In September 1985, Senator Jesse Helms (R-NC) entered the transcript in support of an amendment to the federal budget revoking the tax-exempt status of "any religious or apostolic organization which has as its primary purpose the promotion of witchcraft or which has substantial interest in the promotion of witchcraft," witchcraft in this context meaning "power derived from evil spirits; sorcery; or Supernatural powers of malicious intent." This provision passed the Senate by unanimous voice vote—which is to say that in the penultimate decade of the 20th century, the most powerful branch of America's representative democracy unanimously agreed not to grant tax-exempt status to citizens who traffic with "evil spirits."
- Abusing Religion: Literary Persecution, Sex Scandals, and American Minority Religions by Megan Goodwin
Literally every time I read more about the Satanic Panic, the more it feels like a fever dream.
