The Salem Witch Trials A Time Of Genocide, Turmoil, And...

The Salem witch trials had been a time of genocide, turmoil, and hardships, but these times were not quite as extensive as some groups and individuals, e.g. neo-pagans, and feminists, claimed. Worshipers of the Neo-pagan religion, wiccans, in particular took advantage of the Salem witch trials to spread numerous rumors, in-turn, creating myths that are still believed even today. The reason that neo-pagans employed the Salem witch trials to create rumors and myths was to allow themselves the right to play political victimization or, in other words, claim that their religion was under the threat or attack of some Protestant and Catholic churches in order to gain support (Miesel). The term â€Å"Burning Times† was actually coined by one of the founders of the neo-pagan religion, Gerald Gardener, to â€Å"describe† a time when wiccans were persecuted for their beliefs. Radical feminists eventually followed suit and used the Salem witch trials for very similar reasons to tho se of the neo-pagans (Miesel). The classic tales of witch-trials were fabricated to seem much more horrid than the events actually were, which is why anyone prepared to claim credibility on the subject should understand the difference between myth and reality. *Despite common beliefs, the Burning Times were fabricated, witches were not burned, the church did not perform executions, and women were not the sole victims.* +The classical thought of witches being burned as a result of witch-hunts is one of several