The Hunt is On…. 

Is the craziness of hunting for witches only limited to the infamous Salem Witch Trials??? Sadly no…

Assignment Directions:

1. With ONE partner take about 20 minutes to read an article titled "The Persecution of Witches, 21st-Century Style 

2. When you have finished reading and exploring the article complete the following task: 

"The Hunt is On…"

3. With a partner, research and find three examples of modern-day witch-hunts:  

• one local example (isolated in North Carolina
• one national example (isolated in the United States) 
• one global example (isolated in a country other than the United States) 
• Two of your three examples must be within the past five years, and the third example must be within the past 15 years.  Remember, the point is to find up-to-date examples for relevance.

4. Once you have found three examples and have read the basic information, complete a triple Venn diagram (on paper) in order to note similarities and differences among the hunts.  You will need to note the sources you used for your information on your thinking map. 

(Please, please remember that Wikipedia is NOT a reliable source for information!!)

5. What’s It Mean to Believe?After you have completed the triple Venn diagram, square up to reflect upon all the cases of hysteria and the “witch-hunts” we have studied thus far. On a sheet of paper make a 2 column list of how the common traits among those who believe in the witch-hunts as well as the common traits among those who do not believe in the witch-hunts.

 Examples we have discussed include:

• Salem Witch Trials
• Red Scare
• 9/11 Terrorist Attacks
• WWII
• Holocaust
• Japanese Internment Camps
• Ebola and Anthrax Scares
• Y2K
• Your personal examples

6. Your Voice Matters Now that you have had time to collaborate with peers to discuss examples of hysteria and common traits, you will individually reflect upon and compose a written response to the following prompt:  

• What factors fuel hysteria?  Why do we, as humans, feed into hysteria?  How can we combat the effects of hysteria—both locally and globally?