The Witches – Lucianne Tonti at Festival of Dangerous Ideas

Magic as the only logical response to a broken world.

The return of ‘the witch’ is neither a lifestyle trend nor a feminine aesthetic. It is a rational, radical rejection of the failed gods of the 21st century: neoliberalism, secular rationalism, and the colonial state. When the law, the economy, and the climate are failing, ‘magic’ becomes the reclamation of agency by the marginalised – especially by women. What does it mean to recognise witchcraft not as a metaphor, but as a form of political and social power operating outside traditional institutions? And will the rise of powerful female voices, cause reactionary forces to mount a new age ‘witch hunts’? 

Emma Quilty, Lucianne Tonti, Caroline Tully
Chaired by Natasha Mitchell