The author of Harry Potter, J.K Rowling, has defended her recent tweet to the controversial Westboro Baptist Church over the legalization of same-sex marriage in Ireland. Rowling had initially taken to the micro-blogging site to celebrate the historic vote though soon found herself in a war of words.

JK RowlingJk Rowling had something to say to the Westboro Baptist Church

Elated by the vote, Rowling posted: "Sitting here watching the Irish make history. Extraordinary and wonderful."

Then, in response to a tweet from someone asking what would happen if Dumbledore and Gandalf were gay together, Rowling responded: "Then they could get married IN IRELAND"

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That comment coaxed members of the Westboro Baptist Church out of their hovels, with one tweeting: "So @jk_rowling wants Dumbledore & Gandalf to marry in Ireland; if it happens, WBC will picket!"

And then came the response from Rowling.

"Alas, the sheer awesomeness of such a union in such a place would blow your tiny bigoted minds out of your thick sloping skulls," she said.

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"I don't care about WBC.  I think it's important that scared gay kids who aren't out yet see hate speech challenged," she followed up, to a slow clap from the Twitter community.

Rowling has been far more vocal on social issues in recent years. She donated £1 million to the British Labour Party in 2008, saying she believed in their commitment to tackle child poverty, and donated a similar amount to the campaign against Scottish independence in 2014.