Originally a comment by Bjarte Foshaug on Muppet applauds like a seal.

Time for a re-read of your own books.

Sure, let’s do that. One recurring theme throughout the Harry Potter series is people being falsely accused of things they haven’t done:

• The Chamber of Secrets: Hagrid accused of releasing Slytherin’s monster into Hogwarts, Harry accused of being the heir of Slytherin.

• The Prisoner of Azkaban: Sirius Black spending years in prison for Wormtail’s crimes.

• The Goblet of Fire: Harry accused of cheating his way into the Tri-Wizzard Cup.

• The Order of the Phoenix: Harry accused of lying about Voldemort’s return.

• Etc. etc.

In all these cases, the lack of conclusive evidence* is not going to stop the mob, including The Daily Prophet**, from eagerly and enthusiastically parroting back the accusations and demanding the witch be burned. Sound familiar? In the fictional universe of the books Tim Quartier would be among the people wearing the “POTTER STINKS” badges in The Goblet of Fire.

The Order of the Phoenix is basically a book about institutional capture and cancel culture. The Ministry of Magic is interfering at Hogwarts to suppress the inconvenient truth of biological sex Voldemort’s return, punishing those who speak out, and threatening to fire any teachers who fail to go along with the official dogma. Sound familiar? As I have previously written, there may not be a real-world equivalent of Voldemort (too much of a super-villain), but there sure are a lot of Draco Malfoys and Cornelius Fudges and Dolores Umbridges and Rita Skeeters out there.

* In the Hogwarts universe there is, of course, pretty much always a magical way to fake the evidence anyway.

** Obviously representing the mainstream media.