Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Harry Potter #1) by J K Rowling

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The Harry Potter that started it all! Join Evan as he talks about wizards, wizardry, how Hogwarts is a hellscape, and how unicorns are not innocent.

Banned

1999

California - Parent's objected to the book's use in two Moorpark elementary schools

Colorado - Parents objected at Douglas County schools

New York - Parents objected in suburban Buffalo among other districts

South Carolina - Challenged in schools because "the book has a serious tone of death, hate, lack of respect, and sheer evil."

2000

Ontario, Canada - Challenged but retained in the Durham School District because of witchcraft

Brisbane, Australia - Banned from Christian Outreach College library, being considered violent and dangerous

Alabama - Challenged but retained in Arab school libraries, claiming the author "is a member of the occult and the book encourages children to practice witchcraft."

California

Challenged but retained in the Simi Valley School District after a parent complained the book was violent, anti-family, had a religious theme, and lacked educational value.

Challenged but retained at the Orange Grove Elementary School for magic and bad experiences.

Challenged in the Fresno Unified School District by a religious group voicing concerns about sorcery and witchcraft.

Florida - Challenged in six Santa Rosa County schools in Pace for witchcraft.

Iowa - Challenged in Cedar Rapids school libraries because the book romantically portrays witches, warlocks, wizards, goblins, and sorcerers

Illinois - Challenged but retained in Frankfort School District 157-C after parents complained of lying and smart-aleck retorts to adults.

Michigan

Zeeland schools restricted the book to parental permission for fifth to eighth graders as well as no future installments would be purchased. Restrictions were overturned by the superintendent except one: teachers are prohibited from reading the book aloud to students below sixth grade. Restrictions place because the book contained an intense story line, violence, wizardry, and the sucking of animal blood.

Removed from Bridgeport Township public school for promoting witchcraft

New Hampshire - Challenged but retained in the Newfound Area School District in Bristol despite complaints the book was scary.

New York - Challenged at the Salamanca elementary school library for dark themes

Oregon - Challenged in Bend at Three Rivers Elementary school for witchcraft and concerns that the book would lead children to hatred and rebellion

Texas - Restricted to parental permission in the Santa Fe School District because of witchcraft promotion

2001

Florida - Challenged but retained in the Duval County school libraries despite complaint of witchcraft.

New Mexico - Burned in Alamogordo outside Christ Community Church as being "a masterpiece of satanic deception."

Pennsylvania - Challenged in Bucktown's Owen J. Roberts School District because the "books are telling children over and over again that lying, cheating, and stealing are not only acceptable, but that they're cool and cute."

2002

Moscow, Russia - Challenged by a Slavic cultural organization that alleged the stories about magic and wizards could draw students into Satanism

United Arab Emirates - one of 26 books banned from schools that contradicts Islamic and Arab values

Arkansas - Originally challenged for characterizing authority as "stupid" and portrays "good witches and good magic" and placed on restricted access. Parents of a fourth-grader filed a federal lawsuit against the restriction and the federal judge overturned the restriction.

Kentucky - A teacher's prayer group in Russell Springs proposed this for ghosts, cults, and witchcraft as well as fifty other titles for removal. 

2003 - Connecticut - Challenged but retained in the New Haven schools as it "makes witchcraft and wizardry alluring to children"

 

2006 - Georgia - Gwinnett County for guess what, but the school board rejected it. Georgia Board of Education ruled December 14, 2006 that the parent had failed to prove her contention that the series "promote[s} the Wicca religion and therefore that the book's availability in public schools does not constitute advocacy of a religion." On May 29, 2007, Superior Court judge Ronnie Batchelor upheld the Georgia Board of Education's decision to support local school officials. County school board members have said the bo oks are good tools to encourage children to read and to spark creativity and imagination.

2007 - Massachusetts - Removed from the St. Joseph School in Wakefield because the themes of witchcraft and sorcery were inappropriate for a Catholic school.

2010 - Calgary, Alberta, Canada - Salvation Army post refusing to take donations of Harry Potter items because they “promote black magic and the occult.”

2019 - Tennessee - Rev. Dan Reehil, the pastor of St. Edward Catholic School, consulted with exorcists and the Catechism of the Catholic Church before making the decision to remove the book series from the school library due to the possibility of risking “conjuring evil spirits” as well as concerns that the book teaches Machiavellian approaches to problem solving. Students may still read the book on school grounds.

Sources

Doyle, Robert P. Banned Books: Challenging Our Freedom to Read. 2014.

Willingham, AJ. “A Catholic school removes 'Harry Potter' from its shelves, claiming the books' spells are real.” CNN.com. CNN, September 3, 2019. Retrieved September 3, 2019 from https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/03/us/harry-potter-catholic-church-st-edward-nashville-trnd/index.html

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"Dances and Dames"

Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0

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