Darla Wynne Update

The Herald out of SC has a followup article about Darla Wynne, the Wiccan high priestess who won a suit against the town of Great Falls, SC when the town council refused to stop leading an explicitly Christian prayer at the beginning of public meetings. She is now writing a book about her life, the town, and her experiences. It actually sounds like an interesting story even outside of the context of the lawsuit-- she's had a colorful life, raised in Louisiana-style "old ways" spirituality.

This article does, however, go into more detail about some of the struggles that Ms. Wynne has faced as clergy in a minority religion in a very small Southern town:

Many of Great Falls' 2,200 residents regard Wynne as a "witch" and disapprove of her pagan faith, she said. Acts of vandalism at her home have ranged from destruction of her cars to the poisoning of several of her animals.

In August 2004, Wynne returned home from dinner with a friend and discovered her parrot, Little One, had been beheaded and his heart cut out, she said. A note attached to the back of the 8-year-old African gray parrot, read, "You're next!" Wynne said.

Great Falls Police Chief Mike Revels confirmed this incident as one of a string of break-ins at Wynne's home. Officers responded to at least 10 calls of reported vandalism at Wynne's residence within two years, Revels said.

I wish I could say that came as a shock to me, but very early on in my Pagan life I got involved with Pagan legal protection causes and I saw a number of cases where people had endured this level of hatred.

Ms. Wynne apparently plans to stay in that town, which is pretty courageous of her. I hope she stays safe, and more importantly I hope that somehow she and any other openminded types in Great Falls are able to start building a more progressive atmosphere. Here's hoping the bigots in town get some education, and that the vandals get jail time.