Who made us believe that Satanists threatened our children, and why?
Between 1988-1992 the British media (regional and national newspapers and television) featured allegations that hitherto secret occult presences posed a danger to children. It was alleged that the availability of occult books, the growing popularity of Halloween, and ‘Eastern’ practices such as yoga were potentially harmful to children. Most alarmingly, the case was made that children were routined sexually abused and even murdered by secretive cults of Witches, Black Magicians and Satanists who were beyond the law. The UK’s “Satanic Panic” narrative was promoted by Members of Parliament, Social Workers, Evangelical Christians and Child Support organizations. In this lecture, Phil Hine explores the roots of the Satanic Panic, its presentation in the media, and the key events during the period.
Bio:
Phil Hine has been a practising occultist for over forty-five years, with a career spanning Wicca, Ritual Magic, Chaos Magic and nondual Tantra. Together with Rodney Orpheus he co-created and edited the UK’s first monthly Pagan magazine, Pagan News (1988-92). His books include Condensed Chaos, Prime Chaos, Queerying Occultures, and Wheels within Wheels: Chakras and Western Esotericism. Forthcoming publications are Delinquent Elementals, co-edited with Rodney Orpheus (Strange Attractor, 2024) and Yoginis: Sex, Death and Possession in Early Tantra (Original Falcon Press 2025).Press 2019).
