VC speaker explains Wiccan, feminism

By William Knox
Norwich Guidon Staff Writer

Peace, feminism and anit-globalization were just a few of the aspects the influential pagan author Starhawk spoke about during her visit to Vermont College's Adult Degree Program on Mar. 13.

The ADP hosted Starhawk, where she discussed her latest book The Twelve Wild Swans.

The primary organizer for the presentation was Anne Conner, a staff member in Vermont College's Learning support center and herself a practicing Wiccan.

"She (Starhawk) mostly talked about the tale and what the story was about and how it represents the journey of a person's life as they travel along the road," Connor said. "Sometimes they're wandering around in the darkness not knowing where they're going or what they're doing and the different things along the way that wake them up."

Starhawk referenced her own "journey" as a political activist, according to Conner, and talked about her years of work advocating peace, feminism and anti-globalization.

The speech, scheduled to begin at 7 p.m., was delayed three hours because of adverse weather conditions. Starhawk spoke for an hour, took questions for an additional 15 minutes and then led the 70 people in attendance in the "Spiral Dance."

"It's a dance that's performed in rituals to raise energy for a particular focus," Conner explained of the Spiral Dance. "In this case, it was the focus of healing the earth. Each person in the room might also have had a slightly different focus of the healing energy that they needed for themselves."

Starhawk lives in San Francisco, where she is a member of the Reclaimists, a sect within the Wiccan religion, Conner said.

"There's many different kinds of Wiccan groups," Conner said. "They all consider themselves Wiccan, but this Reclaiming community has a particular philosophy that mixes political activism with Wiccan ritual and empowerment."

The "Spiral Dance" ritual, which Starhawk performed at the event, is, Conner explained, "very specific to her.

"The dance is something she and her group designed," Conner said. "Lots of people know how to do it, but to actually participate in one led by her is something of an honor."

By the time Starhawk arrived in Montpellier, over six inches of snow had blanketed the Vermont College campus and made getting up the hill to College Hall a challenge.

Despite both the weather and the three-hour delay, more than 70 women and children, along with four or five men, attended the ritual, which finally ended at around 12:30 p.m..

Conner said she was "pleasantly surprised and thrilled at how many people stuck around considering that night."

"She's an oft-quoted author here," Conner said. "If anyone is doing any studies related to the Goddess or women's spirituality or the feminine in religion they're going to come across Starhawk's work."

Six years ago, Connor attended a workshop presented by Starhawk on "getting in touch with the Goddess" or, as she explained, "the feminine aspect of God and the spirit."

"I was really captivated by the work," Connor said. "It really made sense to me. Since I was a little girl, I had a sense that God was very feminine in nature. Everything about what She did made sense to me."

A few years later, Connor learned of a week-long "intensive" camp that was being offered by Starhawk that would focus on her work in the areas of Wicca, the goddess, and nature. With this in mind, Conner decided that Starhawk's work might find an audience at Vermont College.

"Because VC is a nontraditional education, many students develop their own studies according to their passions and their interests," Conner said. "There are a great number of studies that have been done on the feminine face of God, spirituality in nature, and Wicca."

Conner explained there are also many students who study the feminine aspect in more traditional religions, which she said is part of Starhawk's work as well along with the study of the environment, ecology and "the need to preserve the Earth and its resources."

Most of Starhawk's work in the Burlington area involved the training of political activists, according to Conner. The activists are preparing to stage a protest of the North American Free Trade Agreement at an international convention being held in Quebec this April.

Conner explained that this was an extension of Starhawk's anti-globalization beliefs.

"She wants people in third world countries to have the opportunity to make money without being overtaken by the global economy," Conner said, "so that those who are impoverished have an opportunity to make a living for themselves.

"That won't happen with globalization, where those who have the money hold all the power," Conner said. "That money isn't going to trickle down to those people who need it the most."

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