
Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling has waded into a Twitter spat with a gun advocate in the wake of one of the deadliest mass shootings in modern American history.
At least 59 people were killed and over 500 injured in in Las Vegas when a gunman opened fire on a music festival crowd. Social media was quickly filled with arguments over gun control laws, and accusations that those who were calling for more restrictions were 'politicising' a tragedy.
Others chose to simply share their grief, condolences for the victims, and anger at the killer.
Singer Ariana Grande for example, called the attack what Nevada State law calls it, 'terrorism'.
In response, US conservative activist @ScottPresler asked:
@ArianaGrande Wait a second; You call for gun control now, but not for radical Islamic control after the attack at… https://t.co/3n7E2eBwAB— #ThePersistence (@#ThePersistence) 1506969996
Presler was referring to the terrorist attack in Manchester that was perpetrated in May, in which 23 people, many of them children, were killed by a homemade shrapnel bomb detonated at an Ariana Grande concert.
It was at this juncture that JK Rowling entered to stand in front of Ariana.
Islam doesn't kill people. People kill people. https://t.co/AtNVBwye6u— J.K. Rowling (@J.K. Rowling) 1506978894
Presler was pleased to have been publicly shamed by Rowling, sharing a screengrab of the exchange.
Well, I guess I've made the big times. https://t.co/49zolAidge— #ThePersistence (@#ThePersistence) 1506989868
He also replied to Rowling several times.
@jk_rowling A radical Islamic terorrist yelled, "Allahu Akbar" before stabbing 2 women to death in Marseille. That's radical Islam.— #ThePersistence (@#ThePersistence) 1506989509
@jk_rowling So, if people kill people, you'll stop blaming guns? *Mic drop*— #ThePersistence (@#ThePersistence) 1506990375
Yeah. 'Mic drop'.
As noted by Politico, the National Rifle Association (NRA) has gone dark, as it often does following gun tragedies.
Their Twitter, Facebook, and their Website which usually have new posts multiple times a day, posted nothing in the hours after the Las Vegas shooting.
In the past, the NRA has waited weeks to respond to a gun massacre.