I'm laughing at the people who accuse JK of doing this to promote the books. If you want to promote a book series, just about the last thing you're going to do is reveal that one of the characters is gay. Obviously the reason she chose to have Dumbledore gay was to reinforce the message of tolerance that is so central to the books. You Slytherins out there who despise gay people epitomize the bigotry that Rowling has spoken out against through Harry Potter. To call yourselves fans when you willingly disregard what is one of the most crucial themes of the series, is a mockery of everything that Rowling and her books stand for.

Oh Lordy...Rita Skeeter is going to have a field day with this one. Not surprised though about Dumbledore. Neville was interesting to know and Petunia was nice. I would actually like to read the series from different characters points of view...only the main one's though. Can you imagine reading it as Crabbe or Goyle? urgh..

still a fiery issue? is anyone on??

... wow umm. this kinda ruins everything for me. i mean no affense to gay people or anything, but dumbledore being gay is just not right. jk just ruined the character of dumbledore, and disappointed millions of people. kudos to you, jk.

I agree with Lisamz and Firebolt215. I pictured Dumbledore as asexual–kind of like a priest. I don't understand why she had to attach this stigma to the character: it's irrelevant to the plot and doesn't matter. That having been said, I am no homophobe. Having an opinion that disagrees with this character decision doesn't make anyone "anti-gay." You guys don't want stereotypes and slurs thrown at you? Okay. Just make sure you don't throw hasty generalizations and oversimplifications first. Everyone's entitled to their own opinion.

My main drawing of the conclusion he way gay was from the wedding scene in the seventh book. Where Harry was talking to a 'friend' of Dumbledore's? I can't remember his name for the life of me right now. But I thought he was a woman from the way he spoke about Dumbledore, that JK had introduced her as a possible lover, then I got a shock when the book said 'he' instead of 'she'. From that moment on I sort of just took it that Dumbles was gay (or bi). Since it seemed a lot deeper then a friendship to me. Of course, it's all down to how you read it, I might have formed my judgement and yours could have been completely different. But that was what made me assume...

Cexxcilia is a prime example of the attitude that Rowling and her books oppose.

Despite the fact that I thought Alby and McGonagall might have something going on, he was asexual to me too. It was never about his sexuality, only about his character. The two don't coincide by the way. Being gay does not equal pedophile, or bad person. That is a stigma that the religious sectors of our world created. I did want Alby to love McGonagall, but I can see him loving Grindlewald now, and hey, I'm all for it :)

@cexxcilia: I agree with you all the way. I have nothing against them either but DUMBLEDORE being one? THAT bothers me.

Awwww, this just makes Dumbledore that much more awesome. This adds the depth to his relationship with Grindelwald that I felt was missing.

uhhh, why jkr for the win? because with no warning she just makes her characters gay? hooray for jo! how brave of her! OH WAIT. not really. more like her ego got in the way of her fans. once again, please show me in the books ANYTHING TO SUGGEST HIM BEING GAY!

i agree with grinds...i mean, where ever was it implied that dumbledore was gay? i mean, if JKR wouldn't have told us, i would've never guessed it!

Grnd3lW4Ld - From someone who identifies as being a member of the queer community, it's extremely important that there be positive gay role models. Gay youth in particular are extremely threatened by depression and suicide, rejection, homelessness, substance abuse, high drop out rates, and verbal and physical abuse, and there is a serious lack of support and role models for that to change. There may not be a specific "negative role model" out there to point the finger at, but look at all the negative stereotypes involved with homosexuality... for example the one that seems to be promoted in this thread that because he was eccentric he was obviously gay, or because he wasn't presented as overtly gay that it's such a shock and wrong. The vast majority of queer identified people are "normal" acting and looking, what you see on TV and in pride parades and such is NOT what we're all like. Aren't those beliefs negative enough? It's nice to see a character who not only defies the stereotypes, but who promotes love, acceptance etc as well. Why? Because In a typical class of 30 students, 8 students (27% of the class) will be directly affected by homosexuality of self, one or more siblings, or one or both parents. They need someone to look up to, they need understanding and support.

If you have no bias or prejudice towards gay people then Dumbledore being gay should not really affect the book at all.

T_quigs *hugs* I totally agree.

notice that no one really cares about Neville and Hannah or Petunia for that matter. its all about Dumbledore. I mean, honestly, who cares whether he's gay/straight/asexual whatever. the real question is whether or not it retracts from the book, which i dont think it does. (although i have to be honest with you, the first think that came to my mind when i read the words 'Dumbledore is gay' were "OMG MICHEAL JACKSON!" not to offend any jackson fans out there, cuz i love thriller.)

And nothing bugs me more than when people say, "I have nothing against gay people, but......" You clearly DO harbour negative feelings, which are intolerant and unfounded. And well said brucem0, what you said pretty much sums up my thoughts!

LMAO wow people sure have a lot to say about this. Never saw the Muggles online thing so high this month. Wish you guys would post a link or put the whole conversation on to the site. Leaky did it. (sorry I went to Leaky but they had the full conversation which was very informative)

this totally shocked me and I don't think I can ever see dumbledore in the same way, but you know, it's all good. i'm not gay, but i'm totally cool with it all. People who are against gay people - keep reading hp!!!

Well, Playwright, it is a big thing for us. It sheds a new light on a character everyone thought they knew. Hannah and Neville–it's a relationship. Big deal. Aunt Petunia's parting thoughts towards Harry–well, that much was obvious. I personally don't think the revelation about Dumbledore was necessary–especially since nothing was ever implied in any of the books.

Where in the books does it say that he is not gay? Very eloquent response t_quiqs!! There are WAYYY TOOO many shocked people here. Why? I really thought we were past the need to look down on someone because of their orientation!! Wow.

t-quigs, im not homosexual so I cant relate to the things you are talking about there but I see what you mean about needing a role model, though I dont think thats why jo did it. If thats why, she would have said this earlier on in the series. the thing is you can still look up to him even if thats not the intention. I can look up to Grindelwald for i dont know, his will to live, determination and crap it doesnt matter, jk doesnt have to say these things like facts and make the books different for others.

wow. t_quigs...you completely cleared everything up, so thank you...and you're right, brucm0...why are we getting so worked up about this issue? we're all true harry potter fans and dumbledore being gay shouldn't affect us this hugely...the day before, we all loved dumbledore just the way he was...and now the JKR tells the world about his sexuality..and it doensn't mean that we'll look at dumbledore as a bad person or anything (of course nnoo offense to anyone)...if we hadn't known about this issue, we'd still look at dumbldore the same way we ever have, as a kind, intelligent, loving headmaster.

i lost all respect for Jo. that is repulsive that would say she's a Christian, use the Bible in her books, and then make Dumbledore gay, because homosexuality is against God no matter what you say (read the Bible). i REALLY hope is a joke and refuse to believe Dumbledore is gay. it's too stupid to even think about. i agree with Tony_the_Terrible.

Grnd3lW4Ld makes a good point. If Jo intended to make a gay role model in Dumbledore, she would've announced it earlier in the series.

LOL Boy, this topic sure livened up what has been a relatively quiet discussion board over the past few months.

"And nothing bugs me more than when people say, "I have nothing against gay people, but......" You clearly DO harbour negative feelings, which are intolerant and unfounded." err, nope. people you see doing that just did so to avoid the idiots saying anyone against this automatically hates gays. I dont see where making that statement has a direct relationship with thinking negatively about gays, I think thats pretty unfounded myself.

my faith in Jo has now been restored. Allow me to explain why. I thought it was a bit of a betrayal of his character that he couldn't see through Grindelwald and his true evil intentions. I mean here's a guy that can reason out Voldemort's deepest secrets, yet he couldn't see the evil in his best friend. The reasoning she gave in the book was that he was young and excited to have found a friend who's interests and intellect matched his own. For me, that created too big of a disconnect in character between the old and young Dumbledore. The fact that he's gay and in love with Grendelwald makes a heck of a lot more sense, because like Jo said, love can blind us, and it blinded him badly. So, as far as the character goes, it makes more sense.

are you f@#$% kidding me!!!! I mean, I never tought about his sexuality but gay, come on!!!!!!!!! I just tought he never got married because he wants to teach and be smart and stuff. This is a big shock for me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

rhapsody_en_blonde: what you say about this new shedding new light about a character is definetly true (wasn't that the case during the entirety of the seventh book? That entire book was, in great part, a revelation of the real Dumbledore.) although, yes you're right about not necessarily needing to know that dumbledore was gay.

everyone has a really good point here...luna_black, for example...i'm a very true christian and ...you make a very good point...i hadn't thought about it...and ...well, do'nt know what to think now...and grinds, you make sense too...jkr would've told us earlier..not 3 months after the final book came out...

OH MY GOSH I LOVE JK ROWLING!! way to make the wizarding world so much more amazing :) [I REALLY REALLY REALLY WANT TO KNOW WHO DRACO MARRIED!!]

It is like saying, " I really like the way you look, but.... your hair is awful and your clothes don't match".

Isn't being tolerant of others an integral component of Christianity? "Judge not lest you be judged," right? Whether or not I agree with this characterization decision, just because JK (or anyone for that matter) created a gay character doesn't make her any less of a Christian.

Luna_Black: The Bible also condones slavery and states that women should not be permitted to teach or speak in church. I'm sure you're against slavery, and I'm sure that you're also fine with women teaching and speaking in church. You must not be a Christian, then. If you still insist you are, Jo has just as much right to call herself a Christian.

i don't hate gays, grindelwald-guy-person, but i am against them. you can not like someone's choice to live, but still love them, because God says love everyone(oi, i sound goody-goody, but it's true!) i hate the hypocrisy of her comment. so hate me, whatever. but i've lost all respect for JK.

araminta - you are right also... everyone...i keep agreeing with everyone..then someone else comes..erg....*sighs*...i seriously don't know what to think about this..

Thanks for the positive responses to my comment, hahah. I tried to put that together as clearly as possible. To Grnd3lW4Ld - JKR said herself that she always regarded her novels as a "prolonged argument for tolerance". And his orientation doesn't change the books - what he did, what he stood for, who he was, and his pupose are all still the same. What might have changed is people's opinion of him, even though in a perfect world it shouldn't! Sadly this is far from a perfect world! And to honeydukes0209 - beautifully spoken! I actually work with the Harry Potter Alliance and I'm hoping we'll get someone (maybe even me? *hopes*) on with the Mugglecasters and/or Pottercasters to discuss this. After all, the HPA is dedicated to fighting real world dark arts, and hate is definetly a dark art!

there is no reason to be against gays, why are you?

Do you think the wizarding world was aware Dumbledore was gay? I just remembered in DH there is a mention, I can't find the quote. It is in an article and it questions why Dumbledore/Harry were so close??? Maybe the wizarding world were afraid it was sexual between them, even though it was not!???

Araminta , does Mugglenet look like a church?!?! i'm expressing my opinion, and it sounds really mean on the internet, but i believe what i believe. again, i'm against gays, but i love everyone. i'm just shocked and disappointed and sorta disgusted at JK. alright, i'm leaving.. bye..

PS - i didn't say she was any less of a Christian! i'm no better that her! i am just - shell shocked at her comment because i was defendeding her the other day and she does this!.

i don't quite understand luna_black...how do you love everyone..but be against gays? :S....and thanks alot t_quigs, i meant everything i said back there and really neeeded to get it out...hopefully there are many fans out there that think the same as me...anyway, that's really cool, being part of the hpa? wow...that we be great if you could get on mugglecast!

wow...this is the biggest rallying of opinions i've seen since the release of book seven. Jo really metio la pata when she said that. im really looking forward to school on tuesday. lmao

well luna its foolish to take a book of stories, throw away the meaning and look at it as fact. bye. quigs that makes no sense, with the same logic I could say harry is black.

alright... i could discuss and debate this for days, but i have papers to write and midterms to study for. Dumbledore was right, the fountain told a lie... :( Well i hope i've been able to help promote a positive reation, even only in one or two people! take care and keep the comments nice

Luna_Black: You called Jo a hypocrite for accepting homosexuality while being a Christian. By that logic you too are a hypocrite, because I know that, contrary to the Bible, you're against slavery and that you support women teaching and speaking in church. If you can reject certain teachings of the Bible and still call yourself a Christian, so can Jo.

Why does Jo have to go and ruin seven books by telling everyone about Dumbledore's sexuality - these books are primarily for children! Now I won't be able to read them in the same light : (

I think Luna_Black meant she doesn't agree with the lifestyle; there is a difference. And I have to agree with her. I have no beef with gays: my aunt and her best friend (whom I consider an uncle) are gay, and I love them both very dearly. I don't necessarily agree with homosexuality, but you know, at the end of the day it isn't worth it to go through all that trouble to hate or to disown someone just because they're a little bit different.

right rhapsody_en_blonde...i mean, just imagine...if there are gays here or ppl with family members that know gay people, it must be affecting them greatly...i hope no one here is offended by the things written here! but for now, goodbye!