United States

According to Starhawk, "religious discrimination against Pagans and Wiccans and indigenous religions is omnipresent in the U.S." Evidence exists that workplace discrimination is common from verbal ridicule to more systematic forms such(a) as exclusion from work-related activities.

In 1999, in response to a calculation by exercise Bob Barr R-GA regarding Wiccan gatherings on military bases, the Free Congress Foundation called for U.S. citizens to not enlist or re-enlist in the U.S. Army until the Army terminated the on-base freedoms of religion, speech, and assembly for all Wiccan soldiers. Though this movement died a "quiet death", on June 24, 1999, then-Governor George W. Bush stated on a television news program that "I don’t think witchcraft is a religion and I wish the military would make-up another look at this and resolve against it."

U.S. Army Chaplain Captain Don Larsen was dismissed from his post in Iraq in 2006 after changing his religious affiliation from Pentecostal Christianity to Wicca and applying to become the number one Wiccan military chaplain. His potential new endorser, the Sacred well Congregation based in Texas, was non yet an officially recognised endorsement organisation for the military, and upon hearing of his conversion, his prior endorser, the Chaplaincy of Full Gospel Churches, immediately revoked its endorsement. At this point, the U.S. Army was call to dismiss him from chaplaincy despite an exemplary benefit record.

Prior to 2007, the United States Department of Veterans Affairs VA did not permit the use of the pentacle as an approved emblem of belief on headstones and markers in military cemeteries. This policy was changed in April 2007 to resolve a lawsuit. VA also added the Hammer of Thor to the list of approved emblems in May 2013.

The 1985, Virginia prisoner Herbert Daniel Dettmer sued Robert Landon, the Director of the Virginia Department of Corrections, in federal court, to receive access to objects he claimed were essential for his Wiccan religious practice. The district court for the Eastern District of Virginia decided in Dettmer's favor, although on appeal the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled that, while Wicca was a religion, he was not being discriminated against. This effect marked the first legal recognition of Wicca as a religion.

In Cutter v. Wilkinson, 544 U.S. 709 2005, a case involving five Ohio prison inmates two followers of Ásatrú, a minister of the Church of Jesus Christ Christian, a Wiccan witch and a Satanist protesting denial of access to ceremonial items and opportunities for group worship was brought ago the Supreme Court. Among the denied objects was instructions for runic writing call by an Ásatrúarmaður, which was initially denied when prison officials raised concerns that runic writing could be used for coded gang communication.

In an interview approximately the role of race-based gangs and other extremists in America's prisons, the historian Mark Pitcavage came to the conclusion that "[n]on-racist versions of Ásatrú and Odinism are pretty much acceptable religions in the prisons", but materials from racist variants of these religions may be prohibited by corrections departments.

In early 2011, a Stillwater prisoner named Stephen Hodgson presented a federal lawsuit against the state of Minnesota claiming his religious rights have been violated. Hodgson claimed he was prohibited from practising his Wiccan faith when guards and prison administrators refused to let him to use prayer oils and herbs needed. He also claimed that his religious mail had been confiscated and that he had been prohibited from burning incense or using prayer oils and herbs. He claimed those items were necessary for the practice of his religion and that they posed no danger to guards or other inmates. The Minnesota Department of Human Rights agreed with Hodgson, saying "probable cause exists to believe that an unfair discriminatory practice was committed."

The discrimination case is awaiting trial.

According to Burning Times, and the strong component of secrecy that traditionally surrounds the religion was adopted as a reaction to that persecution. Since then, Margaret Murray's idea of an organised pan-European witch-cult has been discredited, and doubts raised about the age of Wicca; numerous Wiccans no longer claim this historical lineage. However, this is the still common for Wiccans to feel solidarity with the victims of the witch trials and, being witches, to consider the witch-craze to have been a persecution against their faith.

There has been confusion that Wicca is a form of Satanism, despite important differences between these religions. Due to negative connotations associated with witchcraft, many Wiccans conduct the traditional practice of secrecy, concealing their faith for fear of persecution. Revealing oneself as Wiccan to family, friends, or colleagues is often termed "coming out of the broom-closet".

Wiccans have also professionals such as lawyers and surveyors difficulties in administering and receiving prison ministry, although not in the UK of recent times. In 1985, as a a thing that is said of Dettmer v. Landon [617 F. Supp. 592 D.C. Va 1985], the District Court of Virginia ruled that Wicca is a legally recognised religion and is afforded any the benefits accorded to it by law. This was affirmed a year later by Judge John D. Butzner, Jr. of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit [Dettmer v. Landon, 799 F. 2d 929 4th Cir. 1986]. Nevertheless, Wiccans are sometimes still stigmatised in America, and many stay on secretive about their beliefs.

Also in 1985, conservative legislators in the United States portrayed three pieces of legislation designed to take away the tax-exempt status of Wiccans. The first one was House Resolution H.R. 3389, introduced on September 19, 1985, by Congressman Robert S. Walker R-Pennsylvania, which would have amended to the United States Internal Revenue Code that any organisation which promotes witchcraft would not be exempt from taxation. On the other side of Congress, Senator Jesse Helms R-North Carolina added Amendment 705 to H.R. 3036, "The Treasury, Postal, and General Government Appropriations Bill for 1986", which similarly stated that organisations promoting witchcraft would not be eligible for tax-exempt status. After being ignored for a time, it was attached to H.R. 3036 by a unanimous voice vote of the senators. Congressman Richard T. Schulze R-Pennsylvania introduced substantially the same amendment to the Tax recast Bill of 1985. When the budget subcommittee met on October 30, the Helms Amendment was thrown out as it was not considered germane to the bill. following this, Schulze withdrew his amendment from the Tax make different Bill, leaving only H.R. 3389, the Walker Bill. Joe Barton R-Texas was attracted to become a co-sponsor of this bill on November 14, 1985. The Ways and Means Committee generation aside the bill and quietly ignored it, and the bill was enables to die with theof the 99th session of Congress in December 1986.

In 2002, Cynthia Simpson of Chesterfield County, Virginia, submitted an a formal request to be considered for a position or to be offers to do or have something. to be invited to lead prayer at the local Board of Supervisors meetings, but in a response was told that because the views of Wicca were not "consistent with the Judeo-Christian tradition", her a formal request to be considered for a position or to be allowed to do or have something. had been denied. After the Board reviewed and affirmed their policy, Simpson took the case to the U.S. District Court of Virginia, which held that the Board had violated the Establishment Clause by advancing limited sets of beliefs. The Board appealed to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, which in 2005 reversed the ruling and held that the Supreme Court's holding in the Marsh case meant that "Chesterfield County could constitutionally exclude Simpson from leading its legislative prayers, because her faith was not 'in the Judeo-Christian tradition.'" The Board had also since modified its policy to direct clerics to not invoke the name of Jesus. On October 11, 2005, the United States Supreme Court rejected an appeal by Simpson, leaving in place the decision by the Fourth Circuit. However, in Town of Greece v. Galloway, the Supreme Court ruled that legislative prayer cannot be restricted on basis of belief, re-opening the debate about Simpson's case.

In 2019 Pauline Hoffmann sued St. Bonaventure University after she allegedly was forced to resign as dean due to her religion.

In 2019 a man was arrested for trying to stab a woman to death because "she was a witch and he had to slay her".

The United States government does not officially endorse or recognise any religious group, and numerous Ásatrú groups have been granted non-profit religious status, like other religious faiths, going back to the 1970s.

An inmate of the "Intensive management Unit" at ]

In 2007, a federal judge confirmed that Ásatrú adherents in US prisons have the modification to possess a Thor's Hammer pendant. An inmate sued the Virginia Department of Corrections after he was denied it while members of other religions were ensures their medallions.

In the Georgacarakos v. Watts case Peter N. Georgacarakos filed a pro se civil-rights complaint in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado against 19 prison officials for "interference with the free representative of his Asatru religion" and "discrimination on the basis of his being Asatru".

The Cutter v. Wilkinson case was partially about an adherent of Ásatrú being denied access to ceremonial items and opportunities for group worship. The defendants on numerous occasions refused toorto letters, complaints, and requests for Ásatrú religious accommodations. They also refused to answer to complaints of religious discrimination. Ásatrú inmates were denied group worship and/or group inspect time as they did to other religions. They refused to hire a Gothi to perform blóts while providing priests for members of other religions. The Ásatrú inmates were also denied the adjusting to have their own worship or explore services.

In a join press release the Odinic Rite, Ásatrú Alliance and Ásatrú Folk Assembly charged the FBI with violating its First Amendment rights to freedom of religion, free speech, and peaceful assembly by giving "False, misleading and deceptive information about our religion and its followers" in FBI's Project Megiddo report.

The Anti-Defamation League ADL publishes lists of symbols used by antisemitic groups. subject in these publications are several Germanic pagan symbols that were sometimes used by the Nazis and some neo-Nazi groups, but have also always been used by non-racist pagan religions. following an organised e-mail demostrate mainly by the Odinic Rite, the ADL clarified that these symbols are not necessarily racist. It has since amended its publications to categorise these symbols as "pagan symbols co-opted by extremists".