Miss Toronto Tourism discriminates against Wiccans

Winner of the Miss Canada Plus Pageant last year, Stephanie Conover was recently invited to judge for the Miss Toronto Tourism pageant happening on Februrary 2nd.

“I said I’d definitely be there,” Conover told the Star yesterday.

“Then, last week, on Monday, they asked me for a biography. I told them everything I do, how I’m an entertainer and a singer and a dancer. I talked about my charity work and I said I also have hobbies, including songwriting, knitting, painting, yoga, reiki and tarot cards.”

That’s where things got sticky.

“We just got her bio a week ago and we don’t agree with it,” said Karen Murray, Miss Toronto Tourism pageant director. “We want someone down to earth, not someone into the dark side or the occult.”

The Toronto Star, “Beauty queen rejected as a pageant judge“

On January 24th Conover received an outrageously offencive letter, stating “We need a judge who has an upright reputation and we would be proud to introduce to the audience” and “Our board of directors has eliminated her as a judge as tarot card reading and reiki are the occult and is not acceptable by God, Jews, Muslims or Christians. Tarot card reading is witchcraft and is used by witches, spiritists and mediums to consult the dark world.”

Honestly: “the dark world.” No, really.

Several Bible passages were quoted in the letter she received, including one from the book of Leviticus that warns, “Do not turn to mediums or seek out spirits for you will be defiled by them”, and warns her to “turn from these belief systems” encouraging her to “repent”.

Ironically, one of the virtues that Miss Toronto Tourism trumpets on their website is their commitment to multiculturalism. Presumably they’re thinking of a limited kind of diversity, inclusive only of those who don’t engage in God-pissing-off practices like being gay, eating bacon, or believing in evolution. But hey, you can’t spell multi-culturalism without “cult.”

Torontoist.com, “Miss Toronto Tourism Not Welcoming Wiccans“

The Toronto Pagan Conference, which attracts hundreds of Pagans and Pagan-curious from around the world, is in its 4th year. Pagan Pride Day has been celebrated in Toronto for the past 9 years (this year will be its 10th). The Toronto Pagan Pub Moot, one of the oldest continually running moots in North America, is celebrating its 12th anniversary in February, and there are at least half a dozen other Pagan-related meet ups that happen in the city each and every month. It astounds me that this kind of discrimination is possible in such an otherwise Pagan-positive climate.

“The Miss Toronto Tourism pageant has no any apparent affiliation with the Toronto Convention & Visitors Association or other quasi-official tourism organization,” writes Torontoist.com. That’s somewhat reassuring, at least.

The Toronto Star writes that Conover is looking into challenging the Miss Toronto Tourism pageant in court, or at a human rights tribunal. Best of luck to her!

Thanks to the Toronto Occult LiveJournal Community for bringing this to wider attention.

Psyche is the editor of ahrfoundation.org and the curator for the occult resource SpiralNature.com, Psyche also operates a tarot consultation business, Psyche Tarot. She has been published in The Cauldron, Konton, Tarot World Magazine, among other magazines, and her essay “Strategic Magick” appeared in Manifesting Prosperity (Megalithica, 2008).

Psyche's website is http://www.ahrfoundation.org.