Toowoomba Witches Markets: Inside the Qld markets sparking religious protests
The spooky season is here for this statewide market day, but the popular event is frequently the target of religious critics. Now its organiser wants to set the record straight.
The Witches Market has seen plenty of conflict with Toowoomba’s Christian community over the past couple of years.
Although the event holds everything from crochet plushies, homemade homewares and even a pet adoption stall this year, it’s expected to draw in a crowd from various Christian outlets alongside patrons and vendors.
Event organiser Wayne Pina-Roozemond said Toowoomba in particular was an interesting market, as it was the target of organised protests.
“We get them at every market but Toowoomba is by far the most full on,” Mr Pina-Roozemond said.
“There’s a lot of misinterpretation from the Christian community as a whole, not just Toowoomba, they basically get quite riled up about it but in reality it’s just a themed market.”
A particular issue the community had in the past, Mr Pina-Roozemond said, was an attraction called the Witches Walk.
“They made the Witches Walk out to be a full on ritual type of thing where witches go around and hex people and all that sort of stuff, that’s how they portrayed it to their followers,” he said.
“In reality it’s a whole bunch of kids dressed up walking around and getting claps and then getting a prize at the end of it.”
Mr Pina-Roozemond said the a main point of the markets was a push in creating a safe space for all people involved within the community.
“It’s just a bunch of fun, it’s just a place where if you want to get dressed up, if you want to do cosplay, if you just want to be who you want to be for the day then you come to us without discrimination, and that includes Christians if they want to come,” he said.
Despite the emphasis on inclusion, he said the protests that showed up displayed worrying messages.
“They’re very discriminatory and some of the things I heard at the market where they did turn up scared the crap out of me,” he said.
“I remember one of the pastors turning around to somebody and saying democracy has failed, we need to go back to God’s law.
“Which in hindsight now, if you look at America and China Christian Nationalists, we do have them in Australia you know, and that kind of thing actually scares me more than what necessarily the Witches Market would do.”
With Paganism on full display at the market, Wayne said it’s not a religion, but a belief system.
“Its main premise more than anything else is do what you want but don’t harm anyone while doing it,” he said.
“Let’s have a look at some of these other organised religions and see if they can’t work on the same premise.”
The Witches Market will be held on October 25.
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Originally published as Toowoomba Witches Markets: Inside the Qld markets sparking religious protests
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