Slytherins are bad (was:Re: Severus as friend)

[Zara]

No: HPFGUIDX 183332

> Betsy Hp:
> And that's what makes me cringe.  In the end, Slytherin is 
> the "racist house."  And I mean, it really truly is, I'm not trying 
> to argue (anymore *g*) that JKR was cleverly pointing out the ease of 
> falling into prejudice and stereotype by setting up an easy to fall 
> into prejudice and stereotype that "all Slytherin's are bad -- born 
> that way, don't you know."  Instead, yes, they *are* all that bad.
> 
> I still have *no idea* why Salazar was ever invited into the original 
> fold, and I *certainly* don't understand why Slytherin House was 
> allowed to remain after he rubbed his true colors (never a big secret 
> to begin with, per the Sorting Hat) into everyone's face.

Zara:
Presumably, Slytherin was invited to found Hogwarts because he was a 
good friend of the other founders, especially Godric, because he ws a 
highly skilled and powerful wizard, and because he had the power and 
influence and following to attract many young witches and wizards to 
the school.

After he left, I presume the House was kept around because the same 
could be said about its current students and Alumni Association. (I am 
aware no such organizations are mentioned in canon, I am using the term 
loosely, to indicate the seeming tendency of adults to still take pride 
in their Houses and want their children in them, see e.g. the Weasleys, 
the Malfoys, and the B;lacks, for their respective Houses).

In Salazar's day, and even in Harry's, there was nothing illegal about 
the notion that certain families were better and more important than 
others. Nor about the suspicion that the best witches and wizards were 
descended from those families, or that Muggleborns are naturally less 
talented. And these notions were widespread within society, so a wild-
eyed reformer wishing to close Slytherin House and stigmatize such 
views at a later date, would meet stiff resistance from a sizable 
portion of the population and of the membership of Hogwarts' Borad of 
Governors. And all these reasonably popular and completely legal 
political views, are only one of the things Slytherin House is for.

One thing it is never said to be for, is terror and violence to 
implement an extreme blood supremacist state. However, for obvious 
reasons, anyone advocating such, would a fortiori already be in the 
pureblood prejudice camp, hence likely in Slytherin.