TWH – While secular Halloween is in the rearview window, this year saw a virtual tsunami of Witch articles featured in a variety of mainstream media outlets. From NBC News opinion section Think, to The Washington Post, to the BBC, stories about Witches and Witchcraft have been incredibly prevalent throughout the year, and not just during the month of October.
Perhaps one of the most noticeable shifts in the stories featured by media outlets this cycle is not only the tone of the articles, but that many of them either featured interviews with real practitioners, like we reported last month, or were written by magical practitioners like the recent Think piece by TWH contributor, Antonio Pagliarulo.
A recent BBC segment about “WitchTok,” highlights the fact that videos on the social media platform TikTok bearing #witchtok have collectively amassed over 30 billion views.
There has also been a continued focus and push to exonerate those who were charged, convicted, and executed for committing alleged acts of “witchcraft.” This trend has only increased and is very much connected to the news articles that seek to de-mystify and dispel the misconceptions around modern magical practices. At this point, it seems to be less of a trend, and more of a movement.
Exhibits like the one at the Center for Women’s History at the New-York Historical Society, titled, “The Salem Witch Trials: Reckoning and Reclaiming;” the one in the Doheny Memorial Library’s Special Collections area, “The Misogyny of Witchcraft;” and the one in Colchester Castle in Essex, The Wicket Sprits exhibition which pays tribute to the over 700 people who stood accused, have become increasingly popular.
Over the course of just this year, Elizabeth Johnson, the last woman of those accused of “witchcraft” in Salem, Massachusetts was exonerated, and Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s first minister, issued a formal apology to all of the victims persecuted under the Witchcraft Act of 1563 with the possibility of posthumous pardons still pending.
When it comes to pop culture, Witches are practically everywhere. The last two years have also seen a rapid increase in the number of witchy rom-com books. Yesterday, WBUR’s Here & Now had a segment on their popularity.
While Witches have often been characters within the fantasy genre, how they are being portrayed has shifted. The Witches in many of rom-coms are often not the villain or the victim, but instead, the crafty woman who takes control of her life.
Author Deborah Blake is just one example of a Witch who writes both fiction and non-fiction. Blake has written a dozen non-fiction books on Witchcraft, and the tarot and oracle decks, EveryDay Witch. She has also penned a fiction series and stand-alone books that feature Witches, magic, and romance.
The image of the Witch both in history and the modern age has become one of resistance, resilience, and social justice, as well as being a spiritual practice. If the interest in Witches and Witchcraft continues to grow, it is likely that the media attention will also keep pace.
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TWH – The U.S. Postal Service has released its list of new postal stamps scheduled to be released in 2023. Two of the new stamps will honor the iconic and legendary images of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and American novelist Toni Morrison.
Courtesy of the U.S. Postal Service
Ginsburg has long been referred to as a beacon of equality and gender rights and began her career as “an activist lawyer fighting gender discrimination, Justice Ginsburg became a respected jurist whose important majority opinions advancing equality and strong dissents on socially controversial rulings made her a passionate proponent of equal justice and an icon of American culture.”
The stamp depicts an oil painting by Michael J. Deas that was based on a photograph by Philip Bermingham, of Justice Ginsburg in her black judicial robe wearing one of her now iconic white collars.
Courtesy of the U.S. Postal Service.
Morrison who won a Pulitzer Prize for her novel Beloved in 1987, and was the first African American woman to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1993, is depicted on the stamp in a photo taken by Deborah Feingold.
Many of her powerfully written and critically acclaimed works detailing the Black American experience have won a variety of awards and in 2012 she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by then-president, Barack Obama.
Art director Ethel Kessler designed both the Ginsburg and the Morrison stamps.
Courtesy of the U.S. Postal Service
Also to be honored on a stamp next year is Chief Standing Bear (ca. 1829-1908). Chief Standing Bear, a member of the small Ponca tribe won a landmark court ruling in Standing Bear v. Crook in 1879. He persuaded a federal judge to recognize Native Americans as persons with the right to sue for their freedom, firmly establishing him as one of the earliest U.S. civil rights heroes.
The stamp image is based on a black-and-white photograph taken in 1877 and a portrait done by Thomas Blackshear II. According to the U.S. Postal Service, “The color of Standing Bear’s attire was based mainly on contemporary descriptions. Art director Derry Noyes designed the stamp.”
Courtesy of the U.S. Postal Service
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Endangered Species Act and to help raise awareness the U.S. Postal Service has will issue a collection of 20-stamp sheets featuring some of the most endangered animals in the U.S.
Currently, over 1,600 species of plants and animals that are at risk are offered safeguards and are protected by the Endangered Species Act. Art director Derry Noyes designed the stamps using images from the monumental work of photographer Joel Sartore who has taken more than 13,000 pictures that are part of his project, “Photo Ark.”
A full list of all the new stamps slated to be released in 2023 can be found on the U.S. Postal Service website.
Announcements:
- Revelore Press announced that its sequel to The New Aradia, The Gorgon’s Guide to Magical Resistance will be available for purchase beginning on November 2. Both volumes were edited by Laura Tempest Zakroff and feature a selection of “sigils, spells, recipes, essays, invocations, rituals, and more, all gathered from experienced magical practitioners.” Additionally, those who purchase a copy before November 8th at midnight (PST), will receive a complimentary ePub version that can be immediately downloaded.
- Last month, the city of Philadelphia saw its very first Samhain Witches’ Ball held. The event took place on Saturday, October 22. According to a press release, “Nearly thirty people attended the event, which was open to the public. The ball was organized by Jim “Raven” Stefanowicz, High Priest and Founder of the South Street Circle, a neo-pagan ritual group based in South Philly. A recognized leader in the pagan community, Jim is also an instructor at the Grey School of Wizardry, an initiate in the Ash, Birch, and Willow tradition of witchcraft, a ritual coordinator for Philadelphia Pagan Pride Day, and a graduate of the Cabot Academy of Witchcraft in Salem, Massachusetts — through which he holds a second degree. ‘It is my honor to have spearheaded this event,’ said Jim. ‘Hopefully it will be the first of many witches’ balls to come.’ The night included several rituals to honor deities and ancestors in anticipation of Samhain, the Witches’ New Year – believed to be the time at which the veil between worlds is most thin. Included in the decor was an altar where attendees could place photos and other offerings for loved ones who have passed. Activities included a costume contest and on-site tarot readings provided by Scott Myers from WytchWise. One of the highlights of the ball was a hand-fasting ceremony for Vincent and Lexa, two of the Circle’s members. It was a night of unity, community, and magick.”
In other news:
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- Tennessee Pastor, Pastor Greg Locke, held another book burning of occult books yesterday evening. The event has yet to garner as much media attention as the one he held in February, and some Christians have denounced his tactics. Hemant Mehta, founder and editor of the blog Friendly Atheist, the podcast by the same name, as well as co-founding the site OnlySky, tweeted footage of the event which was initially hampered by rain. Mehta has written about Locke’s past book burnings and his plans for last night earlier in October.
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- The foundations of a temple have been discovered by a Polish-Croatian team next to the Church of St. Daniel in the village of Danilo near Šibenik in Croatia. It is on the site where the ancient Roman city of Ridit was located. Polish research leader, Professor Fabian Welc from the Institute of Archaeology of the Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw, said: “The data we have collected indicate that under today’s church and the adjacent cemetery there are relics of a temple, which was part of the forum, the most important part of a Roman city.” A number of artifacts and elements of decorative sculptures that once adorned buildings had previously been found, but the original site of the temple and forum was unknown. The forum was where of the most important public buildings in Roman cities, such as courts or municipal offices, were located, as well as temples.
On October 25, the last solar eclipse of 2022 occurred. The partial eclipse was viewable from Europe, the Urals, and Western Siberia, Central Asia, Western Asia, South Asia, and northeast Africa.
Tarot of the week by Star Bustamonte
Deck: Santa Muerte Tarot: Book of the Dead, by Fabio Listrani, published by Lo Scarabeo.Card: Page of Swords
The week ahead is liable to amplify the energy of preparation and ponderance of what might be needed in the future. There may also be an underlying sense of unease, centered around the potential for unexpected or unforeseen events that cannot be planned for.
Conversely, lack of preparation and failure to consider possible shifts and changes could result in not having what is needed. Ignorance this week is unlikely to be bliss.
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