Summer is beginning to fade and Autumn is on the horizon. The leaves are changing, pumpkin spice latte is back at Starbucks and Halloween candies fill the aisles at grocery stores. Come to my house for Halloween and you’ll find plywood tombstones, hand painted with the names of those murdered in Salem as witches.
On this day in history, on September 22, 1692, we remember the last lives taken during the hysteria that were the Salem Witch Trials:
- Martha Corey
- Mary Eastey
- Mary Parker
- Alice Parker
- Ann Pudeator
- Wilmot Redd
- Margaret Scott
- Samuel Wardwell Sr.
Over 200 people stood accused of practicing witchcraft, 20 were executed and several others died in jail. Some of them died because they dare to speak up against the mob and were accused of being a witch themselves.
Today, our witch hunts are based on the color of your skin, your sexuality and religion. If you don’t follow the “norms” then you are persecuted and often murdered because of it. So instead of ordering that PSL or getting those new fuzzy boots to crunch fallen leaves in, I reflect and ask myself:
What have I done to help those that are persecuted? Have I raised my voice loud enough? Have I walked beside them? Have I stood up when it wasn’t comfortable?
Could I do more? I can always do more.
I will do whatever I can to make sure centuries from now, no one is painting names on a plywood tombstone as a way to remember those unjustly executed because a small group of people had the power to make it happen.
Gee, CADreaming. You sure know how to make Sunday morning bright and cheerful.
It’s a talent that both myself and Wednesday Adams possess.