Religious parents offended by Harry Potter on school syllabus as it 'trivialises magic'
Teachers receive complaints that the books expose children to 'witchcraft and Satanism'.
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Teachers are reportedly receiving complaints that teaching the Harry Potter books in classrooms exposes children to "witchcraft and Satanism".
Tom Bennett, a school behaviourist consulting with the Government, has claimed concerns from parents, particularly of religious backgrounds, that the popular series of novels works to "trivialise acts of magic". Speaking at an event held at London's City Hall, Bennett stated, "Harry Potter deals with the occult. There are many, many parents who are uncomfortable with their children discussing or looking at or reading anything at all do with the occult.
For many parents, particularly of Evangelical Christian backgrounds, and sometimes of Muslim backgrounds, the occult is not something which exists in fiction and fantasy, the occult is something which is a very living, live part of the faith. Many parents, particularly if they are Jehovah's Witnesses, will ask their
children not to be exposed to books which trivialise or normalise acts of magic. It's part of witchcraft and Satanism.
They say they'd rather their children weren't exposed to literature or fiction which normalised or trivialised or even applauded or encouraged what they would regard as witchcraft."
Though the Harry Potter series does not form part of the English literature syllabus, their extensive popularity has often led to their inclusion in school library stocks, and occasionally their use as classroom materials. Bennett described religious studies tutors utilising the series as an example of a collection of books telling one, over-arching narrative.
He urged teachers to address the issue head-on and to create a continuing dialogue with concerned parents, "We’d suggest that teachers should explain that the books help develop language and creativity... If there are grounds for a parent to not want this taught (i.e. religious grounds) the teacher should be flexible in delivering their content, and come up with ways to provide an alternative for those pupils."
Harry Potter has long been part of a furious debate in multiple religious communities over its content. During the height of its popularity in 2001-2009, it was the book most challenged for its inclusion in US public libraries.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments