Neopagans are a
religious minority in every country where they exist and have been subject to
religious discrimination
Religious discrimination is treating a person or group differently because of the particular beliefs which they hold about a religion. This includes instances when adherents of different religions, denominations or non-religions are treated u ...
and/or
religious persecution. The largest neopagan communities are in North America and the United Kingdom, and the issue of discrimination receives most attention in those locations, but there are also reports from Australia and
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...
(the latter specifically concerning
Hellenic neopaganism).
Australia
In 2003, Olivia Watts charged the mayor of the
City of Casey, Victoria, Rob Wilson, with violating the
Racial and Religious Tolerance Act 2001
The ''Racial and Religious Tolerance Act 2001'' is an Act of the Parliament of Victoria, Australia, that makes behaviour that incites or encourages hatred, serious contempt, revulsion or severe ridicule against another person or group of peopl ...
after he issued a press release in June of that year titled "Satanic cult out to take over Casey", in which Watts was mentioned by name. During a hearing on August 12, 2004, in the
Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal
The Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) was formed by the ''Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act'' 1998 in the state of Victoria, Australia. As part of the Victorian Justice system the Tribunal sits 'below' the Magistrat ...
, Watts said that after the press release, she suffered vandalism to her property and an assault at her home, in addition to general "hatred, contempt and revulsion". On August 13, it was revealed in tribunal that the matter had been settled overnight, and Wilson read a statement acknowledging that Watts was not a Satanist and expressing "regret for any hurt felt by Ms Watts in consequence of his press release".
Greece
In
modern day Greece, the
Greek Orthodox Church
The term Greek Orthodox Church ( Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the entire body of Orthodox (Chalcedonian) Christianity, sometimes also cal ...
has the status of
state religion, and consequently, alternative religions such as
Hellenic neopaganism may be subject to discrimination.
''The Greek Society of Attic Friends'' was unsuccessful when it asked for recognition as a legal religion and was denied the right to build a temple in
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
and to use existing temples for worship. 200 people illegally occupied a protected cultural site in Athens - a former temple - in 2007 to perform ceremonies.
In 2006, an Athens court ordered the worship of the old Greek gods to be unbanned and a place of worship has been recognised by court.
Referring to the followers, Father Eustathios Kollas, who presides over a community of Greek Orthodox priests, said, "They are a handful of miserable resuscitators of a degenerate dead religion who wish to return to the monstrous dark delusions of the past."
Canada
In September 2012,
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
Minister of Public Safety
The minister of public safety (french: ministre de la sécurité publique) is the minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet responsible for overseeing Public Safety Canada, the internal security department of the Government of Canada. The ...
Vic Toews
Victor Toews (; born September 10, 1952) is a Paraguayan-Canadian politician and jurist. Toews is a judge of the Court of King's Bench of Manitoba. He represented Provencher in the House of Commons of Canada from 2000 until his resignation on ...
cancelled a tender that had been issued by
Corrections Canada
The Correctional Service of Canada (CSC; french: Service correctionnel du Canada), also known as Correctional Service Canada or Corrections Canada, is the Canadian federal government agency responsible for the incarceration and rehabilitation of ...
in British Columbia for a Wiccan
prison chaplain. In October of that year, Toews ordered the termination of contracts for all non-Christian prison chaplains in BC and all but two throughout Canada, obliging not only neopagan prisoners but also Muslims, Jews,
Sikhs,
Buddhists, practitioners of
indigenous religions, and others to turn to Christian chaplains for their spiritual needs. Wiccans were among the prisoners who joined a lawsuit alleging that the terminations violated constitutional guarantees of religious equality.
South Africa
In 2007, the South African Pagan Rights Alliance (SAPRA) in South Africa voiced objections to the ''
Witchcraft Suppression Act of 1957'' and the draft ''
Mpumalanga Witchcraft Suppression Bill of 2007''.
United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, there have been occasional clashes between
New Age travellers
New Age travellers, not completely synonymous with but otherwise shortened to New Travellers (often referred to as "crusties"), are people in the United Kingdom generally espousing New Age beliefs along with the hippie culture of the 1960s (over ...
and authorities, such as the
Battle of the Beanfield
The Battle of the Beanfield took place over several hours on 1 June 1985, when Wiltshire Police prevented The Peace Convoy, a convoy of several hundred New Age travellers, from setting up the 1985 Stonehenge Free Festival in Wiltshire, England. ...
in 1985. There are also occasional charges of harassment against neopagans such as the following examples:
In 1999, Dr Ralph Morse was appointed by the
Pagan Federation
The Pagan Federation is a UK-based voluntary organisation, founded as the Pagan Front, that provides information and counters misconceptions about Neopaganism. It was formed in 1971, and campaigns for the religious rights of Neo-pagans and ed ...
as their first national youth manager. Following an article that appeared in the ''
Independent on Sunday
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'' on April 2, 2000, Morse was summarily suspended from his post as head of drama, theatre arts and media studies at
Shenfield High School A Secondary School Based In England
Shenfield High School is a coeducational 11-18 secondary school located in Shenfield, Essex, England. It has over 1200 students on roll, including 300 in the sixth form. It opened in 1962, celebrating its 50th ...
in Essex. Morse was subsequently fully investigated by the school and reinstated with a full retraction released to the media.
In 2006, members of
Youth 2000, a conservative Catholic organisation, on visit to Father Kevin Knox-Lecky of St Mary's church,
Glastonbury
Glastonbury (, ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbur ...
, attacked pagans by throwing salt at them and told them they "would burn in hell". Knox-Lecky apologised and said he would not invite the group again. The police warned two women and arrested one youth on suspicion of harassment. In 2006, the postal worker Donald Holden was fired from his position at Royal Mail PLC after 33 years of employment for printing photos of Odin for his personal religious use. Before firing him his employers tried to make him admit Odinism was not a real religion and tore up the pictures in front of him. The Manchester Industrial Tribunal of ''Royal Mail PLC v Holden (2006)'' found unequivocally in Mr. Holden's favour.
In 2007, a teaching assistant in
Brighton claimed she was
sacked for being a Wiccan. A teacher at
Shawlands Academy
Shawlands Academy is a state secondary school in the Shawlands area of Glasgow, Scotland.
Admissions
Shawlands Academy was Glasgow's designated International School and one of Scotland's most multicultural schools. It was situated in Shawlan ...
in Glasgow was denied time off with pay to attend Druid rites while members of other religions have their days of observance paid. A
neo-Druid group from
Weymouth, Dorset
Weymouth is a seaside town in Dorset, on the English Channel coast of England. Situated on a sheltered bay at the mouth of the River Wey, south of the county town of Dorchester, Weymouth had a population of 53,427 in 2021. It is the third ...
, was subjected to threats and abuse.
The
University of St Andrews
(Aien aristeuein)
, motto_lang = grc
, mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best
, established =
, type = Public research university
Ancient university
, endowment ...
in Scotland have, since 2006, allowed equal rights to the St Andrews Pagan Society, but under some strict rules.
United States
According to
Starhawk
Starhawk (born Miriam Simos on June 17, 1951) is an American feminist and author. She is known as a theorist of feminist Neopaganism and ecofeminism.
In 2013, she was listed in Watkins' ''Mind Body Spirit'' magazine as one of the 100 Most Spir ...
, "
religious discrimination
Religious discrimination is treating a person or group differently because of the particular beliefs which they hold about a religion. This includes instances when adherents of different religions, denominations or non-religions are treated u ...
against
Pagans and
Wiccans
Wicca () is a modern Pagan religion. Scholars of religion categorise it as both a new religious movement and as part of the occultist stream of Western esotericism. It was developed in England during the first half of the 20th century and was ...
and
indigenous religions is omnipresent in the U.S." Evidence exists that workplace discrimination is common from verbal ridicule to more systematic forms such as exclusion from work-related activities.
In the armed forces
![The Hammer of Thor](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3f/The_Hammer_of_Thor.svg)
In 1999, in response to a statement by Representative
Bob Barr
Robert Laurence Barr Jr. (born November 5, 1948) is an American attorney and politician. He served as a federal prosecutor and as a Congressman. He represented Georgia's 7th congressional district as a Republican from 1995 to 2003. Barr attai ...
(R-GA) regarding Wiccan gatherings on military bases, the Free Congress Foundation called for U.S. citizens to not enlist or re-enlist in the U.S. Army until the Army terminated the on-base freedoms of religion, speech, and assembly for all Wiccan soldiers.
Though this movement died a "quiet death", on June 24, 1999, then-Governor
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
stated on a television news program that "I don’t think witchcraft is a religion and I wish the military would take another look at this and decide against it."
[Assortment of links regarding calls to ban Wicca from military establishments: , , , ]
U.S. Army Chaplain Captain Don Larsen was dismissed from his post in Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...
in 2006 after changing his religious affiliation from Pentecostal Christianity to Wicca and applying to become the first Wiccan military chaplain. His potential new endorser, the Sacred Well Congregation based in Texas, was not yet an officially recognised endorsement organisation for the military, and upon hearing of his conversion, his prior endorser, the Chaplaincy of Full Gospel Churches, immediately revoked its endorsement. At this point, the U.S. Army was required to dismiss him from chaplaincy despite an exemplary service record.
Prior to 2007, the United States Department of Veterans Affairs
The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a Cabinet-level executive branch department of the federal government charged with providing life-long healthcare services to eligible military veterans at the 170 VA medical centers a ...
(VA) did not allow the use of the pentacle
A pentacle (also spelled and pronounced as ''pantacle'' in Thelema, following Aleister Crowley, though that spelling ultimately derived from Éliphas Lévi) "The Pantacle of Frater V. I. O." is a talisman that is used in magical evocation, and ...
as an approved emblem of belief on headstones and markers in military cemeteries. This policy was changed in April 2007 to settle a lawsuit. VA also added the Hammer of Thor to the list of approved emblems in May 2013.
In prisons
The 1985, Virginia prisoner Herbert Daniel Dettmer sued Robert Landon, the Director of the Virginia Department of Corrections
The Virginia Department of Corrections (VADOC) is the government agency responsible for community corrections and operating prisons and correctional facilities in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The agency is fully accredited b ...
, in federal court, to get access to objects he claimed were necessary for his Wiccan religious practice. The district court for the Eastern District of Virginia decided in Dettmer's favor, although on appeal the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (in case citations, 4th Cir.) is a federal court located in Richmond, Virginia, with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:
* District of Maryland ...
ruled that, while Wicca was a religion, he was not being discriminated against. This case marked the first legal recognition of Wicca as a religion.
In ''Cutter v. Wilkinson'', 544 U.S. 709 (2005), a case involving five Ohio prison inmates (two followers of Ásatrú, a minister of the Church of Jesus Christ Christian
Church may refer to:
Religion
* Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities
* Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination
* Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship
* Chris ...
, a Wicca
Wicca () is a modern Pagan religion. Scholars of religion categorise it as both a new religious movement and as part of the occultist stream of Western esotericism. It was developed in England during the first half of the 20th century and w ...
n witch and a Satanist) protesting denial of access to ceremonial items and opportunities for group worship was brought before the Supreme Court. Among the denied objects was instructions for runic writing requested by an Ásatrúarmaður, which was initially denied when prison officials raised concerns that runic writing could be used for coded gang communication.
In an interview about the role of race-based gang
A gang is a group or society of associates, friends or members of a family with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over territory in a community and engages, either individually or collective ...
s and other extremists in America's prisons, the historian Mark Pitcavage
Mark Pitcavage is a historian and analyst of far-right wing groups. He works with the Anti-Defamation League and was the creator of the now-archived Militia Watchdog website. The site has been an archive since 2000 when Pitcavage took the position ...
came to the conclusion that " 'on-racist versions of Ásatrú and Odinism are pretty much acceptable religions in the prisons''", but materials from racist variants of these religions may be prohibited by corrections departments.
In early 2011, a Stillwater prisoner named Stephen Hodgson filed a federal lawsuit against the state of Minnesota claiming his religious rights have been violated. Hodgson claimed he was prohibited from practising his Wiccan faith when guards and prison administrators refused to allow him to use prayer oils and herbs needed. He also claimed that his religious mail had been confiscated and that he had been prohibited from burning incense or using prayer oils and herbs. He claimed those items were necessary for the practice of his religion and that they posed no danger to guards or other inmates. The Minnesota Department of Human Rights agreed with Hodgson, saying "probable cause exists to believe that an unfair discriminatory practice was committed."
The discrimination case is awaiting trial.
Wicca
According to Gerald Gardner
Gerald Brosseau Gardner (13 June 1884 – 12 February 1964), also known by the craft name Scire, was an English Wiccan, as well as an author and an amateur anthropology, anthropologist and archaeology, archaeologist. He was instrumental in bri ...
, who popularised Wicca
Wicca () is a modern Pagan religion. Scholars of religion categorise it as both a new religious movement and as part of the occultist stream of Western esotericism. It was developed in England during the first half of the 20th century and w ...
in the twentieth century, the religion is a survival of a European witch-cult that was persecuted during the witch trials
A witch-hunt, or a witch purge, is a search for people who have been labeled witches or a search for evidence of witchcraft. The Witch trials in the early modern period, classical period of witch-hunts in Early Modern Europe and European Colon ...
(sometimes called the '' Burning Times''), and the strong element of secrecy that traditionally surrounds the religion was adopted as a reaction to that persecution. Since then, Margaret Murray
Margaret Alice Murray (13 July 1863 – 13 November 1963) was an Anglo-Indian Egyptologist, archaeologist, anthropologist, historian, and folklorist. The first woman to be appointed as a lecturer in archaeology in the United Kingdom, she work ...
's theory of an organised pan-European witch-cult has been discredited, and doubts raised about the age of Wicca; many Wiccans no longer claim this historical lineage. However, it is still common for Wiccans to feel solidarity with the victims of the witch trials and, being witches, to consider the witch-craze to have been a persecution against their faith.
There has been confusion that Wicca is a form of Satanism, despite important differences between these religions. Due to negative connotations associated with witchcraft, many Wiccans continue the traditional practice of secrecy, concealing their faith for fear of persecution. Revealing oneself as Wiccan to family, friends, or colleagues is often termed "coming out of the broom-closet".
Wiccans have also experienced difficulties in administering and receiving prison ministry, although not in the UK of recent times. In 1985, as a result of ''Dettmer v. Landon
''Dettmer v. Landon'', 799 F.2d 929 (4th Cir. 1986), is a court case in which the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit held that although Wicca was a religion, it was not a violation of the First Amendment to deny a prisoner acc ...
'' 17 F. Supp. 592 (D.C. Va 1985) the District Court of Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
ruled that Wicca is a legally recognised religion and is afforded all the benefits accorded to it by law. This was affirmed a year later by Judge John D. Butzner, Jr. of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (in case citations, 4th Cir.) is a federal court located in Richmond, Virginia, with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:
* District of Maryland ...
'Dettmer v. Landon'', 799 F. 2d 929 (4th Cir. 1986) Nevertheless, Wiccans are sometimes still stigmatised in America, and many remain secretive about their beliefs.
Also in 1985, conservative legislators in the United States introduced three pieces of legislation designed to take away the tax-exempt status of Wiccans. The first one was House Resolution (H.R.) 3389, introduced on September 19, 1985, by Congressman Robert S. Walker (R-Pennsylvania), which would have amended to the United States Internal Revenue Code that any organisation which promotes witchcraft would not be exempt from taxation. On the other side of Congress, Senator Jesse Helms (R-North Carolina) added Amendment 705 to H.R. 3036, "The Treasury, Postal, and General Government Appropriations Bill for 1986", which similarly stated that organisations promoting witchcraft would not be eligible for tax-exempt status. After being ignored for a time, it was attached to H.R. 3036 by a unanimous voice vote of the senators. Congressman Richard T. Schulze (R-Pennsylvania) introduced substantially the same amendment to the Tax Reform Bill of 1985. When the budget subcommittee met on October 30, the Helms Amendment was thrown out as it was not considered germane to the bill. Following this, Schulze withdrew his amendment from the Tax Reform Bill, leaving only H.R. 3389, the Walker Bill. Joe Barton
Joseph Linus Barton (born September 15, 1949) is an American politician who represented in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1985 to 2019. The district included Arlington, part of Fort Worth, and several small towns and rural areas south ...
(R-Texas) was attracted to become a co-sponsor of this bill on November 14, 1985. The Ways and Means Committee set aside the bill and quietly ignored it, and the bill was allowed to die with the close of the 99th session of Congress in December 1986.
In 2002, Cynthia Simpson of Chesterfield County, Virginia
Chesterfield County is located just south of Richmond in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The county's borders are primarily defined by the James River to the north and the Appomattox River to the south. Its county seat is Chesterfield Court H ...
, submitted an application to be invited to lead prayer at the local Board of Supervisors meetings, but in a response was told that because the views of Wicca were not "consistent with the Judeo-Christian tradition", her application had been denied. After the Board reviewed and affirmed their policy, Simpson took the case to the U.S. District Court of Virginia, which held that the Board had violated the Establishment Clause
In United States law, the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, together with that Amendment's Free Exercise Clause, form the constitutional right of freedom of religion. The relevant constitutional text ...
by advancing limited sets of beliefs.
Simpson v. Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors
', 292 F. Supp. 2d 805, 820 (E.D. Va. 2003) The Board appealed to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (in case citations, 4th Cir.) is a federal court located in Richmond, Virginia, with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:
* District of Maryland
...
, which in 2005 reversed the ruling and held that the Supreme Court's holding in the ''Marsh'' case meant that "Chesterfield County could constitutionally exclude Simpson from leading its legislative prayers, because her faith was not 'in the Judeo-Christian tradition.'" The Board had also since modified its policy to direct clerics to not invoke the name of Jesus.
Simpson v. Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors
', 404 F.3d 276 (4th Cir. 2005) On October 11, 2005, the United States Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
rejected an appeal by Simpson,['' Simpson v. Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors', 126 S. Ct. 426 (2005), p. 221] leaving in place the decision by the Fourth Circuit. However, in ''Town of Greece v. Galloway
''Town of Greece v. Galloway'', 572 U.S. 565 (2014), is a United States Supreme Court case in which the court decided that the Town of Greece, New York may permit volunteer chaplains to open each legislative session with a prayer. The plaintiffs ...
'', the Supreme Court ruled that legislative prayer cannot be restricted on basis of belief, re-opening the debate about Simpson's case.
In 2019, Pauline Hoffmann sued St. Bonaventure University after she allegedly was forced to resign as dean due to her religion.
In 2019, a man was arrested for trying to stab a woman to death because "she was a witch and he had to slay her".
Ásatrú
The United States government does not officially endorse or recognise any religious group, and numerous Ásatrú groups have been granted non-profit religious status, like other religious faiths, going back to the 1970s.
An inmate of the "Intensive Management Unit" at Washington State Penitentiary
Washington State Penitentiary (also called the Walla Walla State Penitentiary) is a Washington State Department of Corrections men's prison located in Walla Walla, Washington. With an operating capacity of 2,200, it is the second largest priso ...
alleges that adherents of Ásatrú in 2001 were deprived of their Thor's Hammer medallions as well as denied religious literature, as well as complaints against the prison chaplain calling Ásatrú "'devil worship,' etc."
In 2007, a federal judge confirmed that Ásatrú adherents in US prisons have the right to possess a Thor's Hammer pendant. An inmate sued the Virginia Department of Corrections after he was denied it while members of other religions were allowed their medallions.
In the ''Georgacarakos v. Watts'' case Peter N. Georgacarakos filed a pro se civil-rights complaint in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado against 19 prison officials for "interference with the free exercise of his Asatru religion" and "discrimination on the basis of his being Asatru".
The ''Cutter v. Wilkinson
''Cutter v. Wilkinson'', 544 U.S. 709 (2005), was a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court held that, under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA), facilities that accept federal funds cannot deny prisoners ...
'' case was partially about an adherent of Ásatrú being denied access to ceremonial items and opportunities for group worship. The defendants on numerous occasions refused to answer or respond to letters, complaints, and requests for Ásatrú religious accommodations. They also refused to respond to complaints of religious discrimination. Ásatrú inmates were denied group worship and/or group study time as they did to other religions. They refused to hire a Gothi
Gothi or (plural , fem. ; Old Norse: ) was a position of political and social prominence in the Icelandic Commonwealth. The term originally had a religious significance, referring to a pagan leader responsible for a religious structure and c ...
to perform blót
( Old Norse) and or ( Old English) are terms for "blood sacrifice" in Norse paganism and Anglo-Saxon paganism respectively. A comparanda can also be reconstructed for wider Germanic paganism.
A ' could be dedicated to any of the Germanic ...
s while providing priests for members of other religions. The Ásatrú inmates were also denied the right to have their own worship or study services.
In a join press release the Odinic Rite
The Odinic Rite (OR) is a reconstructionist religious organisation named after the god Odin. It conceives itself as a neo-völkisch Heathen movement concerned with Germanic paganism, Germanic mythology, folklore, and runes. As a white supremacis ...
, Ásatrú Alliance and Ásatrú Folk Assembly charged the FBI
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, t ...
with violating its First Amendment
First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1).
First or 1st may also refer to:
*World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement
Arts and media Music
* 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...
rights to freedom of religion
Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freed ...
, free speech
Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recog ...
, and peaceful assembly by giving "False, misleading and deceptive information about our religion and its followers" in FBI's Project Megiddo report.
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) publishes lists of symbols used by antisemitic groups. Included in these publications are several Germanic pagan symbols that have been used by Nazi and neo-Nazi groups, but have also always been used by non-racist pagan religions. The ADL emphasises that these symbols are not necessarily racist and has amended its publications to categorise these symbols as "pagan symbols co-opted by extremists".
See also
* Christian views on magic
Christian views on magic vary widely among denominations and among individuals. Many Christians actively condemn magic as satanic, holding that it opens the way for demonic possession. Some Christians simply view it as entertainment. Conversel ...
References
{{Religious persecution
Minority rights
Religion and politics
Discrimination