Joseph Watts of the Lumberjack wrote an article on the child exorcisms occurring in Africa. I am thrilled that a journalist of the Lumberjack is aware of this issue and wrote on its behalf. I completely agree that this is an issue that needs immediate attention and help as children are suffering. It is surprising to me that children are still being accused of being witches similar to that of the Salem Witch Trials.

However, I think it is a bit more complicated than that in African countries because the general public does believe in witchcraft as opposed to other cultures. As Watts pointed out in the first sentence, most people of his audience will not believe in witchcraft.

Many African cultures have believed in witchcraft for years before Europeans found Africa. Many African cultures are currently still very superstitious such that of Northern Uganda. I do not think the issue is one sided; finding a resolution will require finding understanding between differing cultures. I think much of the issue revolves around greed and corruption but learning the century old superstitions will make finding a resolution faster.

I also do not find it surprising that Christian organizations are partially responsible for the situation or that similar incidents have happened in London. Human beings, no matter the religion or culture, have a tendency to make drastic mistakes. I think Watts brought up a key point that this issue is the fault of many different peoples’ corruption. Taking and placing the “blame” accordingly will help solve the issue.

The bottom line is that, as Watts said, Africa does not need this right now. No one, especially children should ever be subjected to such cruelty. Ignoring this issue as has been done with other African issues would be negligible and wrong. This issue needs to be brought to the attention of the public and I thank Watts for his contribution.