J.K. Rowling Supports Donald Trump’s Freedom To Be ‘Offensive And Bigoted’ Despite Voldemort Comparisons

"Harry Potter" author J.K. Rowling, never one to mince words about politics, said Monday that American presidential candidate Donald Trump is "offensive and bigoted" — but she supports his right to be that way.

Speaking at the PEN Literary and Free Expression Awards Gala in New York, Rowling praised the United States and United Kingdom for protecting residents' freedom of speech. She referenced a recent petition signed by 585,000 people demanding the U.K. ban Trump on the grounds that his proposal to ban Muslims from entering the U.S. qualified as "hate speech."