User:Ssstephen/Reading/Wxtch Craft
Targets of the witch hunt often more specifical than just women: healers, queer women; targeting women's power and community. "Gossip" as a term changed from meaning female friendship to meaning idle talk.
When you just make work as a man that is not political you are following a canon, that you didnt have to be aware of because you dont share a struggle around it.
Quote from melanie bonajo on men seeing themslves as neutral.
To change identities you have to begin to change the material condition.
Re: economic devaluation of women's work, despite the fact that procreation is one of the pillars of the capitalist organisation of work. Women's strikes? Happened in the 70s. Dependence of women on the waged worker, dependence of men on wage economy. (Also dependence of children on women/mothers).
The body as a portal and as a tool for resistance. "The first line of resistance is resistance of what is being done to my body". Body as territory (relevant to gender and also slavery abuses). Alienation of women from their own body.
The witchhunt is being thrown into the dustbin of history... The witch has been transformed into a legendary figure... You wouldnt dress up as the prisoner of the Auschwitz camp
Many witchhunts in Africa and India are to do with land dispossession
Pushing women out of the land they have access to, by accusing them of witchcraft. This is a problem today, not in the past. Satanic panic, misfortune is due to the enemy within: often the old woman who lives alone or doesnt want to give up her property/power. The witch-hunt as an object of fantasy (and even tourist attraction) is a dangerous idea.
I think feminists have to protest against that, and against commercialization
The commercialization that has parasitically followed the reclaiming of the image of the witch. Is the witch a good symbol for reclaiming of women's power and rights though? Being a witch historically and in parts of the world today, means being someone who is persecuted.
Witch hunt as relevant to oppression across various dimensions of society:
Nature is seen as opposed to society in capitalism... femininity is women's nature.
Links between feminism and animal rights / climate action.
Ngugi wa Thiong'o Decolonising the Mind. "Attempt to occupy our attention and our mind to prevent critical reflection".
The history of the witch hunt is one of colonisation and slavery
spirituality is a deep need of many communities, if anything the critique needs to be of religious institutions
Wicca and pagan movements as nature oriented movements. But also they do not appeal to witch craft, but rather try to reclaim deeper relationships with the natural world.
I think the magic of the world can be expressed in many ways without taking on a category that has been charged, and that continues to be used [maliciously], lets understand what we are talking about and what is the usefulness of it.
A practice that is associated with killing, destruction and destruction of people's life. Mel notes the difference between the popular belief / symbol and the historically accurate one. Surely this is important? If the popular opinion is historically inaccurate in a way that denies genocide, that seems like an issue?
We need to recuperate other forms of communication. I'm very concerned about the stage in which all the communication that takes place about people, particularly when it comes to organising struggle etc, is through these very public, open spaces that are dominated by companies that are speculating, that are making immense amounts of money on them, and they can be manipulated immensely. So I think we need some protocol for how to use the media so that their usage is not turned against us.