Ep. 311: Is Modern Day Witchcraft on the Rise? LSD, Feminism & Fungus

Is there an uptick of people claiming to be actual witches? When in history were witches NOT seen as evil? Is this commercialism packaged as a spiritual practice? Julie Walsh, PhD, is the Whitehead Associate Professor of Critical Thought & Associate Professor of Philosophy at Wellesley College in Massachusetts. Her primary research focus is on metaphysics & the ethics of human freedom in the early modern period. In this episode, we talk about the historical origin of witches & word choice, the connection between female sexual satisfaction & witches, the 1400’s witch hunting manual & how time legitimizes magical practices If you like this episode, you’ll also like episode 195: ROUNDING UP SUSPICIOUS WOMEN? THE AMERICAN PLAN  Host:  https://www.meredithforreal.com/  https://www.instagram.com/meredithforreal/ [email protected]://www.youtube.com/meredithforreal  https://www.facebook.com/meredithforrealthecuriousintrovert  Sponsors: https://www.jordanharbinger.com/starterpacks/ https://www.historicpensacola.org/about-us/  00:00 — Generations of witches in pop culture01:20 — First encounters with “I’m a witch”02:10 — The word wicce and its earliest meaning04:00 — Magic before evil: shifting definitions05:00 — Witch as a living, changing word06:10 — Salem isn’t the beginning07:00 — The 1487 bestseller that fueled hunts09:00 — Sex, power, and the devil’s contract10:30 — Why ridiculous ideas still matter11:30 — How witch manuals went viral13:00 — From Europe to Salem: ideology travels14:00 — What counted as a witch in 1690s Salem15:00 — Tituba’s confession and survival strategy17:00 — Executions, prisons, and spectral evidence19:00 — How do you defend against a ghost?20:00 — LSD bread or land grabs? Debunking theories22:30 — Property disputes and colonial lawsuits24:30 — From persecution to empowerment today25:30 — Why modern women claim “witch”27:00 — Moon cycles, ancestors, and ritual29:00 — Ancient solstice parties and survival31:00 — The risks of claiming witchhood32:00 — Are modern witches linked to the executed?34:00 — Saints, voodoo dolls, and cultural taboos36:00 — Whose magic gets mainstreamed?37:00 — Why old beliefs feel more “legit”38:30 — Tarot cards, tradition, and authority39:30 — Crystals, consumerism, and moon circles40:30 — Salem today: trinkets and tourism41:30 — Can spirituality resist commercialization?42:00 — Beyond WitchTok: finding your roots43:30 — Elders, ancestry, and empowerment through knowledge44:30 — Where history, nature, and identity converge45:00 — Closing thoughts + future book teaseRequest to join my private Facebook Group, MFR Curious Insiders: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1BAt3bpwJC/Follow me in all the places:https://www.meredithforreal.com/  https://www.instagram.com/the_curiousintrovert/ [email protected]://www.youtube.com/meredithforreal https://www.facebook.com/curiousintrovert