J.K. Rowling buys Gucci purse for fan who ‘earned it’

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J.K. Rowling is notorious for sparking outrage on social media, whether she sharing posts that people find controversial or responds to criticism for her views, namely on gender.

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But the Harry Potter writer isn’t all about stirring things up — unless stirring up excitement counts.

Rowling noticed an X post by National Post contributor Amy Eileen Hamm where the writer and journalist wrote of her appreciation of a Gucci handbag but the price tag was simply too hard to swallow.

“You ever like a beautiful purse and then realize it costs $5,000?” Hamm lamented on Thursday.

Rowling replied, “Which one? I’ll buy it for you for Christmas. You’ve earned it.”

A “stunned” Hamm shared a photo and link to the designer’s website detailing the “Gucci Horsebit 1955 Small Shoulder Bag” priced at $4,845 before taxes, asking the author, “Are you serious?!”

Rowling responded, “It’s yours. DM your address,” adding kissy-face and Christmas tree emojis.

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Social media users loved to see it, taking to the comments section to applaud Rowling’s generosity and the overall goodness of the gesture and the women’s sweet exchange.

“How lovely is this? You have the best time with that lovely handbag,” one person wrote.

Another user wrote, “Some days I remember how much I love humanity.”

Others noted how Hamm “deserves a beautiful bag” because she has “been through and is going through hell at the hands of the B.C. College of Nurses and Midwives” while another noted the writer should put the bag “on full display the day you go to hear the decision.”

In November 2020, Hamm received a letter from B.C. College of Nurses and Midwives stating that she was under investigation for putting up a billboard in Vancouver that read “I [Heart] Rowling,” which was met with criticism by those who believe the author supports anti-trans feminism.

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“So much happened between 2020 and now,” she wrote in an X post this past March after the 20-day trial ended.

“I refused to keep the investigation confidential,” Hamm continued. “I refused to accept a suspension or to publicly say I had been transphobic (because I am not). I was accused of spreading ‘medical misinformation’ but then that charge was dropped, with zero explanation or apology (I demanded one but this demand went ignored).”

She described her trial as “hell,” and shared how she received “countless threats” as well as how many people tried to get her fired “for standing up for women and children,” which continues to this day.

“I did my best to endure it — I haven’t remained calm throughout — in the hopes that something good would come at the end,” Hamm wrote.

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“I also endured it because the truth matters. Free speech matters. Women and children matter.”