J.K. Rowling has done and said,” Stewart said. “Because there should be a platform where people from all communities, LGBTQ+, transgender communities, can also love Harry Potter and stick up against J.K. Rowling and her peers.”
Being attacked for being queer is not an unfamiliar experience for Stewart, who received homophobic threats against her family just last year. And yet, despite Stewart’s desire to “stick up against J.K. Rowling” and the fan backlash she received last year, she went ahead with collab.
In the interview with The Next, Stewart did explain that she and her agent, Lindsay Kagawa Colas, plan to “counterbalance” Rowling’s transphobia by donating Stewart’s realities from the sneakers to local organizations that support trans rights, although those plans have yet to be finalized.
This article originally appeared on Pride: WNBA's Breanna Stewart defends 'Harry Potter' shoe collab despite JK Rowling's anti-trans views
Category: General Sports
