The Heretic's Daughter by Kathleen Kent was an overall great book. It took a while to get into the plot; however, once the the turning point occurred, it was difficult to put it down. The book was about the Salem Witch Trials of 1692. At that time, religion was a large part of their lives. Witches were people convicted of heresy, inflicting pain on others; often they were affiliated with the devil.
Everything bad was associated with the devil. The people of the 1600s believed that "he [came] with disease, pestilence,...in spells and incantations (154)."
The witch hysteria was caused by:
- Disease: In the book, Heretic's Daughter, Martha Carrier's family were the ones who brought smallpox into Andover.
- Blackmail or Gossip: Hatred fueled the victims or witnesses of the witchcraft. Mercy called Martha Carrier a witch, because she was mad that she would no longer live with the Carriers.
- Calling someone else a witch, to save themselves and loved ones: Mary and Margaret were arrested in order to make "Uncle confess... and cry out against others for practicing witchcraft (177)." The use of a scapegoat was common. This was apparent in the novel, where the children of Martha blamed their mother of being a witch in order to save their own lives.
New England Witch Trials is like modern profiling
Whether it is racial or name profiling, all searches start out as guilty without a trial; therefore, needing evidence to prove innocence. To prevent the dangers of terrorism, the airports do many "random" security checks. These random checks, are often done to Muslims, Hispanics, and African Americans. Most non Caucasian authors who's articles I've read, say that these checks happen to them often; therefore, I question how random these searches are. In a New York Times article, minorities are often being the ones targeted. Automatically, they are being suspected for a fault, because they look suspicious.
The No Fly List
This government list contains a lot of secrecy from the public. People don't know if their name is on the list until they arrive at the airport; if their name is on it they are held back for additional screening, or even not allowed to fly. Many people have the same name as a person on the list; so therefore, they are punished for something they did not do. The process of clearing your name is very long and often doesn't work. Like the Salem Witch Trials, there isn't any clear evidence as to why the person is proven guilty, and it is difficult to get out the situation.
Overall, these instances may not lead to the the deaths of innocent people; but like the trials, it has provided the opportunity of giving people the power to blame human beings who aren't at fault.
Whether it is racial or name profiling, all searches start out as guilty without a trial; therefore, needing evidence to prove innocence. To prevent the dangers of terrorism, the airports do many "random" security checks. These random checks, are often done to Muslims, Hispanics, and African Americans. Most non Caucasian authors who's articles I've read, say that these checks happen to them often; therefore, I question how random these searches are. In a New York Times article, minorities are often being the ones targeted. Automatically, they are being suspected for a fault, because they look suspicious.
The No Fly List
This government list contains a lot of secrecy from the public. People don't know if their name is on the list until they arrive at the airport; if their name is on it they are held back for additional screening, or even not allowed to fly. Many people have the same name as a person on the list; so therefore, they are punished for something they did not do. The process of clearing your name is very long and often doesn't work. Like the Salem Witch Trials, there isn't any clear evidence as to why the person is proven guilty, and it is difficult to get out the situation.
Overall, these instances may not lead to the the deaths of innocent people; but like the trials, it has provided the opportunity of giving people the power to blame human beings who aren't at fault.
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