Laura Mallory, the mother of four whose mission is to ban Harry Potter books in Georgia schools, lost her case today in a Gwinnett County Superior Court. The judge says the books stay.
Mallory hasn't read the books yet she is convinced that they promote "the religion of witchcraft," and leaves people wondering, "where is God?"
This story hits home for me as a former teacher. I had a similar experience with the books when I taught third grade. Parents expressed concern about the book and didn't want their son to listen to me reading it aloud. They cited the same reasons as Malloy, apparently following the fundy talking points on the subject. Coincidentally, their son looked just like Harry Potter down to his scruffy hair and scar on his forehead. After having several discussions about it and sending the book home for them to read (they hadn't), they eventually decided to let him listen and they would talk about it at home. No one loved the books more than this boy who sat in the front of the group and listened intently during read-alouds.
The message I love about the early books (I stopped reading at book three) is that Harry is not a perfect boy. He has real feelings and doesn't always say or do the right things. In the classroom, we often used Harry's actions as a jumping off point for discussions about what we could have done differently or better.
Mallory, who gets all choked up when she talks about all the kids Harry Potter will turn into real. live. witches!, intends to take her case to a higher court. Good luck with that, Laura.
