Identifying with Muggles - The Dursley and 'Terrifying' Abuse

[pippin_999]

No: HPFGUIDX 158333

> a_svirn:
> And Harry's parents appointed Sirius as his guardian, yet nobody 
> bothered to honour their wish, least of all Dumbledore. Which only 
> goes to show that he observes the law only if it suits him. 

Pippin:
Sirius, or possibly someone impersonating him, relinquished Harry to 
Hagrid at Godric's Hollow. The fact that Sirius (or whoever) gave 
up the child so  reluctantly but didn't insist on protesting to 
Dumbledore in person would be one of the things that made Sirius
look guilty at the time.  

Once Sirius's innocence was established, Dumbledore seems to
have regarded him as a co-guardian, since he was allowed to sign
Harry's Hogsmeade permission form.

> > BAW:
> I think that 
> > Tom Riddle's case was special, too, as the orphanage matron wasn't 
> > Tom's parent--and wanted to get rid of him in the first place, so
> > DD was just easing matters.  
> 
> a_svirn:
> Yes, there is something to be said about magic when it comes to 
> easing matters. But what is easy is not necessarily what is right, 
> isn't it? Or what is legal as the case may be.
>

Pippin:
Perhaps in that era it would have violated the Statutes of Secrecy
to tell any Muggle, whether parent or guardian, about the nature of 
Hogwarts. In any case, a child has the right to an appropriate 
education, and in my country, at least, the state will enforce that
right against the wishes of the parents or guardians if need be.


Pippin