Boy Wizard Stirring Pot of Controversy
Boy Wizard Stirring Pot of Controversy
MANCHESTER -- J.K. Rowling's famous creation is causing quite a stir, and it's not of the cauldron variety.
Some religious leaders are requesting that the latest Harry Potter novel, "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," as well as all of the previous books in the series (the latest book is the fifth of a planned seven), be removed from schools and libraries throughout the nation and banned throughout the Commonwealth.
"We firmly believe that these books negatively encourage our children to perform acts of great personal and public danger," says Miranda Mistletoe, who as evidence points to a sequence in the latest book in which Harry mistakenly calls on demons in an attempt to use them for unintended purposes.
Parents and teachers alike are appalled at the religious' leaders attempts.
"Once again, people are reading too much into these books," remarked Chastity Washington, president of the National Teachers' Employees Union (NTEU). "They're nothing more than a way of escaping the reality of these harsh times we live in for a few hours at a time. And kids and adults alike love them."
The government has yet to act, but political analyst David Matthews says it is likely Parliament will reject the petition of the religious leaders. "One of the issues foremost in the minds of the Prime Minister and Labor leaders alike has always been preservation of the public's right of choice," he remarked in a press conference. "Censoring these books would obviously go against that mentality."