Tar & Feathering

"Besides being disliked as a Catholic Priest, he was particularly obnoxious because of his efforts to establish a Catholic school there. On 3 June his house was attacked, and on 5 June, 1851, in pursuance of an order of the Town Council, which was directed to be published in the papers, he was dragged out of the residence of one of his people, was tarred and feathered, and ridden on a rail to the woods outside the town, and ordered to leave the neighbourhood." - from the Catholic Encyclopedia.

Feldman, Allen. Political Terror and the Technologies of Memory: Excuse, Sacrifice, Commodification and Actuarial Moralities. Radical History Review. Duke University Press; Durham, 2003. A sociological article on political violence, including tar and feathering.


I am continuing to look at ritual, especially that which is archaic and oppressive, while seeking out materials for my work and methods of using them.