OTTAWA — An Alberta senator appointed on the advice of former prime minister Justin Trudeau is criticizing Tim Hortons for launching a nationwide Harry Potter promotion and says the chain should sell a Pride Timbit instead.Senator Kristopher Wells made the comments Tuesday after Tim Hortons announced Harry Potter-themed food, drinks and merchandise would arrive at participating Canadian restaurants on August 12.“Incredibly tone deaf,” Wells wrote on X. “Maybe @TimHortons should instead come out with a Pride Timbit to celebrate our real Canadian values.”“I stand ready to help with the product launch!” he added, accompanied by rainbow and doughnut emojis.Wells represents Alberta and sits with the Progressive Senate Group. The Senate describes him as a “champion for 2SLGBTQI+ rights” who previously directed the MacEwan Centre for Sexual and Gender Diversity..The Tim Hortons promotion will include doughnuts based on the four Hogwarts houses, a Golden Snitch Timbit and holder, and drinks inspired by the Patronus charm and Forbidden Forest.Limited-edition merchandise and packaging will also be offered. Participating restaurants are scheduled to host Harry Potter trivia events August 28.Tim Hortons said the promotion marks the 25th anniversary of the first Harry Potter film.“Harry Potter has been a beloved part of so many of our guests’ lives for decades,” said Tim Hortons chief marketing officer Hope Bagozzi.The announcement has drawn criticism and boycott calls from transgender and other LGBTQ activists who object to Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling’s public positions on biological sex, women’s spaces and gender medicine.Rowling has rejected allegations that she hates transgender people.“I absolutely refute the accusation that I hate trans people or wish them ill,” she wrote in 2020.In a lengthy essay explaining her position, Rowling wrote that she respects transgender people but believes biological sex cannot be disregarded in law, medicine or public policy.“I believe sex is real and has lived consequences,” she wrote.Rowling has said her principal concerns include preserving female-only spaces, recording crimes by biological sex, fairness in women’s sports and the medical treatment of young people experiencing gender dysphoria.She has also supported the right of transgender adults to live free from discrimination and persecution.CBC News published a story Wednesday amplifying criticism of the promotion.
