Harry Potter censorship
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J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series of books have been the target of many censorship attempts and protests. The Harry Potter books were number seven on the American Library Association's list of the 100 most frequently challenged books of 1990-2000. The people attempting to censor the books allege that the books have occult or Satanic themes, are violent, and are anti-family.
Some Christian groups in the United States have denounced the series, saying it promotes witchcraft or Satanism. "It contains some powerful and valuable lessons about love and courage and the ultimate victory of good over evil," said Paul Hetrick, spokesman for Focus on the Family, a national evangelical Christian group based in Colorado Springs. "However, the positive messages are packaged in a medium — witchcraft — that is directly denounced in scripture." [3]. The official exorcist of Rome, Father Gabriele Amorth, believes that the Harry Potter books can be a bad influence on some children by getting them interested in the occult (see Christian views on witchcraft).
The current Pope, Benedict XVI, in contrast to his predecessor who praised Rowling, also condemned the books, stating they are "a subtle seduction, which has deeply unnoticed and direct effects in undermining the soul of Christianity before it can really grow properly." [4]
In contrast, other members of the Catholic Church gave the series their approval, by saying that it is imbued with Christian morals, and that the good versus evil plot is very clear. The late Pope John Paul II praised the books for their message about the evils of racism and genocide. Christian Congregationalist minister John Killinger also argued that rather than corrupting children's minds, the novels encourage young readers to follow the teachings of Jesus. The book The Hidden Key to Harry Potter: Understanding the Meaning, Genius, and Popularity of Joanne Rowling's Harry Potter Novels (ISBN 0972322108), written by John Granger, a Reader in the Orthodox Church, claims to uncover Christian themes in its analysis of the story. Granger also cites the fact that Rowling is a professed member of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland.
Much less controversy has occurred in the United Kingdom.
The controversy was spoofed on the television show The Simpsons. In one episode, ultra-Christian Ned Flanders "reads" Harry Potter to his son and says "…and Harry Potter and all his wizard friends…went straight to Hell for practicing witchcraft". His son cheers and Ned throws the book into the fireplace.
Timeline of events
- 60 Australian Seventh-day Adventist schools banned the books from classrooms in 2001.
- In June, 2001, a library board in Oskaloosa, Kansas cancelled a performance program that involved reading from the Potter books which had been scheduled by the Library staff. (The books were not withdrawn from circulation.)
- The Christ Community Church burned a pile of Harry Potter books in Alamogordo, New Mexico on December 31, 2001.
- Private schools in the United Arab Emirates removed the books in February, 2002, because the government said the story was contrary to Islamic values.
- On September 7, 2002 a group of policemen in Penryn, Pennsylvania refused to direct traffic at a YMCA triathlon because the YMCA used the Harry Potter books in a reading program.
- The Rev. Douglas Taylor, denied a city burning permit, held a book-chopping party for 30 at the Ramada Inn in Lewiston, Maine in November, 2002.
- The books were banned in an Cedarville, Arkansas school district, and were reinstated by U.S. District Court Judge Jimm L. Hendren in April, 2003.
- Maranatha Christian College, near Melbourne, Australia, removed the books from their library in July 2003.
- St Philip's Christian College in Newcastle, Australia, removed the books from their library in 2002 and added two anti-Harry Potter books to their collection. In October 2005, the library also published a call for other book-banning requests in the school newsletter.
See also
External link
- kidSPEAK! - an anti-censorship website