Racism! Racism!

[Rebis]

Help me understand this person's POV:

http://www.stopedainmccoy.com/

I came across this after checking out some Irish Celtic stuff. I read McCoy's book "Witta" around 1996, while reading lots of "comparative religion."

The person (nut?) who started this campaign admits:

1. S/he hasn't read "Witta." All info (and ranting) is based on what s/he's heard about it from a friend who did.

2. S/he is Irish.

3. Edain McCoy is, I take it, of Irish or Celtic descent (if that's her maiden last name).

And because McCoy's an American, not Irish by birth, she's waaay off and wrong about Irish paganism, a racist, bigot, etc.

I'm not sticking up for McCoy. I didn't care for that book.

Goes on to point out that a white American can't be an orthodox Jew or a black slave. Yeah...true...but um, both this person and McCoy are "white", right?

But I've seen this sort of thing before, from Europeans (whoops...I'm being "racist"?!).

They seem to hold to national identity as "race" as well. The German race, the British race, the Swedish race. To me, that's national...not race. Or at most it's ethnic (Teutons, Celts, Angles, Jutes, Saxons, etc.).

Can someone explain this to me?

Because it's always very odd to me, when a fair-skinned and light-eyed European calls Americans with European ancestry,"racist." It's THEIR notion of racism, i.e. nationalism.

And since when is nationalism okay?

Guess it's just me.

[Rebis]

It's also got me puzzled, because if I were to write a book about Czech paganism - with 1/2 of my ancestry being Czech - and if I researched it and etc., maybe even traveled to the Czech Republic...then got called "a bigot and a racist" by someone born and raised in Prague.

I don't get it.

[Cyborg Girl]

Huh. I expected that page to be yet another person confusing white supremacy ("racism" in academia) with racial biases in general ("racism" in popular culture). Which would be perfectly understandable.

But it's actually... Um... I don't know what. I read the open email, and didn't really understand what the writer was going on about in it. I don't think I know enough about Paganism and/or Irish culture to form an opinion.

[geonuc]

Having not read Witta, I can't be sure, but I think what the gentleman is going on about is a perceived desecration of Irish culture by someone who does know that culture. Clearly, he is not enamored of paganism.

[Rebis]

It seems to me it's that European thing of nationality = race.

And that person admits not having read "Witta."

It'd be like some guy in Ireland disagreeing with Bill O'Reilly about something pertaining to Irish culture and heritage (and who didn't actually watch that segment, but heard about it second-hand), and lamblasting him as "racist."

It's enough dealing with real racism...isn't it?

It's ridiculous and rotten when whites accuse whites of it!! Especially if both have shared national ancestry, for crying out loud.

[Cyborg Girl]

It's ridiculous and rotten when whites accuse whites of it!! Especially if both have shared national ancestry, for crying out loud.

Actually that's kind of a racist statement, if you think about it.

No, seriously. If someone is spreading racist bilge, letting it slide because they happen to be of the same race/ethnicity as you is also basically a form of (tacit) racism. It's letting your common ancestry affect how you judge their behavior, which is racial bias.

That said, I really have no idea whether racism figures into Witta. People of Irish ancestry have had things okay here for a long time (though it wasn't always the case); OTOH I expect the situation might be a bit different in the UK, given Britain's historic suppression of Irish culture... I really don't know.

[Rebis]

Thanks for the reply.

If Edain McCoy is, as that person accuses (who never actually read the book!), making some stuff up and taking liberties ("entitlement") with presuming this 'n that about Irish paganism, and trying to pass presumptions and daydreams off as fact, then I could understand it causing resentment...especially if that book caused a big splash in Ireland. I don't know that it did, and we're talking 1995 or 1996 when it was published?

All these years later, one book, I've *never* heard of "Witta" since, I'd forgotten about that book for years, it certainly didn't "catch on in America"...and that person is going ballistic about it.

Unless it did have a huge impact in Ireland (doubtful; and only complaining about it in 2009?).



Ah well.

[gethen]

Goes on to point out that a white American can't be an orthodox Jew or a black slave.

Pretty sure that's not true. A "white" American could certainly convert to Judaism and practice as an orthodox Jew if he/she wanted. Whoever made that statement doesn't seem to understand that Judaism is not not a race, but a religion. Such a basic misconception does seem to call into question the rest of that person's assertions.

[SciFiFisher]

As far as I can tell some wanker took offense at the fact that Edain McCoy who was not Irish and had apparently never even been to Ireland was making claims that the practice of Witta was Irish.

According to him she is practicing a form of racism by attributing something that never saw the blarney stone to the Irish. This individual was so upset at the blatant lies (per his view) that he felt it necessary to call her out and try to shame her online.

I deduce from these facts that he takes a bit of pride in being Irish and feels affronted that some furriner is claiming that the Irish are Wittan's or Wiccan's or Pagans...or whatever.

One could argue that he has entirely too much time on his hands. I do note that the last post seems to have been in 2009. From which I deduce that he either got a life or he died.