Top Story: As I first mentioned back in September, the snarky fashion show “What Not to Wear” (on the increasingly misnamed TLC network) shot a Salem-themed episode starring Salem Witch and shop co-owner Leanne Marrama. Now it’s finally being aired this Friday.

“The show’s cast and crew descended on Salem in September, where they filmed Marrama’s look being “put on trial” — reminiscent of Salem’s infamous 1692 witch trials — by a jury that included other members of the city’s psychic community. The show then swooped Marrama — and all of her clothes — to New York for a week, where “What Not to Wear” hosts Stacy London and Clinton Kelly weeded out her wardrobe and gave her $5,000 to start anew, and redid her hair and makeup. The results will air Friday at 9 p.m. “I’m so excited to see the episode,” Marrama said. “It’s going to be very funny, and I hope other people can learn something from it.” CinemaSalem will host a free public viewing of the episode as it airs live. Marrama plans to attend, along with her family and friends.”

The article also notes that locals hope the town will be prominently featured, but not everyone in Salem is happy with all the witch-focused attention it gets. Ward 3 Councilor Jean Pelletier, during a discussion over what to name a new bypass road, heaped scorn on the idea of naming it after “stupid witch stuff”, drawing the ire of some Salem residents.

“I hate to tell you, Councilor, but that “stupid witch stuff,” along with the Salem power plant, is the engine that drives the Salem economy. Instead of downplaying those two money-makers, you should promote them. Which would you choose: “Stupid witch stuff” or raising taxes?”

Want to know why non-witchy residents tolerate the massive Halloween-flavored mardi gras every October? Why they don’t seem to mind all the reality television, migrating Witches, and plastic capes? One word: revenue. No, make that two words: revenue and taxes. So long as Witches are good for business, everyone will find a way to get along.

In Other News: A few days ago I highlighted an article about Ugandan anti-sacrifice campaigner Polino Angela, who claims that he himself sacrificed several children, including his own son. Some Ugandans, perhaps unused to the old Christian “Satanic Panic” media-spin where “saved” confessed mass-murderers are somehow allowed to walk free, are straying off-message in an article for the Observer.

“His preaching can’t take away the crimes he has committed against humanity, if there is evidence of the offences against him he may not escape the law,” said Anselm Wandega, the head of policy advocacy at ANPPCAN Uganda Chapter.

Moses Binoga, head of the Police anti-Human Sacrifice Task Force, has also opened an investigation in the Amolatar District, were Angela is said to be living. Uh-oh! Looks like some countries actually take you seriously when you claim to have killed 70 people as a former witch doctor. Will Angela backtrack on his somewhat dubious claims of an organized child-sacrifice network now that he might actually get in trouble? We’ll have to wait and see, but it’s looking more and more like my suspicion over this story was warranted. Religion-blogger Richard Bartholomew is also skeptical, and he notes that one of the supportive government officials in the original story is a notorious homophobe more  interested in the length of mini-skirts than in police corruption. Just as some Western conservative Christian organizations are quietly funding and supporting Ugandan efforts to pass a draconian anti-homosexuality law, perhaps there are others quietly importing that old Satanic Panic?

Over at EarthSpirit Voices, Andras Corban Arthen shares with us the story of  how Nigerian citizen Wande Abimbola, the selected spokesman of the Yoruba religion in Western Africa, had his deities seized from him by an Australian customs agent on his way to the Parliament of the World’s Religions in Melbourne.

“Finally, the metal doors of the Customs area parted one more time, and Wande Abimbola, his American-born wife Ifaboyede, and their eight-month-old son made their way into the terminal, looking troubled and dismayed. “They have taken our deities away,” they informed their greeters. The Abimbolas were scheduled to offer several presentations on the spiritual traditions of the Yoruba, and they were bringing with them several objects which manifested particular orisas, the ancestral spirits whose veneration is central to Yoruban religion. The objects are not considered to be mere symbolic representations, but extensions and abodes of the orisas themselves — sacred emanations of sacred beings, to be treated with honor and respect. But this was obviously irrelevant to the Australian Customs agents in Melbourne, who unceremoniously confiscated the objects.”

Though Abimbola was able to retrieve his deities on his way back out of the country, the event cut through the idealism of the event for Arthen, reminding him of the hostility, ignorance, and discrimination that exist outside the walls of interfaith gatherings like the Parliament.

“For me, though, this episode continues to ring a sour note in what was mostly a very harmonious event. It’s very easy, when attending a function such as the Parliament, to get so wrapped up in the beauty and idealism present all around us that we can forget some of the harsh realities that lie in wait just beyond these walls. The quarantined gods of the Yoruba were, this time, a constant reminder of the arrogance, the prejudice and the fear that continue to cause so much conflict among nations and cultures, and a reminder as well of how much we need to continue to talk, and teach, and learn from one another, as we do in the Parliament of the World’s Religions.”

I suppose another lesson is that interfaith activities are a first step, not the last step, in normalizing relations and establishing mutual respect between different faith groups. It’s easy to move past differences when most everyone around you is willing to do so, it’s quite another thing to engage a far more hostile and cynical wider world on a regular basis.

Bakersfield, California District Attorney Ed Jagels is retiring from public office after 26 years. Jagels became notorious for his prosecution of  several (46) innocent men and women over bogus child-abuse (and “Satanic” child abuse) cases. A situation that was covered in the documentary “Witch Hunt”. Several spent years in prison, some even decades, before finally being freed. A situation that still haunts some of the children coached into giving testimony.

“What Jagels did not witness was the aftermath of his actions. All the children who testified against Stoll and my mother have had to deal with years of life-altering guilt. I was forced to believe that I was molested by my mother, taken from my home and placed into mandatory therapy, where I spent years in counseling trying to recover “blocked” memories.”

Jagels now admits that mistakes may have been made, but seems to feel little remorse for the lives he destroyed.

“If those cases came today, we would have handled them differently,” Jagels said. “But what we had at the time, I think we handled them the best we could.”

Attorney Michael Snedeker of Portland, Oregon, who helped free many of the accused says that “truth and justice meant nothing to him”, meanwhile, Jagels’ supporters are already trying to whitewash his career. This whole story illustrates how the officials who allowed the SRA panic to go forward, to pursue questionable evidence and testimony, go unpunished. Some of them may even become Senators if they play their cards right.

In a final note, more religion-beat reporters are moving on. Boston Globe reporter Michael Paulson is being promoted, so he’s leaving the God-beat behind, and there’s no word yet on who, if anyone, is going to replace him. Meanwhile, AP religion reporter Eric Gorski is also moving to a different beat. All this isn’t making Mollie at Get Religion feel very optimistic about the future of religion reporting.

What a major change. I suppose it is good, in both Paulson’s and Gorski’s cases that they will be moving to new positions with an eye toward the importance of religion coverage. If only we could put former religion beat pros throughout every paper. Still, I have to agree with what another Godbeat pro said about the changes — that they’re “devastating to Godreporting.”

I suppose you can insert my now-standard “this is why we need a robust Pagan-grown journalism” speech, but I’ll save it for Pantheacon and PSG (though I will still throw in a link to the Pagan Newswire Collective, because I can). In any case, it seems to be yet another sign of the incredible shrinking God-beat.

That’s all I have for now, have a great day!

While my daily blogging routine entails quite a lot of me sitting on my butt behind a desk, I do get out now and then to talk to folks about issues and topics related to the work I do here at The Wild Hunt. So if you are interested in seeing me speak, I have a couple of important engagements scheduled in 2010 that I thought you might like to know about. First, I’ll be attending and presenting at Pantheacon in San Jose, California, this coming February. Pantheacon is the largest indoor gathering of modern Pagans in America, and I’m honored to have been selected as a presenter (I’ll post the schedule once it becomes publicly available). This year’s theme is “Back To Basics”.

“This year’s Theme is Back to Basics — As energy and economics implode we look for more simple ways of life. Our pagan ethics and worship of our Earth Mother help us forge new sustainable lifestyles as we honor the old ways. What we know about the old ways of life, others now acknowledge as new imperatives to be the custodians of our earth. What is the bottom line when it comes to our lives and our spirits? What living skills of our traditions are especially needed for the future?”

I’ll be giving a talk on Pagans and the new media, and while that may not sound very “back to basics” on its surface, I think it certainly covers “living skills” that our interconnected religious communities need for the future. Since the hotel has wireless Internet, I’ll also be blogging from the event, and hopefully conducting interviews with some notable and prominent Pagans while I’m there. So stay tuned for that!

Then, later this year, I’ll be one of the presenters (along with T. Thorn Coyle) at this year’s Pagan Spirit Gathering in Missouri. PSG, which is organized and run by Circle Sanctuary, is one of the oldest and largest Pagan festivals. This year is the event’s 30th anniversary, and I’m truly honored to have been asked to present there.

“At PSG 2010, there will be presentations by a variety of authors including T. Thorn Coyle, Jason Pitz-Waters, and Selena Fox. In addition there will be workshops and performances by musicians including Coyote Run and Damh the Bard. Additional presenters and performers will be announced in coming weeks. As in past years, PSG’s spiritual community begins emerging as participants arrive on opening day, set up camp, meet and greet others, and create a Pagan Town together which will last the entire week of the Gathering. The Sacred Fire is lit during the Opening Ritual and is kept burning throughout the Gathering to symbolize the Solstice Sun and Spirit of the PSG community.”

PSG runs from June 20 – 27, and there is apparently no Internet, or cell coverage, at Camp Zoe, so I’ll be unable to report from the event directly, or access the blog. So expect  to have a whole week of wonderful Wild Hunt guest bloggers!

In addition to my formal talks at these events, I’m hoping to have informal discussions with folks about the importance of building a robust Pagan journalism, along with meeting some of my awesome readers! So if you see me in San Jose or Missouri, don’t be shy, say hi!

Ever wonder what delivery drivers do in-between stops? Well, at least one driver for FedEx in New Jersey apparently dispenses Chick Tracts to people who display non-Christian bumper stickers. A “Goddess Bless America” bumper sticker on Wiccan author Trish Reynolds‘ car was seemingly too tempting a target for FedEx driver Brian Kaufman, who decided that the Halloween-themed tract “Boo!” would send the appropriate message.

“Apparently upset, Kaufman went back to his truck and returned to place a small pamphlet under the windshield wiper of Reynolds’ car. Kaufman had driven away by the time Reynolds went out to her car to find the pamphlet was a cartoon titled “Boo,” that focused on the evils of witches and their danger to Christians. Among other things, the cartoon depicts an evil Halloween pumpkin, accuses Wiccans of committing human sacrifices and links Wiccans with Satan … Reynolds later complained to FedEx and Kaufman subsequently returned to speak with Reynolds about her complaint.  Reynolds said Kaufman was not apologetic but simply repeated his objections to what he considers Wiccan beliefts.”

A FedEx spokesperson said that they were “taking steps with the driver” over the matter, that the drivers behavior was “inappropriate”, and that they don’t condone drivers using company time to hand out crazy conspiracy-laden hate literature (unless, I assume, you are paying them to deliver it to you). In a unique extra step, Mt Oliver Chronicle reporter Phil Garber called up Chick Publications to get their reaction to the situation. They are, of course, the persecuted party in all this.

“We see them as lost,” Rockney said. “Without the lord, we are all lost.” She said she was not surprised that the group is listed as a hate group because, “anytime you go to tell the gospel of Jesus, you’ll have people hate you for that.”

Just wait, if Mr. Kaufman ends up losing his job over this, you can expect the usual suspects to start crying “persecution”. As for FedEx, I’m sure it was an isolated incident, and that most of the kind and industrious drivers could care less what our bumper-stickers say. Oh, and you can find a listing of Trish Reynold’s books, here.

Readers have requested it, so here we go, occult pop-stars! Specifically, blogs, magazines, tabloids, and gossip-columns have been making much hay from conspiracy-theory sites (mainly one called The Vigilant Citizen), concerning the secret “Illuminati” messages emanating from mega-pop-stars like Jay-Z, Kanye West, and Lady Gaga.

“In the “Bad Romance” video Gaga “makes her trademark ‘Eye in the triangle’ hand gesture after her initiation to make it clear who owns her now…the Illuminati. The final scene shows Gaga lying in bed with the burned skeleton of the Russian mafiosi. Notice how everything is burnt except the two gazelle heads. The real “intercourse” happened between Gaga and Baphomet. The guy was a tool, a middle-man who was sacrificed in the process of Gaga’s initiation.”

So, as someone who actually does look for occult themes in music, what do I think? I think some creative people latched on to some pretty universal symbols in order to look cool, sell CDs, and get people talking. And even if Jay-Z is a Freemason, and decided to litter his videos with references to his (alleged) allegiance, so what?

The problem here is that people are getting all Dan Brown on us. The big conspiracy is probably that there is no conspiracy, except perhaps in the minds of certain graphic designers looking for a new way to sell t-shirts. We shouldn’t confuse the pretty standard pop-occultisms of modern music (a topic authors have been exploring for decades) with actual allegiance to any sort of occult philosophy or order. Now, if Jay-Z or Gaga want to out themselves as ritual magicians, then by all means, have at it. But I haven’t seen any clear-minded sign of such a confession. If you really want a band who understands and (sorta) takes seriously the occult imagery  in their videos, I suggest the KLF.

They were gaga before Gaga was gaga. Over and out.

Top Story: The BBC leads with a story about ritual child-killings in Uganda, saying that the problem may be more widespread than previously thought. At the center of this investigation is former witch-doctor turned anti-sacrifice campaigner Polino Angela, who claims that he himself sacrificed children, including his own son.

When he returned to Uganda he says he was told by those who had initiated him to kill his own son, aged 10. “I deceived my wife and made sure that everyone else had gone away and I was with my child alone. Once he was placed down on the ground, I used a big knife and brought it down like a guillotine.”

That sounds truly horrific, and the BBC rightly asks him if he’s willing to be prosecuted for the 70 people he claims to have killed in his former witch-doctoring life. The answer may (or may not) surprise you.

Asked if he was afraid he might now be prosecuted as a result of confessing to killing 70 people, he said: “I have been to all the churches… and they know me as a warrior in the drive to end witchcraft that involves human sacrifice, so I think that alone should indemnify me and have me exonerated.”

After that quote, I started questioning the validity of the entire article. It isn’t that I don’t believe children aren’t being abducted, abused, and killed in several African nations. There’s of plenty of evidence for that. I also acknowledge that some witch-doctors are indeed killing and mutilating certain children for various reasons. But the following portrait painted by the BBC, with help from Mr. Angela, raises many of my old “Satanic Panic” red flags. How often did we see former “Satanists” who claimed to have participated in murders and kidnappings, yet never bothered turning themselves into the police for one reason or another. There are other flags, a “nationwide network” of witch-doctors, with a “boss” who takes a cut of all the money, for example. To reiterate, I do think children are being harmed, and I think some of those harming children may in fact be witch doctors, but I’m deeply skeptical of some of the claims being raised here. They sound a little too perfect and well-organized to be fully true.

In Other News: New York city councilman, and practicing Theodsman, Dan Halloran, has been enjoying his recent electoral victory at a series of swearing-ins, functions, and parties. Connor Adams Sheets at YourNabe.com brings us an account of Halloran’s January 3rd swearing-in at the Fort Totten Officer’s Club in Bayside.

“The fete was a joyous end to a bitter campaign during which Halloran’s pagan faith was used against him; accusations of racism were cast by the campaign of his Democratic opponent, Kevin Kim; and both camps’ political rhetoric often degenerated into mudslinging. Beginning with the national anthem sung by Bayside cantor Margaret Abel and a rousing performance by a police bagpipe group, the ceremony was filled with humor, back-slapping and enthusiasm about the work Halloran will do for his native district over the next four years. Halloran pledged to uphold during his term the conservative principles he campaigned on by working to reduce taxes and help small business owners and middle-class families.”

Several local Democrats, including U.S. Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-Bayside), and Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan), showed up to the event, perhaps signaling an openness to bipartisan cooperation from both sides. We will, of course, be watching his political career with interest in the coming four years.

Want another perspective on “Avatar”? I hope that answer is “yes”, because here is author and techgnostic Erik Davis weighing in, saying that perhaps the film is more “ayahuasca lite” than “noble savage mysticism”.

“OK, maybe I am the one smoking something. But if there is an aya-Avatar connection, it would explain one crucial way in which the film differs from conventional “noble savage” mysticism. Rather than ground the Na’vi’s grooviness in their folklore or spiritual purity, the film instead presents the vision of a direct and material communications link with the plant mind. Which means that Eyra does not have to be believed—she can be experienced. After the temporary fusion with the Tree of Souls that fails to prevent her death, Weaver’s chain-smoking left-brain doctor happily confirms Ewya’s existence. Like the Vine of Souls now wending its way through the developed world, the Tree of Souls becomes a kind of bio-mystical media, a visionary communications matrix that uplinks the souls of the dead and the network mind of the ecosphere itself.”

So perhaps “Avatar” isn’t so much about pagan pantheism, but instead about communicating with the “plant mind”?  Then again, perhaps the film is whatever people want it to be. Different meanings for different minds. Wouldn’t that mean it’s great art? Perhaps the clunky dialog and trite plot are merely there as a prop for a mystical experience?

For those of you awaiting the “Lords of Chaos” movie adaptation, starring teen heartthrob Jackson Rathbone as Varg Vikernes, it looks like plans have changed. Rathbone is out due to “scheduling conflicts”, the production time-table has been shifted, and the plot of the film may be getting an overhaul. That last tidbit of news coming from Vikernes himself.

“Now, they are apparently basing the story of this movie not on my story, but on the ‘Lords Of Chaos’ story. Unfortunately the ‘Lords Of Chaos’ story is not only nonsense; incoherent and utterly contradictive, but it is also very lacking in information regarding the lives and traits of the individuals to be included as characters in the movie. One could easily think that this would make it impossible for anybody to make a movie based on this book, but of course if you simply fill in the holes yourself…”

With the movie seemingly in chaos, will they proceed? Will they pull a “Velvet Goldmine” and fictionalize the story to avoid more problems with the living-breathing subjects they want to tell a story about? Will the film get stuck in development hell? Your guess is as good as mine at this point.

In a final note, the Indian Express reports on a relatively new development, girls publicly performing Vedic prayer-chants, something that has been considered taboo for many Indians.

“Eight all-girl teams lined up on a foggy Delhi morning, raised their faces towards the sun and chanted Vedic suktas (prayers). In four minutes each, they breached with ease barriers that most Indian women are still not allowed to approach. The Vedic chanting event was part of the three-day Inter-School Value Festival held at the Sri Satya Sai Vidya Vihar Girls’ Public School, Kalkaji. Eight of 11 Sri Satya Sai Schools in North India are taking part in the event that began on Tuesday. “Vedic chanting by women was a social taboo in India, but things have started improving. In many parts of the country, women chanting suktas are still frowned upon,” said one of the judges at the competition, requesting anonymity.”

Let’s hear it for the breaking down of outmoded barriers, and for the freedom of women to publicly praise the goddesses, gods, and elements, of their homeland.

That’s all I have for now, have a great day!

Just a few quick items I wanted to share with you today, starting with a post from my favorite Christian blog, Slacktivist, who tackles the sad case of Ali Sibat’s death sentence in Saudi Arabia, and the sensationalist “500 dead animals” Santeria story from Philadelphia in one fell swoop.

“The Supreme Court of the U.S. did not rule that the free exercise of Santeria is “permitted.” It ruled, unambiguously (9-0), that the free exercise of Santeria is protected. This is not a minor distinction. People like Sally Kern — or like Chuck Colson and Robert George and everybody they got to endorse their “Manhattan Declaration” — like to think that their particular religion is protected by the First Amendment while other, less widely held religions are merely “permitted,” merely tolerated out of a benign condescension. But the First Amendment does not make or allow for any such distinction. If it did, then America would require a Saudi-style “religious police” to enforce laws dependent on the content of religious beliefs. A legal category of “heretical, but permitted” could not long exist without realizing the implied additional legal category of “heretical and prohibited,” and neither category is compatible with religious freedom. It is not possible to make legal judgments regarding the content of religious belief without enforcing laws against heresy. And it is not possible to enact and enforce laws against heresy without religious tyranny.”

For those curious about what that “Manhattan Declaration” is that he mentioned, you can find the text of it, here. You can read Slacktivist’s opinion of that declaration, here. While I’m not too surprised to see a Christian blog report on the Sibat case, I’m pleasantly surprised to see one address the Santeria story. Kudos to Fred Clark for addressing the fact that religious freedom means freedom for all religions, not just the ones that are “Judeo-Christian”.

The Smoky Mountain News in North Carolina takes an exhaustive look at the various viewpoints on the matter of public religious invocations before government meetings. Interviewing Christians, atheists, politicians, lawyers, and even Pagans, in the process.

“Lianna Constantino, high priestess of the Sylva Hearth Pagan Temple, said prayers that specifically reference Jesus Christ in Haywood, Swain and Macon counties persist simply because the practice has never been challenged. In her opinion, holding any one group above another promotes an atmosphere of intolerance. In Constantino’s view, it will take a long time for major change, somewhat due to the makeup of WNC society. “There hasn’t been a lot of diversity like there has been in other parts of the country,” said Constantino. “As a simple fact, this is a pretty homogenous Christian-entrenched society in the South.” … Constantino, high priestess of the Sylva Hearth Pagan Temple, said endorsing Christian prayers before meetings blatantly violates a precious partition between religion and state. “I think it is rude, arrogant and presumptuous to impose any singular religious tradition on a religiously diverse society,” said Constantino.”

The article was prompted by recent successful legal challenges in Forsyth County that ended sectarian prayer before governmental meetings. Now a group of North Carolina counties (Haywood, Macon and Swain) wonder when they’ll be called to court for excluding religious minorities, or making public sectarian invocations. The answer is most likely “eventually”, as religious minorities (and atheists) grow and decide they’ve had enough of a governmental endorsement of Christianity masquerading as “religious freedom”.

In a final note, the Guardian music blog spotlights “Pagan Metal: A Documentary”, a film I’ve mentioned here before.

“The result is a new film, Pagan Metal: A Documentary, that features interviews with some of the scene’s big players, including Finnish bands, Finntroll, Korpiklaani and Turisas, as well as Norway’s Leaves Eyes and Ireland’s Primordial. Their dedication to ancient traditions doesn’t quite go as far as carving guitars out of birch and stringing them with the entrails of wild boar, but alongside your typical metal set-up, traditional instruments, such as violins, flutes and Celtic bagpipes, are rife. Lyrics, meanwhile, are steeped in traditional, pre-Christian themes: Finntroll, for instance, draw inspiration from from the epic Finnish poem The Kalevala.”

The post chronicles how film producer Bill Zebub was initially quite skeptical of the genre, but was won over by the “vibe” which called out to “the European” within him. They also tackle how some bands veer into racism and nationalism, though they do add that there is less extremism and sensationalism on the whole than within the more-popular Black Metal genre (a genre that also has a documentary about it coming out).

That’s all I have for now, have a great day!

If you pay attention to the political blogs, you may have heard about the ongoing controversy concerning Kevin Jennings, Assistant Deputy Secretary for the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools at the U.S. Department of Education. Jennings, who co-founded the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), has been bombarded with accusations from the right-leaning blogosphere. That he (through GLSEN) promotes porn in the classroom (a claim that has been debunked), that he had covered up a statutory rape (proven untrue and retracted), and that he is/was a pedophile (also proven untrue and retracted). Having been unable make any of these accusations stick and create the necessary controversy that would bring about a resignation or dismissal, they are now combing through any statement he has made that could link him to their idea of who Jennings is (a perverted corrupter of youth unfit for a Department of Education job). Enter gay rights pioneer Harry Hay.

“Harry Hay, who “inspired” Obama-appointed Education Department official Kevin Jennings to lead a life of homosexual activism, was not only a supporter of the North American Man-Boy Love Association (NAMBLA) but a prominent member of the Communist Party USA  and “Radical Faerie” who believed in the power of the occult. Hay’s influence is relevant not only because Jennings is a top Education Department official, but because Hay is considered by homosexuals to be the founder of their movement. A Stalinist and Marxist until the day he died, Hay defended NAMBLA’s participation in “gay rights” marches and its membership in the International Lesbian and Gay Association.”

Wow! Jennings, like his inspiration, must support NAMBLA, the Radical Faeries, and communism? Well, not really.

“In fact, Jennings’ praise of Hay has only “led to questions” among those determined to mischaracterize that praise. Jennings praised Hay’s role in helping start “the first ongoing gay rights groups in America” in 1948, which has nothing to do with NAMBLA. (Just as unacceptable to Kincaid, it appears, is that Hay was also “a prominent member of the Communist Party USA and ‘Radical Faerie’ who believed in the power of the occult.”)”

The truth is that sometimes noteworthy activists have flaws and feet of clay. People can do something you admire, like starting one of the first gay rights organizations, and then later do something you completely disagree with, like calling for the inclusion of NAMBLA in gay rights parades. I bring this up, because I’ve indirectly praised Hay, along with his partner John Lyon Burnside III, for their work in founding the Radical Faeries.

“Needless to say, the Radical Faeries have had a huge impact on Gay Pagan spirituality, and the movement has done much to help integrate Gay voices into the wider Pagan community since the early 1980s*. Burnside, along with Hay and other pioneers in the Gay spirituality movement, have left an indelible mark on Gay and Pagan culture.”

Does this mean I also support NAMBLA or pedophilia? Of course not. The notion is absurd, but that’s the kind of logic that is being thrown around here. Kevin Jennings is not into “the occult” because he praised a RadFae co-founder, any more than I’m transphobic for acknowledging the work Mary Daly has done in furthering feminist theology. Has our political discourse become so tainted and mean-spirited that anyone we praise or acknowledge must be blemish-free lest we risk being associated with any controversial word or deed they have committed? If so, I know a lot of Pagans that are in trouble, because I’m not the only one who has praised the work of Harry Hay.