Practicing witches from around the world gathered by the hundreds in Salem Thursday evening to honor Stormy Daniels during their annual “magic circle” ceremony recognizing loved ones who have died.
Daniels – the adult film actor who allegedly had an affair with Donald Trump and was at the center of his criminal trial in May that led to the former president’s conviction on 34 crimes – was chosen to be honored at the Halloween ceremony, as organizers thinking she has fallen victim to a modern-day witch hunt.
The event, which began at Salem Common in Salem, Massachusetts, at 5 p.m. was part of the Festival of the Dead, an annual event series exploring “the macabre customs, heretical histories and strange rituals of death.”
The magic circle ceremony is meant to be a time to “renew connections, mourn those you miss, and celebrate all that these precious souls have brought into your life,” according to event details.
About 1,500 people gathered in the large witches’ circle on Salem Common, some dressed as witches, others in an array of Halloween costumes. They sang and clapped a beating drum as they blessed the four corners: north, south, east and west.
During the event, Daniels received the first-ever “Salem Witches’ Woman of Power Award,” which is given in recognition of a person’s power, intuition and magic, according to the Boston Globe.
“A lot of people know Stormy because he is a porn star and fights Trump in court,” said Christian Day, event organizer and local warlock. “But many people don’t know that she is a practicing witch, and that she is someone who stands out as a woman of power.”
Daniels referred to her experiences in court when she accepted the award. “Two years ago I was put on trial and someone said I wasn’t fit to testify because I was a witch. I was honest, I told the truth and I was persecuted.
“For me, this award should inspire others to speak out and not be silenced.”
In an interview with the Globe, Daniels said she has been a practicing witch since her childhood in New Orleans and that her 13-year-old daughter is also a practicing witch.
When asked if she would be honored at the Salem event, Daniels said she “couldn’t find the words to emotionally explain how big this is for me.
“No one understands what the last six years have been like for me,” Daniels told the Globe. “Everyone can turn off the TV and forget about the politics that have taken this dark madness to the next level. I won’t get that chance. I live in an RV because I can’t go home.
“The persecution these witches felt hundreds of years ago is very familiar to me,” she added, referring to the Salem witch trials, which took place between February 1692 and May 1963. During this period, more than 200 Salem residents were murdered. community accused of witchcraft, which resulted in the execution of twenty people.
Daniels conducted the interview with the Globe from her RV and told the newspaper that she had been on the run since her home address was shown on screen by Trump’s lawyers during the New York trial, which they claimed was an accident.
In May, Trump was found guilty of falsifying company records to cover up a $130,000 payment to Daniels in exchange for her silence before the 2016 presidential election about the alleged sexual encounter she said she had with the former president.
Daniels has said she has received harassment and death threats from Trump supporters in recent years, as well as threats to rape and kill her daughter and other family members.
Trump has repeatedly denied having a relationship with Daniels.
One of the magic circle event organizers, Brian Cain, told the Globe that the decision to honor Daniels, “and the attack she suffered,” was a “way of saying she is part of our family.” .
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Daniels shared with the Globe that throughout her life she has always been able to see ghosts and communicate with the dead. But she said she has always been “a solo practitioner,” so Thursday will be her first experience being part of a circle.
“And what a prestigious and wonderful way to do that,” she added.
She said her specialty is making herb-filled “spell jars,” and people come to her asking to cast spells on their legal cases.
“I try to be ethical and instead do ‘justice’ spells because I don’t know what’s going on, who’s right and who’s being unfairly persecuted,” she explained.
In recent years, Daniels created Spooky Babes, a paranormal television show starring herself, and hosted ghost hunting events across the country. Her Instagram page for the show states that she is a “proven medium/paranormal investigator.”
In the interview with the Globe, Daniels also dismissed Trump’s claims in recent years that he is the victim of a witch hunt.
“The best part is that Trump always says it’s a witch hunt against him, which is funny,” she said. “People like to say Donald Trump is bad, but you have to be a genius to be bad, and he’s not that smart.”
Organizers of the Salem event said they decided to delay announcing Daniels’ performance until a day before the scheduled event to avoid potential disruptions.
On October 23, organizers hinted at the announcement in a video, but did not reveal the identity of the guest until Wednesday.
“She is a very important symbol for women’s empowerment in our difficult times,” one of the organizers said in the video, referring to Daniels.
“And because witches are goddess worshipers, we believe in the goddess and because we believe in the power of women and the power of the witch, we are going to give this woman a very special award.”
Rick Findler contributed to this report
