How to kill a witch, a guide for modern patriarchy?
Leading human rights lawyer CLAIRE MITCHELL, KC, and writer, ZOE VENDITOZZI formed the WITCHES OF SCOTLAND campaign with the aim of shining a light on the historic injustice of the Witch Trials. As a result, on International Women's Day, 2022, the First Minister of Scotland, at issued a formal state apology - the first time in 300 years there had been any formal recognition of those who were most wrongly accused.
Through their tireless campaigning, regular public appearances, and highly entertaining podcast, also called THE WITCHES OF SCOTLAND, this pair of 'quarrelsome dames' are currently working to build a lasting memorial to the murdered women, and campaign to draw attention to the continued persecution of women as witches around the world today.
In 2022, Claire and Zoe were made Doctors of Laws by the University of Dundee in 2022 in recognition of their work. Claire lives in Edinburgh and Zoe lives in Fife.
Opinion piece - Kate
“Why Doesn’t Anyone Really Listen Anymore?”
Understanding the witch trials through works like The Witches of Scotland and Louise Swinn’s How to Kill a Witch reveals how the persecution of women—often for their independence, knowledge, or defiance of societal norms—still echoes in the lives of modern women. These texts expose how historical narratives of control, silencing, and scapegoating of women resonate with ongoing struggles against misogyny, gender-based violence, and the policing of female autonomy. By revisiting the injustices suffered by those accused of witchcraft, modern women are offered both a mirror and a map: a reflection of the enduring systems of patriarchal control, and a call to reclaim power, voice, and collective memory. This understanding fuels contemporary movements for justice, equality, and the right to exist unapologetically—honouring the persecuted not as victims, but as symbols of resilience and resistance.
This insight is important for everyone—not just women—because it illuminates how systems of power can be used to marginalise, scapegoat, and control individuals who deviate from dominant norms. The witch trials were not isolated acts of cruelty; they were part of a broader pattern of institutionalised fear, suspicion, and suppression of difference. Understanding this history helps us recognise how similar dynamics persist today in the treatment of not only women, but also queer people, people of colour, neurodivergent individuals, and others whose identities or ways of being challenge social conventions. Works like The Witches of Scotland and How to Kill a Witch invite all of us to reflect on how silence, complicity, and prejudice can be inherited and enacted, often unconsciously. By engaging with this history, we are better equipped to disrupt cycles of harm, advocate for justice, and build a culture rooted in empathy, critical thinking, and collective accountability. This isn’t just about remembering the past—it’s about transforming the present.
