In the 1980s and 1990s there was a spate of accusations and prosecution based around the idea that children had been abused (or even murdered) as part of Satanic Rituals. These investigations often involved entire communities, resulting in numerous people being convicted and imprisoned.
However nearly all these cases have since been debunked, with virtually no evidence Satanic abuse ever took place (and tragically it often stemmed from individual children who were abused, whose suffering got swept up in hysteria that enveloped other children and adults who had nothing to do with it).
It is perhaps not too surprising that those who were primed to see Satanic abuse were often keen to see it amongst those living ‘alternate lifestyle’. This hysteria resulted in four Texan women, all lesbians, spending 15 years in prison. They were eventually freed ahead of an appeal, with the State dropping the case against them after they admitted that the medical evidence used to convict them was indefensible in court.
The documentary Southwest of Salem: The Story of the San Antonio Four looks at the story, and you can watch the trailer here. Work In Progress screenings of the film are currently underway.
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