Will Harry Potter "disappear" from the shelves this summer?

With the release of the last book this summer and another movie in July, will J.K. Rowling's famous series come under fire again? Having been under controversy since the first book was released in 1997 due to it's focus on wizardry and magic, Harry Potter books almost always top the list of most banned books. Do you agree? Are these books banned at your library?



Here's a great website on the controversy of Harry Potter at http://educationworld.com/


Look Out Harry Potter! -- Book Banning Heats Up

J. K. Rowling's best-selling Harry Potter children's book series topped the most frequently banned books last year. The books about sorcerers may head up the list again, for the second year in a row, if the shift in censorship cases continues to focus on books about fantasy. This week, National Library Week, Education World examines the issue of book banning. Included: Resources for establishing procedures in your school system to handle challenges to popular books. http://www.educationworld.com/a_admin/admin/admin157.shtml

"Forum on Web access at library draws 100-plus" by Brian Sharp

Would you censor what your library patron is viewing on the Internet? At my library we are requred to have filter programs so we can keep our ERate money. In this article, The Central Library of Rochester and Monroe County have a huge problem. Their county is threatening to pull funds from it's library unless they stop patrons from viewing pornographic sites. How do you feel? Is this something you do at your library? Is it a violation of 1st Amendment rights?


Forum on Web access at library draws 100-plus
Brian SharpStaff writer

(April 13, 2007) — Censorship or public safety. Political diversion or responsible leadership.The debate involves Internet access at the Central Library of Rochester and Monroe County — specifically, County Executive Maggie Brooks' threat to pull funding unless the library stops allowing adult patrons to view pornographic and other sites blocked by its filtering system.
More than 100 people turned out Thursday at the downtown library for the first of three public forums organized by city-county task force addressing the issue.
Roughly one-third of the audience spoke, with comments running 2-to-1 in favor of allowing adults to request such access."The current discussion is not about pornography, rather it is about censorship," said William Beenhouwer of Rochester. "Who gets to decide what is in, and what is out of the library?"
Michael Hennessy of Irondequoit countered, "We don't let strip clubs open next to schools. ... Yet we sit here and defend allowing pornography and filth coming into our library."
Brooks triggered the uproar in February, reacting to a TV report that showed adults viewing pornographic material on library computers.County spokesman John Durso said Brooks' office has received 500 e-mails in support of and 40 opposed to her stance. He said Brooks remains firm on the funding ultimatum — a $6.6 million cut that likely would force the Central Library, and some say others in the system, to close.
"I have to take that as a real threat," said John Lovenheim, president of the Rochester Public Library and a member of the task force, "because she said it, and she put it in writing."
Lovenheim added: "If she pulls the funding, the library closes."Officials from suburban libraries were among those who spoke in support of existing library policy, arguing it is rooted in acceptable practice and backed by the First Amendment and the U.S. Supreme Court. Some speakers alleged Brooks was diverting attention from real problems, like the county budget.
"If you cut funding to the library, that's dirtier than any pictures that are in question," said Floyd Minter, 25, of Rochester.However, Bob Spino of Rochester, who has worked in child protective services, said sex offenders use pornography, and later act on their deviant desires. He suggested providing a list of offenders to the library so librarians could refuse to unblock Web sites if the requesting patron is on the list.
Others said the community should decide what is permissible and what is obscene.The Rev. Carley Touchstone, pastor at Glad Tidings Church in Rochester, argued the library already was screening, and appropriately so, by not having Hustler and Playboy on its magazine shelves.
Lovenheim said that is a financial decision, there being only so much money in the budget. But, he said, the library does screen certain things, such as chat rooms, though not based on content.
That is the issue, he said. Bringing in the Internet and then filtering select content is what, he claimed, would violate the law."It gets interesting if someone said, 'You can have everything in the world.' Would you take it?" Lovenheim said, to which his answer is: "Yes. Because who am I to decide what not to take? That's the basis of the First Amendment. It's there, and you're entitled to it."
BDSHARP@DemocratandChronicle.com
http://www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070413/NEWS01/704130380/1002/NEWS