Tumblr has always been famous for two things: incredibly huge fandoms, and active social justice communities. In the past year, the two have come together in the best way to create the POC Harry Potter movement.
The lack of representation for almost any minority at Hogwarts has long been a sore spot for fans. Though headcanons abound, Dumbledore is the only confirmed queer wizard to date, and characters like Kingsley Shacklebolt and Padma Patel provided racial representation that was largely passive. The Golden and Silver trios have no members who are commonly thought to be people of color.
That's what makes the race bent Harry Potter movement so important. These artists aren't trying to change canon, or delete images of white Harry Potter. They're just trying to change the idea that the heroes in a popular book series should automatically be seen as caucasian.
The recasting of Lavender Brown is one of the most egregious examples of whitewashing in the movies. Though she was depicted by two black actresses in Chamber of Secrets and Prisoner of Azkaban, Jessica Cave was cast to play her in the sixth film, as she had gained a more prominent role as Ron's love interest.
Lavender Brown's race is never stated in any of the Harry Potter novels. Racebending Harry Potter, one of the most popular collections of POC Harry Potter media on the internet, pays tribute to this by printing, "In memorium of the real Lavender Brown." on the bottom of every page.
Some of the plotlines in Harry Potter make more sense when the characters are POC. The slur "mudblood" has obvious parallels with the n-word, and Hermione's visceral reaction to it is even more heartbreaking when you picture her as a young black girl. The Dursley's rejection of James Potter and "wizardry" seems even darker when you think of him as an Indian immigrant - and Harry's isolation feels all the more heartbreaking. Draco's repeated taunts that the Weasley's are "blood traitors" appear even more disgusting when you consider Ron and Ginny to be biracial. In literature, author's intention is often irrelevant. The meaning of the story (and the depictions of the characters) belong to the readers.
I met a really clever reader the other day, and this is what's wonderful about books; she said to me, 'I really know what Neville looks like.' And I said, 'Describe Neville for me.' And she said, `Well, he's short and he's black, and he's got dreadlocks.' Now, to me, Neville's short and plump and blond, but that's what's great about books. You know, she's just seeing something different. People bring their own imagination to it. They have to collaborate with the author on creating the world. - JKR
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