ADELAIDE, Australia – Back in March TWH reported on the Adelaide University Occult Club’s approval by the Adelaide University Union (AUU) being delayed. They had been allowed to register provisionally in early 2021.
At the time, the AUU cited the need to “await complaints that might be filed.” Yet Ashley Towner, president of Adelaide University Occult Club said that none of this was normal practice, and told ABC radio, “They tabled it on the basis that they are awaiting written complaints that don’t exist yet.”
Since then, the AUU has rejected the Occult Club’s approval on the grounds of a complaint received that expressed concern that Occult Club’s members could potentially summon Satan onto campus.
In a comment given to the Australian News outlet, ABC, Towner said, “Even if we did want to summon Satan, it’s not against university or union policy to do so, so it’s still not really grounds to reject us.”
According to Towner, the AUU only received one complaint which not only expressed concern about the summoning of the Christian devil but stated that “occultists are always involved in criminal activity.”
While the Occult Club is appealing the decision, it is unclear whether the appeal will have any traction. The AUU clubs committee and the union’s board are both comprised of conservative members.
As noted in the past, the AUU has rejected a number of club registrations that all seem to be in direct opposition to their conservative viewpoint. Clubs like the Women’s Collective, the Endometriosis & PCOS clubs, and the Pro-Choice Club were all denied approval, while they allowed an anti-abortion club, Life Choice.
Out of the over 170 Clubs the AUU lists on its website, only nine of them are listed under the faith and religion category. Of the nine, seven are Christian-based, and one is Muslim, with the Adelaide University Occult Club being the only other listing. The SA Young Greens wrote “As young people, many of whom are university students, recent graduates, or soon to enrol, we recognise the importance of vibrant clubs communities on campuses in giving young people spaces to find themselves and connect with others. This Occult Club provided such a space for minority religions at the University of Adelaide.” They added that “the disaffiliation of Adelaide University Occult Club by conservative factions Progress and Connect, the Young Liberals, is an act of religious discrimination.”
Towner has a petition up on the non-profit site Megaphone.
CHICAGO – For the third year, Thor’s Oak Kindred has a team walking in the Ricky Byrdsong Memorial Race Against Hate and invites all to join us or donate to this worthy cause. Thor’s Oak Kindred is a diverse organization dedicated to the practice of the Ásatrú religion in Chicago.
In a press release, Thor’s Oak Kindred stated:
We come together to honor the Norse gods and goddesses, the spirits of the land, and the departed people who inspire us. Since 2016, we have been building and nurturing a face-to-face community of practitioners in Chicago and the greater midwestern region for ritual celebration, group events, and mutual support.
Our members are kindred by choice and have chosen to embrace each other as family. We are proud of our diversity, and we stand against all discrimination on the basis of race, sex, orientation, identity, origin, ancestry, age, or ability.
With the poison of white nationalism spreading worldwide and using Ásatrú as a propaganda vehicle, it is no longer enough to issue declarations and denunciations. We must join with other people of positive intent, push back on resurgent hate, and promote productive change.”
On June 19 in Evanston, the YWCA hosts the 23rd annual event in memory of Ricky Byrdsong, the Northwestern basketball coach murdered by a white supremacist in 1999 while walking in his neighborhood with his young children. On the same day, the shooter wounded six Orthodox Jews. Over the subsequent weekend, he killed a Korean-American graduate student and wounded an African-American minister before taking his own life.
All proceeds are used to further the YWCA’s mission in the areas of racial justice and violence prevention. Their programs assist children in schools and youth organizations to challenge their own prejudices and foster healthy, violence-free relationships among their peers; support teenagers in examining their own relationships and practicing constructive ways to handle conflict and differences; and encourage adults to engage in constructive dialogue, interactive activities, and meaningful action as related to racial justice.
Help make a real difference in the real world. Register today and join us on the walk. If you don’t live in the area, you can donate any amount small or large. Sign up to join our walking team or donate by clicking here.
Announcements:
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- The Pagan Archive Project, whose goal is to preserve Books about The Occult, Wicca, Paganism and other like subjects, announced their long-term goal is to create an online lending library so the books and be read and used by all. According to their press release, “Libraries including the Library of Congress have listed many of this type of book as missing, (intentionally destroyed by a person or persons). Additionally, they state that the project “will not be a download site to get free books instead paying the author and publisher for their hard work and research. And if the book can still be purchased they will provide links to purchase said book. They also note that project will definitely be a long-term one and they will be looking for donations of funds and books that can be scanned to a digital format to be read online. Currently what they need since they are just in the beginning stage of the project are money, volunteers and book donations. They already made some investments in technology like multiple external hard drives, a flatbed scanner, and a high-speed ADF scanner, but they will no doubt need more equipment and great deal of support from the community for their project to be successful.
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- In honor of Randy P. Conner, a scholarship is being created in his name to support a LBGTQ student studying in the Fine and Performing Arts program at Moraine Valley Community College near Chicago. To donate to Randy’s scholarship:
• Go online to donate via credit or debit card using this donation page dedicated to Randy.
• Or Mail a check made payable to the Moraine Valley Foundation and write “Randy’s Scholarship” in the memo of the check. Mail to Moraine Valley Foundation, 9000 W. College Parkway, Palos Hills, IL 60465
In other news:
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- A series of connected passageways have been discovered beneath the Chavin de Huantar temple, which is over 3,000-years-old and located in the Peruvian Andes. Located in the north-central Andes, about 150 miles north of Lima, and 3,200 meters (roughly 2 miles) above sea level, the site was once a religious and administrative center for people across the region. Archaeologists have found at least 35 underground passageways which all connect with each other over the course of various excavations which have spanned a number of years. The passageways were built between 1,200 and 200 years B.C.E. Researchers have noted that the construction of the passageways has features similar to structures that are from much earlier periods but has never been seen previously in passageways. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985, Chavin de Huantar temple was both the inspiration and name of the operation carried out when the Peruvian armed forces built a network of tunnels to rescue 72 people taken hostage by the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA) rebel group at the Japanese ambassador’s residence in Lima in 1997.
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- A new discovery on Mexico’s Yucatán peninsula has revealed the ruins of a major Mayan city complete with palaces, temples, pyramids, and plazas. The new find was unearthed during the construction of an industrial park near Mérida, and while the style of Mayan Puuc architecture is common to the southern Yucatán peninsula, it is a rare find in Mérida. Excavators date the site to 600 to 900 C.E. and estimate that roughly about 4,000 people lived there. The site is named Xiol, and archaeologists also discovered burial grounds that contained the remains of adults and children, as well as a variety of grave goods. While the industrial park will still be constructed the landowners have stated that the archaeological remains will be preserved.
In April, as part of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Endangered Species Recovery Program, three Mexican wolf pups born at the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago were transferred to New Mexico.
A total of eleven wolf pups from various breeding programs were placed in the dens of wild Mexican wolves, a process called “cross fostering.” The Mexican Wolf Species Survival Plan (SSP) program produces genetically diverse pups and within two weeks of being born the pups are transported to wild dens with similarly aged wild pups and raised by wild wolves who are surrogate parents for them.
The program has been extremely effective in not only boosting the populations of Mexican wolves but also helping to keep the wolves’ genetic lines diverse and prevent inbreeding.
The smallest, most genetically distinct, and rarest subspecies of gray wolf in North America, the Mexican wolf, (Canis lupus baileyi) saw an increase in population with 196 wolves in 2021 according to the Interagency Field Team (IFT).
IFT conducted ground and aerial counts of Mexican wolves in Arizona and New Mexico from November 2021 through February 2022 and identified 112 Mexican wolves in New Mexico and 84 in Arizona.
While these numbers may be small, Mexican wolf populations have continued to grow over the past six years. When the subspecies was first declared endangered in 1976 under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, there were few Mexican wolves to be found in the wild.
The increase in population was only a meager 5% in 2021, but Jim deVos, Arizona Game and Fish Department Mexican wolf coordinator said, “While we hope for a higher growth rate, the 5% growth observed, when looking at the totality of the program, still indicates a recovering population. Overall wildlife populations had a hard year with low precipitation and little winter snowpack last year. I am encouraged by the increase in breeding pairs and the number of packs present. These measures continue to increase and bode well for future recovery for the Mexican wolf.”
Into the wild! Several Mexican wolf pups born at Chicago’s Brookfield Zoo were sent to New Mexico as part of continued efforts to restore the species in its native habitat. https://t.co/sYPJh95FF6 pic.twitter.com/gVBtq12g1V
— ABC News (@ABC) May 28, 2022
Tarot of the week by Star Bustamonte
Deck: PussyCat Tarot, by Cary Gray, featuring poems by Cat Rose, independently published.Card: Seven (7) of Pentacles
This week is likely to include a focus on envisioning how to manifest or create what is desired. Hard work and diligence applied to projects and goals will reap the rewards sought.
Conversely, taking on too many projects, being undercompensated, or overworking can result in feeling exhausted, unappreciated, and dissatisfied. There is also the potential for setbacks and failure as a result of laziness, lack of focus, impatience, and not following through.
Decks generously provided by Asheville Pagan Supply.
- In honor of Randy P. Conner, a scholarship is being created in his name to support a LBGTQ student studying in the Fine and Performing Arts program at Moraine Valley Community College near Chicago. To donate to Randy’s scholarship:
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