Open Thread: Dumbledore is Gay

I have zero interest in the Harry Potter books and movies. I am amazed that people line up in front of bookstores to reading the adventures of a geek boy wizard. My literary taste is more elitist.

Amanda Marcotte wrote about JK Rowling telling a fan that Dumbledore is gay.

She was asked by one young fan whether Dumbledore finds “true love”.

“Dumbledore is gay,” the author responded to gasps and applause.

She then explained that Dumbledore was smitten with rival Gellert Grindelwald, whom he defeated long ago in a battle between good and bad wizards. “Falling in love can blind us to an extent,” Rowling said of Dumbledore’s feelings, adding that Dumbledore was “horribly, terribly let down”.

I don't think Dumbledore being gay will have any short-term positive or negative impact on the gay rights movement. Conservatives are crushed over the news.

Then after she finishes the books and everyone has read them, she drops the bomb that Dumbledore was gay. Way to mess up a kid’s sense of morality.

This blogger spent all this time reading the Harry Potter books and will now renounce them because a character is gay. How silly. That shouldn't make a difference. I haven't read the books, but my understanding is that there was nothing in the books about Dumbledore's sexuality. Progressives in the Pandagon comments have a WTF reaction to the news. They never thought of the character that way. Rowling may have conceive Dumbledore to be gay. That wasn't how he came off on the page.

On another level: I find it bizarre how fictional character such as Dumbledore, Murphy Brown and Tinky Winky can send conservatives into a tizzy. They seemed very concerned about the morality of fictional characters. There are poor people, addicts and homeless people that could use help. Maybe the Christian Right ignores them because those people hit too close to reality.

Share your thoughts lurkers.