Racism In ‘Harry Potter’

April 22, 2013 |

Poet Rachel Rostad has zeroed in on some inconvenient truths for Harry Potter fans, namely that J.K. Rowling managed to create a fantastical universe crammed full of exotic, magical creatures while still marginalizing and fetishizing people of color. It’s really a stunning achievement, when one considers just how robust the world of Harry Potter is, that Rowling could manage to fuck up the last name of her only Chinese character, since “Cho Chang,” Rostad points out, is an amalgamation of two Korean last names, and to come upon a Chinese person named Cho Chang would be like finding “a Frenchman named García Sánchez.” Burn.

Though naming Chinese character “Chang” may be slightly less egregious than she says it is (in a conscientious response to the original poem, Rostad explains how she glossed over some of the nuances of Chinese naming in order to streamline the “García Sánchez” punchline), Rostad has a point. It’s unlikely that her criticisms about, say, the manner in which Dumbledore was outed after all seven books were released will prevent most people from professing their undying adoration for Harry Potter, but her takedown may raise at least a few eyebrows.

Courtesy http://jezebel.com

British concern on BBS

Tuesday, 23 April 2013

Officials of the British High Commission has held discussions with the authorities of the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) in the morning today (23), reports say.

The discussion was held at the headquarters of BBS with the participation of the leader of BBS Ven Kirama Wimalajothi Thera, Financial Secretary Ven Haputale Pagnarama Thera and Executive member Dilantha Vithanage.

The British officials have questioned BBS regarding it’s camping against the Muslim community in Sri Lanka and the conflict raised due to their actions.
In response Ven Kirama Wimalajothi Thera has stated that the intentions of the organization is not to act against the Muslim community but the Muslim extremists.

Ven Thera has protested against using the word ‘army’ with reference to Bodu Bala Sena in a Human Rights report by UK and the British officials has declared that it is a mistake
.
However, both parties have agreed to continue discussions in the future.

Officials from US embassy has also held discussions with BBS two weeks ago at BBS headquarters.