Salem witch trials vs modern witch trials There have been cases threw out our history where neighbors were bitter enemies, and for that innocent people began to have their world fall apart. Many Christians (and other religions) had a strong belief that the devil could give certain people (witches) the power to harm others. In the 1300s and 1600s, over ten thousands of witches (mostly women) were executed. The Salem witch trials occurred in colonial Massachusetts. Between 1692 and1693, only lasting a year, 200 people still lost their lives. It all began when two young girls, Elizabeth and Abagail, began to have fits; they would scream, throw things, speak strangely, and shift themselves into weird positions. When a doctor checked them out; he blamed the super natural for their strange behavior. Nevertheless, a young girl, Anna, began to also have these issues. So pressure began to be put on the girls from the officials of the town (magistrates), and three women were put under blame. Tituba- a slave, Sarah Good- homeless beggar, and Sarah Osborne- elderly woman. Being brought before the magistrates, and interrogated for several days. Tituba later confessed to a black shadow appearing. Giles Corey was not hung, but was pressed to death by stones because he wouldn’t admit his guilt: he was 72 years old. It all began because the girls thought that they would have been punished for dancing. Once someone’s good name was called out for being a witch it wasn’t something they got back. Communism in the United States was the largest issues in the 1950s. McCarthy claimed he had the names of 57 people in the united states that were communist. In May 1950, Senator McCarthy feared that he would be defeated in the upcoming election. This began a communist witch hunt, but more modern. Very few people trusted each other; neighbors once again became bitter enemies. This was again a good time to ruin someone’s reputation for revenge. Not all the people on this list were communist some turned out to be alcoholics and prostitutes. With the panic arising; the fear of communism became known as McCarthyism. He began calling people out from other parties, and people started to become suspicious. Many people he called out lost their jobs, and even after they were cleared they still couldn’t get them back.