I. Title: Witchcraft Then and Now (deff might change it)
II. Introduction
A.mention the Salem Witchcraft Trials
1.largest witch hunt in American history
2.20 people killed, 150 others imprisoned
B.talk about witches today
1.witchcraft is considered a religion
2.should it be considered an acceptable one?
C.people's different views on the issue
1. witchcraft & the bible
III. Body
A.witchcraft long before
1.the people of Salem didn't deserve to be killed
2.were they really practicing witchcraft? or were the people just paranoid?
3.what do people today think about the trials?
4.these events from long ago aren't so different from today
B.witchcraft in today's society
1.their opinions on this peticular witch hunt or witch hunting in general
2.witchcraft is considered a sin to some religions such as christianity
3.how have people's views changed about this topic?
a.quote from supreme court case
4.in what ways is the past repeating itself
IV.Conclusion
A.people shouldn't be stereotypical of witches, or people who practice 'wiccan' because even if there are those who "cast evil spells" most of the people are just trying to practice their first admendment rights, which all people should be able ot do
B.in what ways can society improve itself to accept all people even if they don't agree


--this is just an idea, & its not very detailed, but i'm still having trouble with what i should base my paper on..
SALEM WITCHCRAFT TRAILS
OR
DISCRIMINATION OF PEOPLE WHO PRAC. WITCHCRAFT/WICCAN
i'll probably get more direction after watching movies/documentaries

My research for my question is going pretty well. Right now I'm looking up more about what witches are like in today's society so then I can compare. Also, I'm researching witches' rights. Since witchcraft is considered a religion then people should have the right to practice it. Right? I might have to focuss my paper on witchcraft as it's viewed in society and not just on the Salem Witchcraft Trials. I think the best idea would be to talk about the Salem Witchcraft Trials then to compare it to how the public is stereotypical and judgemental to them today. This would be a little difficult but a lot more interesting. It's not hard to find information on this topic. I think I'll find the most trouble in making the connections.
I don't like researching very much. I'm glad we get to use the citation machine but I still don't find it fun. I think it will be more enjoyable to write/interview the people. That way I get to have more control and I can ask the questions I've been wondering about. This gives you the chance to ask the questions that no one else has asked and may never ask again. You can ask a question so interesting that there's no direct answer. You can't do this by researching on a computer because you're looking at someone else's finds. But when you do it yourself your product is something new and original.
I won't exactly start writing yet. I haven't decided the actual direction I want to take with this topic. I will probably start writing notes and ideas then do my research paper on whatever sounds best.

4TH CITATION:
this is exactly about the Salem Witch Trials but it about different witch trials that i could use in my paper..

"Burn the Witch: the Forfar witch hunts of the 1660's." Angus Council-Local History-Features-Forfar Witches. Angus Council. 01 Nov. 2005 < http://www.angus.gov.uk/history/features/forfarwitches.htm >

n 1563 the newly created Church of Scotland made it illegal to either be a witch or to consult a witch in an attempt to stamp out pagan practices. This Act of Parliament was not abandoned until 1736. In between 1563 and 1736 is known from documentary evidence that at least 1,500 people were executed for the crime of being a witch.

During the time the act was on the statute books there were 3 periods of intense witch hunting. One witch hunt took place in the reign of James VI in the 1590’s, the second during the Civil War of the 1640’s and the third after Charles II was restored to the throne in 1660.

During this last witch hunt of 1660-1663 it is believed that 300 people were executed as witches. In 1663 alone it is thought that 150 people were executed. This does not count those people who died in jail after they were tortured or who killed themselves in despair. To this total Forfar contributed 42 people suspected of being witches, of whom at least 9 were executed. Only 3 were men.




ok off topic but morgan whats your website address cuz i cant get to it by clicking on your name..so yeah! the end

3RD CITATION:
"US Supreme Court backs witch's rights." US Supreme Court backs witch's rights-World-theage.com.au. 01 2005. The Age. 01 Nov. 2005 < http://www.theage.com.au/news/World/US-Supreme-Court-backs-witchs-rights/2005/06/01/1117568230517.html?oneclick=true >.
this one's pretty interesting because it's about people who believe in witchcraft today and aren't getting their rights. they're fighting for their first amendment rights.
"The US Supreme Court sided with a witch, a Satanist and a racial separatist today, upholding a federal law requiring state prisons to accommodate the religious affiliations of inmates.

The three Ohio prisoners and others sued under the 2000 federal law, claiming they were denied access to religious literature and ceremonial items and denied time to worship.

The law says states that receive federal money must accommodate prisoners' religious beliefs, with such things as special haircuts or meals, unless wardens can show that the government has a compelling reason not to."

PRIMARY SOURCE
I was thinking about using an arrest warrant for one of the accused witches. What do you think? I'm not sure if I will get much information from this but I can't think of what else i can use..I could do an interview, but I don't know where to find an expert on the subject. Maybe there's a dairy somewhere..


i will try to write this organization, they're for witches rights:
WLPA
PO Box 909
Rehoboth, Mass. 02769

and i could also go here to email this lady, she's a witch:
http://www.witchvox.com/vn/vn_mail/vxe_2form.html?a=usva

i would probably ask about their opinions about the Salem Witchcraft Trials & how they think society's view on witchcraft has changed. if they reply then this would be a good primary source


OK..heres some 'original witchcraft confessions' ..they're NOT from the SALEM witchcraft trials..but different trials
http://www.angus.gov.uk/history/features/confessions.htm

here's my 2nd citation..enjoy..
Boyer, Paul. "Salem witchcraft trials." Salem witchcraft trials [Article]. 2005. World Book Online Reference Center. 26 Oct. 2005 < http://www.worldbookonline.com/wb/Article?id=ar485960&st=Salem+Witchcraft+Trials#cite >.
Salem witchcraft trials were trials that resulted from the largest witch hunt in American history. The trials were held in 1692 in Salem, a town in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Nineteen people, both men and women, were convicted and hanged as witches. Another man was pressed to death with large stones for refusing to enter a plea of innocent or guilty to the witchcraft charge. About 150 other people were imprisoned on the witchcraft charges. The Salem trials resulted in the last witchcraft executions in America.


The Massachusetts Bay Colony was an English colony, and many people there had brought the belief in witchcraft from England. Under English law, witchcraft was punishable by death. Sixteen people had been hanged as witches in New England before 1692.

The Salem trials occurred as a result of a witch hunt that began nearby in the small farming community of Salem Village (now Danvers, Massachusetts). Early in 1692, several village girls began to behave strangely. They crawled under tables, uttered weird sounds, and screamed that they were being tortured. Suspicions of witchcraft soon led to the arrest of three women. More arrests followed. They included prominent people, such as a former village minister and the wife of the wealthiest merchant in the town of Salem.

Some historians believe a dispute over a local minister, Samuel Parris, led to the witch hunt. Parris received much of his support from the poorer farmers of Salem Village. To them, Parris and the village church represented stability and traditional values. The poorer farmers saw Salem, with its increasingly important merchants, as a threat to their way of life. Parris and his supporters helped lead the witch hunt. Many villagers who opposed Parris or had links with Salem were arrested as witches.

The witchcraft scare lasted about a year. The colony's leading ministers helped stop it. In 1693, the people still in jail on witchcraft charges were freed. In 1711, the colony's legislature made payments to the families of the witch-hunt victims.

this is a pretty helpful site..

http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/salem/SALEM.HTM

not to mention it has salem witch craft jeopardy..which we all know is what i like to do in my spare time..oohh lalalala
so my citation would be:
Linder, Douglas. The Salem Witchcraft Trails of 1692. 25 Oct. 2005 < http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/salem/SALEM.HTM >.
The Dead
Nineteen accused witches were hanged on Gallows Hill in 1692:

June 10
Bridget Bishop
July 19
Rebecca Nurse
Sarah Good
Susannah Martin
Elizabeth Howe
Sarah Wildes
August 19
George Burroughs
Martha Carrier
John Willard
George Jacobs, Sr.
John Proctor
September 22
Martha Corey
Mary Eastey
Ann Pudeator
Alice Parker
Mary Parker
Wilmott Redd
Margaret Scott
Samuel Wardwell

One accused witch (or wizard, as male witches were often called) was pressed to death on September 19 when he failed to plead guilty or not guilty:

Giles Corey

Other accused witches died in prison:

Sarah Osborn
Roger Toothaker
Lyndia Dustin
Ann Foster
(As many as thirteen** others may have died in prison.)

I'm thinking about doing my research paper on the Salem Witch Trials. It'd be pretty interesting to see what life was like back then. I'd also like to see what people's opinions are about the topic. Those people seem crazy for killing people because they thought they were witches but how would you act in similar circumstances? I will also research and see how life is similar between now and back then.