Forget Horowitz. Forget the dean of students. Most of all, forget the damn budget. Real news has happened and it demands your attention.

It has been more than a week, but in case you’re somehow still in the dark, a previously untold detail of the "Harry Potter" series was revealed at a book reading by J.K. Rowling at Carnegie Hall in New York last Friday: Albus Dumbledore is gay.

Ms. Rowling yanked Dumbledore out of the closet in response to an audience member’s inquiry as to whether or not Dumbledore ever "finds true love." The surprise was met by the audience with overwhelmingly positive support and uproarious applause. In the days following Ms. Rowling’s announcement, however, a mixture of support and criticism has invaded online discussions.

Many arguments have been made against Ms. Rowling’s decisions to craft Dumbledore as a gay character and to reveal his sexuality to the public. Some argue she should’ve told us earlier, or not at all. If something is not explicitly written in the text, it should be left to readers’ imaginations. Right… it’s not like when an author has large back-stories for the characters she has invented and actively developed for the last 15 years or so, she has the right to make known the intentions she had for the characters. Or, they argue Dumbledore being gay has no effect on the plot, therefore it should not have been revealed. (Well, it actually does have subtle effects on the plot, as I’ll explain).

And, of course, the idea that "Dumbledore can’t be gay; I thought he was supposed to be one of the good guys!" I’m not even going to try and argue this one.

If the naysayers have an argument that is even close to valid, or at least acknowledgeable, it’s probably "Who cares? Why is this relevant?" It is relevant, though, when considering the controversial issue of sexual preference and the enormous number of people who have been exposed to the Harry Potter series worldwide. Think: You, who are reading this article right now, have either read some of the books or have a decent idea of what they’re all about from friends or media that have exposed you to them. How many recent works of fiction can this be said about? Wouldn’t it be irresponsible to not at least examine the issue a little deeper than merely at a passing glance?

Now, the real scoop is as follows.

First, Dumbledore being gay fits his character. In the books, we are never given an indication that Dumbledore has ever been involved with a woman. Also, he is a champion of tolerance throughout the series — advocating rights for many different minority characters. Discovering that he, too, identifies as being part of a discriminated group makes his stance even more personal.

Ms. Rowling has just now released this information, but there is far better reasoning behind it than capitalism. Any speculation about sales is only that — speculation. What is obvious and important, though, is that if Ms. Rowling had ousted Dumbledore sooner, his sexuality would have become one of the main focuses — if not the main focus — of his character, which would have not only been bad for one of most popular book series ever written, but also for the image of homosexuality. Unfortunately, in our culture, it is common for gay people to be labeled and defined mainly by their sexuality. Had Ms. Rowling announced immediately or even in the middle of the series that Dumbledore was gay, many would have viewed his actions throughout the remainder of the series as actions performed "by a gay man," rather than actions performed by a great man who also happens to be gay. As Ms. Rowling said, "It has certainly never been news to me that a brave and brilliant man could love other men."

Ms. Rowling’s move could prove to be a great push — it’s not one of the first, but it is one that will have a very widespread influence — toward incorporating homosexuality into popular culture in a more casual way, rather than requiring it to be the defining moment or defining characteristic of a person. This can’t be anything but good news.

Brenton Martell ([email protected]) is a sophomore majoring in English.