COMMERCIAL APPEAL
Pagans, foes awaken streets of Jonesboro
Jerry Huston and Kenneth Heard
Monday, August 2, 1993
A march by a band of witches ended in a loud but nonviolent confrontation between pagans and Christians, shattering Jonesboro's ordinary Sunday morning calm.
About 70 wiccans chanted, danced and sang their way through about 2 miles of city streets and past a row of churches before meeting the group of about 40 Christian protesters on the outskirts of downtown, about 65 miles northwest of Memphis.
With rows of pedestrians and dozens of police looking on, the two groups passed within inches in a bizarre Main Street meeting as Christian hymns and bellowed prayers competed with pagan songs and chants in a loud, confusing cacophony.
"I don't know what's wrong with you people. Don't you care about the youngsters in this community? You know this is wrong," shouted Jeff Summers of Jonesboro, trying to be heard over wiccans chanting about themselves as the ''old people" and the "new people" of the Earth.
Among the Christian protesters was Steve Branch, father of one of the three West Memphis youths slain in May. Branch shouted Bible verses condemning witchcraft and the occult.
The roughly two-hour event, which resulted in no injuries or arrests, was billed as a "freedom of religion" march organized by local occult bookstore owner Terry Riley. A wiccan high priest, Riley said his pending eviction from his store is the result of religious persecution.
"I think we did exceptionally well here today. We got our point across in a peaceful manner and nobody was hurt. . . . I think some people might have been enlightened today," said Riley, 38, owner of Magick Moon bookstore. "We want people to know that witches aren't violent or Satanists or anything like that. We love peace and brotherhood, and I think we showed some people that today."
Authorities also saw the day's activities as successful. No physical confrontations were reported by the roughly 100 Jonesboro police officers and Craighead County sheriff's deputies stationed along the parade route.
The march, which Riley began organizing nearly a month ago, began in a strip mall parking lot, where wiccans, druids and other pagans began congregating shortly after 8:30 a.m.
The marchers, many wearing T-shirts proclaiming the wiccan worship of sun and Earth gods and goddesses, gathered from across the region, including carloads from Memphis, Little Rock and St. Louis. Many wore T-shirts made up by Riley decrying, "Salem Revisited - The Great Jonesboro Witch Hunt."
"I'm very interested in religious freedom and I believe in speaking out against religious persecution of any type," said Tom Dixon, 35, of Little Rock. "Every American who believes in the Constitution should be joining us."
Led by police cars packed with four officers each, the marchers began heading toward downtown shortly after 9 a.m., when many Jonesboro residents were heading to or from Sunday church services.
Slowing traffic on the heavily traveled Highland Street to a walking pace, marchers waved and bounced signs at passing cars, most filled with people wearing suits, dresses and puzzled expressions.
In one car, a small, elderly woman peered cautiously over her dashboard at the pagans, many of whom were sporting pagan tatoos or dressed in bright tie- die clothing. One marcher who caught the woman's eye smiled and waved. The woman, sneering in disgust, gave the pagan the thumbs down sign.
In most cases, the odd, puzzled looks were met with laughter or jibes from the pagans, who often poked fun at their own religion, which recognizes many gods and goddesses. When one marcher nearly tripped, wiccan Brian Kelly of Springfield, Mo., told her she was "about to meet the god of asphalt."
Along the route, people were roused from their homes by the loud pagan and pro-religious freedom chants, performed with the aid of a bongo drum. Much of the route was lined with cars or pedestrian onlookers, many capturing the odd scene with cameras or on videotape.
"I just wanted to let my kids see there are bad people in this world. . . . There are evil people who do evil things," said Stacy Haydar of Jonesboro, who brought her children, Cory, 4, and Caleb, 2.
In downtown, police funneled the pagans onto the left side of the street, kept the Christian protesters on the right and formed a police line down the middle. Interim Police Chief Jack McCann ordered that anyone crossing the yellow, center line be arrested.
For a stretch of roughly 3 blocks, the pagans chanted an Earth chant as Christian protesters, many led by Branch, shouted and waved Bibles and signs listing Bible quotations condemning witchcraft.
Branch, whose son is suspected to have been killed in an occult-related ritual, read from the book of Deuteronomy, shouting about witches, wizards and spirits, "all that do these things are an abomination of the Lord." Branch said he feared youths might consider joining a witch's coven after watching the march.
Several ministers, whipped into an evangelical fervor, repeatedly shouted ''Praise the Lord" and "Thank You, Jesus" between pleas to the pagans to mend their ways.
"Come see the light," shouted David Harper, youth leader at Heavens for Gospel Tabernacle in Trumann, Ark.
At one point, pagan marchers blared the pagan song of celebration Children of the Circle from a hand-held radio while several elderly Christians, some holding Bibles aloft, sang the hymn He is Lord.
