The Gendering of Witchcraft: Sex-related or Sex-specific: Harmful Practices Related to Accusations of Witchcraft and Ritual Attacks: Challenges for Marginalized Groups

It is well established that the intended targets of witchcraft accusations, both historically and in the present day, are predominantly women. Witchcraft is undoubtedly an ideological concept. It is based upon a belief system, related to religion, culture, and superstition, which affects the way a person views the world, providing answers to otherwise incomprehensible natural phenomena, whilst regulating social relationships. The inability to accept responsibility for one’s own actions and to shift blame to the vulnerable is key to the witchcraft discourse. However, the specific link between witchcraft and women is not always acknowledged. Historically, misogyny and patriarchy were not recognized as drivers of the witchcraft discourse, with religious ideology deemed to play a key role. Thus, claims women were part of the issue, but not the central issue is one of debate. This paper will examine the gendering of the witchcraft discourse asking whether the historical ideology was sex-related or sex-specific and whether the disposition of the contemporary witchcraft discourse retains its feminine nature.