Who bans books anymore? It happens more often than we might realize. In the Houston Chronicle on Sunday, September 8, 2019, was an article bearing the headline, “Catholic School Library Removes Harry Potter Series Books.” It began as follows:
“Before the new school year began, Father Dan Reehil turned to several exorcists for advice. Reehil, a pastor at St. Edward Catholic School in Nashville, Tenn., was worried about the heretical lessons that students could learn from the Harry Potter books, he wrote in an email to faculty members that was obtained by a local TV station. At the advice of the exorcists he consulted, who shared his concerns, he purged the series from the school’s library.”
Parents were the ones who complained about this arbitrary action, claiming that “the decision had been made without input from the parents or other school administrators.” The Harry Potter books had not been “deemed age-appropriate for students at the pre-kindergarten-through-eighth grade school.” The author of the article, Antonia Noori Farzan added “…the Catholic Church has not taken an official position on the Harry Potter series” and added that to her knowledge, no other school in the diocese has done so. St. Edwards has said it doesn’t “get into censorship ” beyond making sure books are age-appropriate. As a sort of a compromise, the school has said students will be able to read the books but would not be able to check them out of the school library.
Just this weekend, a friend (a former 7th-grade student) sent via Facebook an article, accompanied by a picture of the famous courtroom scene of the movie, which reported that To Kill a Mockingbird had been banned by a school district because it made some people “feel uncomfortable.” Her response had been “Mrs. Longest, Whhaat? I replied, “I thought that was what good literature was supposed to do–make the reader feel uncomfortable with the status quo.”
Still, books are being banned and censored, not only for our children but for adults. Let’s pray people who take on the role of censors can be stopped, and we still have the freedom to read in our country.
powerfulwomenreaders 
Libraries generally have a committee of parents, staff members, and community members to study and rule on any books that are challenged.
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Thanks to fellow blogger who let me know Banned Books Week is in SEPTEMBER, not OCTOBER!
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Please read the comment below. I goofed on the date.
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