The Thing About Witch Hunts

The Craft at 30: Witchcraft, Teen Horror, and the Satanic Panic with Abby Brenker (Lunatics Project) We welcome Abby Brenker of The Lunatics Project to dig into The Craft on its 30th anniversary, tracing why this 1996 teen witchcraft horror classic became a sleepover staple despite mixed reviews and an R rating. We explore how the film centers female friendship, anger, and power outside of romance, while portraying boys as secondary villainous caricatures, and we unpack gendered conflicts around beauty, identity, mentorship, and isolation—especially for Bonnie, Sarah, Nancy, and Rochelle. We connect the movie’s rituals, Wiccan and occult-inspired magic system, and iconic lines (“We’re the weirdos, mister”) to broader 1990s witch media, from Sabrina to Buffy, and to real-world fears: self-harm, rape, bullying, and primal horror imagery like mirrors, snakes, and spiders. We also touch on The Believers, Blair Witch, and the Satanic Panic, and Abby shares where to find Lunatics Radio Hour and her feature film Voices Carry on Tubi. Chapters 00:00 Meet The Guest 00:28 Lunatics Project Origins 03:02 Why The Craft Matters 03:58 Film Setup And Legacy 07:49 Women Center Stage 11:18 Boys And Beauty Standards 15:21 Rituals And Power 18:02 Fear And Dark Themes 23:32 Iconic Lines And Scenes 25:36 Witch Shop Mentor 27:45 Rochelle Lacks Support 29:14 Racism Then and Now 30:40 Hair as Social Power 35:05 Nineties Witch Boom 40:02 Satanic Panic Memories 43:38 Ritual Games and Mirrors 45:45 Iconic Final Confrontation 48:26 Violence and R Rating 51:08 Blair Witch and Viral Hype 53:58 Closing and Projects Links The Lunatics Project Lunatics Radio Hour Voices Carry on Tubi Salem Witch Trials History YouTube channel The Thing About Witch Hunts The Thing About the Salem Witch Trials Salem Witch Trials Daily Connecticut Witch Trial History Trail Massachusetts Witch Trial History End Witch Hunts nonprofit

Why Did Ann Putnam Jr. Accuse? Reconstructing the Salem Witch Trials Through Behavioral Science We welcome back producer-director-writer Tom Phillips with evolutionary anthropologist Dr. Hogan Sherrow to examine why 12-year-old Ann Putnam Jr. became the central accuser in the Salem witch trials and later the only known accuser to publicly apologize. Using Sherrow’s “evolutionary behavioral reconstruction,” they combine life history, Puritan cultural context, and household pressures to consider non-sensational explanations, including mental illness (psychosis-like symptoms), imitation and reinforcement, and the community’s readiness to interpret aberrant behavior as the devil. They discuss how Ann’s charisma could sway authorities, including the reversal of Rebecca Nurse’s initial acquittal, and how parents, magistrates, and church could benefit once accusations escalated. They analyze Ann’s 1706 apology language and signature, the trauma of witnessing executions, and preview test footage from Phillips’ stage-bound project Salem Aftermath. 00:00 Why Ann Putnam Matters 01:39 Meet Tom and Hogan 04:30 Salem Aftermath Project 05:56 Behavioral Reconstruction 09:11 Puritans Not Hysterical 10:58 Profiling Ann Putnam 14:39 Psychosis or Copycat 18:25 Lying and Boogeymen 24:29 Family Trauma and Motives 31:43 Rebecca Nurse Courtroom 36:11 Who Benefits and Why 37:05 Short Term Rewards 40:07 Early Death Stressors 44:05 Scapegoats And Witch Hunts 48:27 Possible Diagnoses 51:00 Teen Desire And Guilt 53:46 Outcast And Marriage Prospects 56:07 Apology Under Scrutiny 59:42 Hangings And Lasting Trauma 01:02:01 Signature And Authorship Doubts 01:06:31 Humanizing Ann And Closing Links: The Thing About Witch Hunts Salem Witch Trials History YouTube The Thing About the Salem Witch Trials Salem Witch Trials Daily

World Day Against Witch Hunts: Sister Lorena Jenal and Jörg Nowak on Rescuing Survivors in Papua New Guinea Hosts Josh Hutchinson and Sarah Jack mark August 10, World Day Against Witch Hunts, with its creators, Sister Lorena Jenal and journalist Jörg Nowak of the German Catholic aid organization Missio. Sr. Lorena, a Swiss Franciscan who has served 47 years in Papua New Guinea, has rescued more than 420 women accused of sorcery since 2012 and shelters survivors at the House of Hope, built using her International Weimar Award for Human Rights. Nowak describes how Missio recognized sorcery accusation-related violence as a current human rights violation, expanded support to projects in countries including Liberia, Tanzania, Ghana, Benin, and documented abuses through reporting and museum exhibitions. They discuss the scale in PNG (109 cases last year), an estimate of 3,000 killings over 20 years, patterns of scapegoating and misogyny, severe sexual violence and public humiliation, police corruption and inaction, and advocacy efforts to elevate August 10 to a United Nations-recognized day. 00:00 World Day Against Witch Hunts 01:37 Meet Lorena and Jörg 03:10 Missio Campaign Origins 05:38 Papua New Guinea Crisis 11:40 Who Gets Accused 20:21 Sexual Violence Research 29:06 Police Corruption and Justice 35:15 Creating August 10 43:48 House of Hope Sanctuary 46:20 UN Recognition Push 52:20 How You Can Help 53:57 Final Thanks and Share Links Hexenverfolgung heute | missio: https://www.missio-hilft.de/informieren/wofuer-wir-uns-einsetzen/gegen-hexenverfolgung/ World Day Against Witch Hunts: https://endwitchhunts.org/day The Thing About Witch Hunts: https://aboutwitchhunts.com Salem Witch Trials History YouTube: https://youtube.com/@aboutwitchhunts The Thing About the Salem Witch Trials: https://aboutsalem.com Salem Witch Trials Daily: https://aboutsalem.com/salem-witch-trials-daily/

Reclamation: Restorative Justice and a Church Returned for Scotland’s Accused WitchesWe follow the question history books can’t answer: once the harm of witch hunting is acknowledged, what does repair look like? Trauma resolution practitioner Claire Standen, founder of Reclamation, is building a Scottish community interest organization seeking reparations for the thousands prosecuted under Scotland’s Witchcraft Act (1500s–1700s), arguing apology without action isn’t meaningful. Her central demand is radical and concrete: the Church of Scotland—already apologetic—should gift an unused church building (not sold or grant-funded) to be stewarded as a community headquarters and a Center for Female Authority, reclaiming sacred space once tied to persecution. Drawing on trauma work and epigenetic inheritance, she connects historic terror to today’s inherited silence and societal patterns, and outlines a restorative justice approach where those harmed define what healing requires. Reclamation is seeking social media support and seed funding via ourreclamation.org. 00:00 Show Intro and Big Question 01:38 Meet Claire Standen 03:18 What Reclamation Aims For 05:26 Trauma Work Meets History 09:02 The Synchronicity Road Trip 15:40 Reclaiming Witch Legacy 20:26 Apologies vs Reparations 24:21 Inherited Silence and Epigenetics 27:03 What Makes Apology Meaningful 31:32 Why a Gifted Church Matters 40:12 Center for Female Authority Vision 45:32 How to Help and Connect 48:18 Closing Reflections Links: Reclamation Project The Thing About the Salem Witch Trials Salem Witch Trials Daily Salem Witch Trial History YouTube Channel

Witchland with Professor Marion Gibson: The Witchfinder General, Civil War Chaos, and Recovering the AccusedWe sit down with Professor Marion Gibson (emeritus, Exeter University) to explore her new book, “Witchland: A Tale of Witch Hunting and War in 17th Century Britain,” a gripping, archive-driven look at the 1640s British Civil Wars and the Matthew Hopkins–John Stearne witch hunts that pursued roughly 200–300 people. Marion explains her mission to remedy a “triple injustice” by restoring the accused to history—their names, neighbors, and ordinary lives—rather than centering persecutors. We dig into how war, religious conflict, migration, and the 1604 Witchcraft Act helped fuel mass prosecutions; how “watchers,” clergy, and communities escalated sleep-deprivation interrogations; and how templates of questions produced patterned confessions about familiars, spirits, and the devil. Stories range from the nameless “Witch of Newbury” to Scotland’s pricking practices, Great Yarmouth’s transatlantic links to New England, Cornwall’s Ann Jeffries and Moses Pitt, and growing efforts to memorialize victims.00:00 Meet Marion Gibson02:49 Why Write Witchland04:43 Triple Injustice06:48 Civil War Panic09:17 Witch of Newbury11:16 Law That Enabled Hunts14:01 Familiars And Confessions17:18 Religion And Reformers20:48 Building A National Story25:00 Accusations And Watchers30:39 Templates And Scotland40:54 Cornwall Fairies Tale44:30 Memorials And Memory47:18 Buy The Book Next50:31 Final Thanks And OutroBuy Witchland by Marion Gibson Buy Books on English and European Witch Trials CT Witch and Culture Fest History Camp Boston End Witch Hunts The Thing About Witch Hunts: https://aboutwitchhunts.com The Thing About the Salem Witch Trials: https://aboutsalem.com Salem Witch Trials History Youtube