Author: Andrew.pardy

The Police Pagan Association is really proud to announce that we have achieved a massive breakthrough on behalf of our Pagan communities that will have far-reaching implications that will change how Paganism is perceived and recorded nationally.

I am in a privileged position as a national chair for a police DSSA where I can use my access to the highest levels of agencies such as the Home Office, the National Police Chiefs Council and the College of Policing to influence change at a national level.

Towards the end of 2021 the College of Policing was tasked by the Home Office to carry out a review of the National Standard for Recording Workforce Data Information. This was primarily around enhancing how police forces accurately recorded the diversity of their workforces and those they are recruiting – some of you may know that I’ve been an equality & diversity champion for Hertfordshire Constabulary for many years, and am also the Positive Action Recruitment & Retention lead currently.

I used this opportunity to submit a business case to have Paganism recognised as a faith in its own right in all government data systems; the letter attached contains many of the points I made – especially that the Police Pagan Association was the only staff support association that represented a characteristic still defined as ‘other’ (i.e., when choosing a faith when reporting a crime, applying for a job etc. Pagans would have to select ‘other’, and where not always provided an option to define their faith).

I cannot reiterate how significant this business case was, as it had far-reaching implications that extended beyond policing. If accepted as a faith, recordable in its own right, it would not simply mean that police systems would have to include Pagan in their drop-down menus…

This review is national because it seeks to standardise ALL data systems used by the government and government agencies, therefore if Paganism was accepted as a faith in its own right it would be incorporated into systems such as PNC, Home Office statistical data, ONS data systems (including the new format for the Census) AND local police data systems for recording crimes, applications and workforce data.

I am delighted to announce that after several months of campaigning and with support from the amazing Stuart at the College of Policing, that Paganism will be recorded as a faith in its own right under the new Workforce Recording Data Standards. The list of recordable faiths will therefore be:

The new data standards will form the basis of for all national systems from March 2023, with agencies and constabularies expected to implement the standards on their local systems by the end of 2023.

This is a massive step towards the validation and profile of Paganism as a faith in this country, and will raise awareness of those agencies yet to record or recognise it; it will contribute to additional engagement by agencies who will now be obliged to recognise and accommodate Paganism in their daily business, and will contribute to the removal of the stigma that still permeates Paganism.

The Police Pagan Association is proud to proud to release our official Census data report for 2021. This document has been independently verified prior to release.

The 6 self-defined religions featured in the 2021 Census data pertaining to Paganism were the same as those featured in the 2011 census, namely Druid, Heathen, Pagan, Shaman, Wicca, and Witchcraft.

As with the 2011 census date, the Police Pagan Association did not include data pertaining to New Age, Pantheism or Occult.

PAGANISM HAS INCREASED FROM 76,459 IN 2021 TO 102,690 IN 2021, AN INCREASE OF 26,231 (34%).

Paganism is the second fastest growing religion (relative to size), only behind Islam (42%)

Therefore, Paganism now represents 0.15% of the total population of England and Wales, and 0.17% of total respondents to the 2021 census.

Druidry was the biggest loss at -1,699 (a 40.5% decrease), whilst Heathenry increased by 2,761 (a 141% increase) and Shamanism increased by 7,240 (an increase of 1114%).

Please email the PPA at Chair@PolicePaganAssociation.org to request a copy of our Census data report.

I recently had the opportunity to visit Utøya in Norway as part of my Master’s Degree studies in Terrorism, Security and Radical Right Extremism.

Utøya is the Island on which a right-wing white supremacist shot and killed 69 people, many of whom were young teenagers – the youngest was just 14 years old.

As a Pagan police officer I cannot effectively convey in words how it felt to be in the place where a terrorist – dressed as a police officer and whom stated that his cowardly actions would enable him to enter Valhalla – murdered people in cold blood because those people believed in a more inclusive, diverse and loving world.

Not everyone knows that this terrorist also named his guns Mjolnir and Gungnir, equating the weapons that he used to murder innocent people to the most holy of weapons used by the Gods in their protection of mankind.

You will all know how passionately invested I am in educating our police and counter-terrorism agencies about Pagan extremism; this is so that they can pursue those who misappropriate and misrepresent our sacred iconography in the pursuit of their misogynistic, racist, anti-Semitic and homophobic ideologies whilst ensuring that we law-abiding Pagans can were the symbols of our faith without fear of misdirected proactivity.

No-one wants these terrorists and extremists dealt with more so than our Pagan communities, no-one wants to see our Gods and Goddesses sullied by association with cowardly and inhumane acts, and whilst I was already wholly invested in this line of work on behalf of all of our Pagan communities, I cannot express how much my experience on Utøya, and the profound sense of loss and sadness that permeates and otherwise beautiful and historic landscape has reinvigorated my determination to ensure that the association of our sacred Heathen beliefs with right-wing extremism and white supremacism is completely eradicated.

There are no terrorists or cowards in Valhalla.

‘hvars þú bǫl kannt, kveð þú þat bǫlvi at ok gefat þínum fjándum frið.’

‘Where you know of misfortune/evil declare it to be misfortune/evil and don’t give your enemies peace.’

– Hávamál 127

I make no apologies for mimicking the title of Arun Kundnani’s excellent book[1], in which he investigates an uninformed ‘war on terror’ which disproportionately targeted our Muslim communities rather than Jihadi Extremists, and only served to further alienate and polarise a faith community already cautious of the government’s CONTEST strategy.

Yet we see the same mistakes being made by the government and the many agencies involved in countering domestic terrorism and violent extremism when it comes to Paganism[2] and its increasingly prevalent relevance to radical ideology and right wing extremism in the UK.

The lack of knowledge about Paganism has already led to mistakes being made which, if not addressed, could lead to law-abiding Pagans being disproportionately affected by the well-intentioned but misdirected efforts of counter-terrorism (CT) agencies and result in the alienation of a minority faith community with which they need to build and maintain bridges if they are to effectively target the right wing extremists who appropriate and misrepresent Pagan iconography as a recruitment platform.

This, along with a number of other societal challenges facing CT agencies when working with Pagan communities need to be addressed if they are to effectively tackle the rising threat of right wing extremism.

The Norse branch of Paganism, known as Heathenry or Asatru, and right-wing extremism in the UK have unfortunately been inexorably linked since Arnold Leese’s Imperial Fascist League (IFL) of the 1920s, influenced by Völkisch ideologies and the concept of ‘Nordicism’.[3]

Whilst examples of extreme right-wing Heathenry can be found in many parts of the world, the fact that Heathenry was the UK’s indigenous faith prior to its Christianisation plays into the racial, ethno-nationalist narrative of the UK’s extreme right, albeit in a traditionally biased format, interpreted to suit the racist, antisemitic, homophobic, and misogynistic values of their ideology.

However, contemporary Paganism is largely ignored as a minority faith adopted only by fringe factions, and its increasing relevance to right wing extremism is often overlooked. The 2011 Census recorded 76,459 Pagans in England and Wales, accounting for 0.14% of the population, so it is easy to see why, in comparison to larger religions such as Christianity (which accounted for 59.3% of the population at 33,243,000), it is not often considered a threat.

However, the increasing popularity of Paganism and its persistent links to the extreme right cannot be ignored. Whilst it is unlikely that Paganism will ever compete with the Abrahamic faiths, it is experiencing a contemporary renaissance; more people – especially younger generations – are seeking out non-hierarchical faiths in which they can express themselves and their interpretation of the divine as individuals; a faith which expresses the ever relevant concern for our environment and our place within it. This, along with the recent popularity in Norse culture in TV series such as Vikings and computer games such as Assassins Creed: Valhalla have all contributed to a growing number of people exploring or seeking out Heathenry.

And, as more people explore Nordic Paganism, more opportunities present themselves to extremist groups to promote their racialised tenets as those of contemporary Heathenry and lure individuals into an increasingly radicalised ideology. Additionally, some organised right-wing Heathen groups boast a variety of outreach projects, including a chaplaincy and prison ministry with which they seek to radicalise or convert a growing number of already radicalised individuals in the prison or probation systems to their extremist interpretation of Heathenry – accounting for the increasing number of referrals relating to subjects who, during their internment or probation claim to have found solace as a Heathen Pagan, or more commonly for those of an extreme right wing mindset, as an ‘Odinist’.

Additionally, groups such as the Asatru Folk Assembly[4] have a programme in which they train ‘folk builders’ to join the armed forces[5] and recruit soldiers with combat and survivalist training to their cause; and extremist neo-Pagan ‘thinktanks’ such as Thule-Seminar and Grece are led by self-styled academics who use their educational credentials to access universities and online learning spaces as guest lecturers, allowing them to introduce a predominantly younger educated audience to their often nuanced ‘soft entry’ theories that inevitably lead into their more radicalised and extreme agendas.

With the addition to a significant online presence with the likes of Folkbook[6] and the more traditional applications, extremist Paganism has access to our younger generations, our prison communities, our educational establishments, and our armed forces, as well as wider society through popular culture and faith communities.

Whilst Paganism as a religion may be small in comparison to others, it cannot be denied that it is disproportionately represented in the ideology of the extreme right in the UK and beyond, and CT agencies need to start taking the threat posed by radicalised Heathenry more seriously.

There are, however, significant challenges that cannot be ignored. Whilst the many CT agencies and departments with whom I have spoken seem eager to learn, it is apparent that there is a distinct lack of knowledge about Paganism – radicalised or otherwise – within our government and CT agencies at a national and local level, and certainly no evidence of joined-up working practice in which such knowledge can be effectively shared between agencies.

The current independent commission[7] on UK Counter-Terrorism Law, Policy, and Practice states:

“The Commission brings together 15 Commissioners who between them have expertise and experience of counter-terrorism law, policy and practice, as well as knowledge and understanding of the groups and communities most directly affected by terrorism and by counter-terrorism measures.”

I opine that none of the commissioners have a knowledge or understanding of our Pagan communities, their complicated historical relationship with policing, nor how they have been affected by the CONTEST strategy;[8] when the Pagan perspective is not represented at national or legislative level it is no surprise that there is no recognition of the value of working more closely with our Pagan communities to better direct and focus intelligence led CT efforts to the threat of domestic right wing extremism and terrorism, whilst minimising the potential impact of proactivity on an already cautious but predominantly law-abiding minority faith community.

This lack of knowledge was exemplified upon the release of a revised PREVENT strategy in June 2011, following which CT agencies started releasing intelligence documents such as ‘right wing signs & symbols’ advising readers that such iconography was indicative of right-wing or extremist ideologies, initially providing no context nor differentiation between Pagan symbols such as Mjolnir, the Valknut, the Othala rune, and solely extremist right wing symbols.

Whilst it is recognised that right-wing extremist groups like Scottish Dawn[9], do utilise Pagan iconography such as the Algiz rune[10], and that the aforementioned Pagan symbols are misappropriated and misrepresented by right-wing extremist groups, acting upon them without context would have resulted in members of the Pagan community being disproportionately targeted simply for wearing symbols of their faith, making an already cautious community harder to work with at a time when their insight and cooperation is invaluable to tackling the rise of domestic right-wing extremism.

Indeed, it was only after the intervention of the Police Pagan Association that future versions of this and other related intelligence documents featured a caveat[11] stating that these symbols were primarily worn by law-abiding Pagans and should be considered in context with other indicators by operatives. However, had the Police Pagan Association not been a government endorsed agency, I fear that no such change would have been forthcoming.

This relates to the second challenge; Paganism is traditionally decentralised, non-hierarchical, and generally unstructured. With the exceptions of established groups such as the Pagan Federation, Asatru UK, and the Order of Bards, Ovates & Druids (OBoD), Paganism is self-deterministic and eclectic, largely a conglomeration of the worship of nature, a recognition of our place within it, and the individuals experience and interpretation of the divine; as a result organising Pagans is likened to ‘herding cats’ and if you ask 10 Pagans to define Paganism you would likely get 10 very different answers, but all would proudly identify as a Pagan, or a branch thereof.

Whilst there are certainly recognised representatives, academics, and faith leaders within the Pagan community, often local groups (Moots) are led by the most engaged or motivated individual, attendance at Moots will wax and wane and individuals may not align to any one group, instead preferring to experience a variety of interpretations provided by the inexorable individuality inherent within Pagan practice.

And like all other faiths Paganism attracts its fair share of self-appointed experts, egos and those who shout louder than others. For this reason, I recognise the challenge for CT agencies when looking to engage with Pagan communities, whether they be looking for a specialist consultant or a representative on an interfaith working group. I will concede here that the caution of the Home Office and our CT agencies is undoubtedly influenced by past mistakes, in which individuals and agencies with their own agendas retarded efforts to engage with faith communities, espousing opinions not necessarily indicative of the wants, needs or expectations of those they purportedly represented.

However, the government needs to pay attention and take the influence of Paganism on contemporary right wing extremism seriously. There are agencies and representatives out there who can provide balanced and invaluable insight into our Pagan communities, who can help build bridges between the police, our CT agencies, and a minority faith community at a time when their intelligence and knowledge is very much needed. No one wants to see those to have misappropriated our sacred iconography prosecuted more so than the UKs Pagan population, now is the time to work together towards the shared goal of targeting and persecuting those who threaten our security with their right-wing extremist ideologies that have no place in our increasingly diverse and inclusive society.

Bibliography

Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law, “Independent Commission on Counter-Terrorism Law, Policy and Practice” binghamcentre.biicl.org Accessed November 9, 2022. https://binghamcentre.biicl.org/independent-commission-on-counter-terrorism-law-policy–and-practice-?cookiesset=1&ts=1668010990

Extinction Rebellion “Right Wing Signs & Symbols Aid June 2019” extinctionrebellion.uk Accessed November 9, 2022. https://extinctionrebellion.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Counter-terrorism-poster.pdf

Harding, Thomas, “Downing Street confirms ban on Muslim Council of Britain contacts” thenationalnews.com July 18, 2022. https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/uk-news/2022/07/18/downing-street-confirms-ban-on-muslim-council-of-britain-contacts/

HM Government, “CONTEST: The United Kingdom’s Strategy for Countering Terrorism” Gov.uk Accessed November 9, 2022. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/97994/contest-summary.pdf

HM Government, “Prevent Strategy” Gov.uk Accessed November 9, 2022. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/97976/prevent-strategy-review.pdf

Kundnani, Arun, The Muslims are coming! London: Verso Books, 2014

Longstreth, Samuel, “Far Right Usage of Pagan and Nordic Iconography.” GreyDynamics.com April 29, 2022.  https://greydynamics.com/far-right-usage-of-pagan-and-nordic-iconography/

Macklin, Graham, Failed Führers: A history of Britain’s extreme right Oxon: Routledge, 2020

Nicolson, Stuart, “Who are the Scottish Dawn neo-Nazi group?”bbc.co.uk September 29, 2017. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-41440467

Southern Poverty Law Centre, “Asatru Folk Assembly” splcenter.org November 9, 2022. https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/extremist-files/group/asatru-folk-assembly

Wikipedia, “Algiz” en.wikipedia.org Accessed November 9, 2022. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Algiz

Wilton, Bryan, AFA Soldier’s Edda and Veteran’s resource guide US: AFA, 2017

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[1] Arun Kundnani, “The Muslims are coming!” (London: Version Books, 2014) 27-54

[2] Samuel Longstreth, “Far Right Usage of Pagan and Nordic Iconography.” GreyDynamics.com April 29, 2022.  https://greydynamics.com/far-right-usage-of-pagan-and-nordic-iconography/

[3] Graham Macklin, “Failed Führers: A history of Britain’s extreme right” (Oxon: Routledge, 2020) 22-68

[4] Southern Poverty Law Centre “Asatru Folk Assembly” splcenter.org Accessed November 9, 2022. https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/extremist-files/group/asatru-folk-assembly

[5] Bryan Wilton, “AFA Soldier’s Edda and Veteran’s resource guide” (US: AFA, 2017)

[6] https://www.folkbook.us/

[7] Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law “Independent Commission on Counter-Terrorism Law, Policy and Practice” binghamcentre.biicl.org Accessed November 9, 2022. https://binghamcentre.biicl.org/independent-commission-on-counter-terrorism-law-policy–and-practice-?cookiesset=1&ts=1668010990

[8] HM Government “CONTEST: The United Kingdom’s Strategy for Countering Terrorism” Gov.uk Accessed November 9, 2022. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/97994/contest-summary.pdf

[9] Stuart Nicolson, “Who are the Scottish Dawn neo-Nazi group?” bbc.co.uk September 29, 2017. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-41440467

[10] Wikipedia, “Algiz” en.wikipedia.org Accessed November 11, 2022. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Algiz

[11] Extinction Rebellion “Right Wing Signs & Symbols Aid June 2019” extinctionrebellion.uk Accessed November 9, 2022. https://extinctionrebellion.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Counter-terrorism-poster.pdf

The Police Pagan Association is delighted to introduce the newest members of our ever-expanding First Point of Contact network!

CE Lisa Barnett of West-Midlands Police has taken on the role of FPOC for for the West Midlands region; you can contact her here.

CE Natasha Koncewicz of Norfolk Constabulary has taken on the role of FPOC for Norfolk and Suffolk Constabularies; she can be contacted here.

And our Treasurer Inspector Maxine Cilia, has taken on the role of FPOC for Surrey and Sussex constabularies; she can be contacted here.

We are extremely grateful to our FPOCs, who take on the additional responsibilities that the role brings alongside their regular duties.

If you are a serving Pagan police officer or member of police staff and you are interested in becoming part of our FPOC network, feel free to contact us using the form below.

The Police Pagan Association is delighted to introduce the newest members of our ever-expanding First Point of Contact network!

PS Michael Fogg has taken over as the new FPOC for British Transport Police; you can contact him here.

PC Michael Gardner of Thames Valley Police has taken on the role of FPOC for the South East region; he can be contacted here.

And PS James Batty of Durham Constabulary has taken on the role of FPOC for the North East region; he can be contacted here.

We are extremely grateful to our FPOCs, who take on the additional responsibilities that the role brings alongside their regular duties.

If you are a serving Pagan police officer or member of police staff and you are interested in becoming part of our FPOC network, feel free to contact us using the form below.

The national census for England and Wales is occurring on 21st March 2021. UK national statistician, Professor Sir Ian Diamond, has stated that after 220 years of the national census, this is likely to be the last census in this format.

Question 16 of the census relates to religion, with the usual boxes for what are considered the six major religions, as well as a box for those that identify as having no religion. Then there is a box for those of us who are members of other religions, with the option to add a descriptor.

In the last Census many Pagans naturally wrote what best described their own spirituality; and it is well known that if you ask ten Pagans to define their faith you would get ten very different answers. For example you may get a practitioner identify as Heathen, but for others it may be Asatruar, Anglo-Saxon Heathen, Northern Path or any other number of terms that describe a broadly similar belief system. This is perfectly understandable, but in terms of the census the self-defining and personal nature of Paganism may be detrimental to us.

If we continue to respond to the Census with very specific and niche definitions of our personal interpretations of our faith we will continue to see our Pagan communities divided into small – and in the eyes of the census – insignificant groups that are of little consequence to the overall data, and subsequently the needs and the voice of Paganism is diminished.

A great example of what can happen when we all work towards a common goal is the recent Diversity, Equality & Inclusion in Policing Survey that was carried out by Durham University on behalf of the National Police Chiefs Council. This survey looks at all manners of important aspects of policing, from job satisfaction, wellbeing, bullying in the workplace, discrimination and much more. The results of the survey directly impact the priorities of the government and chief constables in relation to supporting staff support associations, wellbeing initiatives etc.

The Police Pagan Association was keen that the voices of Pagan police officers and staff were not only heard but well represented in the survey, and carried out several months of messaging around the benefits of engaging with the anonymous survey. As a result there were more Pagan respondents than there were Hindu, Jewish, Sikh, Humanists or Agnostics, coming forth behind Christianity, Agnostics, Atheists and Muslims.

This has resulted in the entirety of the NPCC and the Home Office recognising that what was seen as a minority religion of little consequence is not only well represented within the police service, but has a voice that is actively engaged in directing the priorities for policing over the coming years. This small act of cohesive working has significantly impacted on how our Pagan communities are perceived, and will impact on legislation and procedures that affect us all.

If we all agreed to join together, whether we be Druids, Wiccans, Shamans, Heathens or diversifications thereof and simply identify ourselves as ‘ Pagan’ we would be able to achieve a significant and truly representative number which would actually register on the statistics, and make a difference.

This is not just about having an impact on the total number either; it is about what those statistics can be used for. They directly impact on the rights and recognitions many of us have been fighting for such as the review of marriage laws in England & Wales, which may be the opportunity to have handfastings recognised as legally binding, as they already are in Scotland. There are moves for Pagan chaplains in the Ministry of Defence, the fire service and the NHS, and an expansion of the number of chaplains in universities, hospitals and the police.

If we work together to ensure that we are counted as a large cohesive national community of Pagans we really will see the benefits that the census data can bring.

I will be joining the likes of Dan Coultas of the Defence Pagan Network, from whom this article is greatly influenced, because I too believe it can make a real difference to our communities, and give Pagans across the UK the same rights enjoyed by followers of other religions.

The Police Pagan Association is happy to announce that we now have a webpage on the national police recruitment website!

www.joiningthepolice.co.uk/supporting-diversity/support-organisations/the-police-pagan-association