DECLARATION 127

What is Declaration 127?

Declaration 127 first appeared on the Blog Huginn’s Heathen Hof in August 2016 as a response to escalating rhetoric and action from the Ásatrú Folk Assembly, a Folkish organization. It was produced by a team of people who then formed a committee to continue to steward the declaration, to find and vet signatories, and to update the document as the understanding of the Heathen community continued to evolve.

It was a statement against the bigotry and white supremacy that had not been seen before in the Heathen community. Before, while individuals might have bristled at the presence of white nationalists, there was a generally established belief that their presence in our spaces was simply an unpleasant fact. It wasn’t going to change. It was something we simply had to put up with if we ever wanted to grow our faith. And who knows? Maybe our tolerance will change their beliefs?

But while inclusive straight white Heathens might have found it unpleasant, many LGBTQIA and BIPOC Heathens were kept on the margins–knowing that eventually in any given Heathen space, someone was going to ask them why they were there, ask them to leave, threaten them, or worse. For most, their full participation in the faith was always kept at bay to spare the feelings of white supremacists.

But Declaration 127 expressed in clear, concise and actionable language what a rapidly growing majority in the Heathen community had been feeling for quite some time: the time for this tolerance was over.

It’s hard to measure the total impact of Declaration 127 on Heathen history specifically or Pagan history in general. For Heathens around the world, Havamal 127 became a battle-cry against the racism and bigotry within our faith. It became a standard that Heathens carried with them to pride marches and protests.

By February 2022, it had been signed by 180 organizations in over 20 nations worldwide. It was the first time such international solidarity had been seen in the Heathen community. It helped form the basis for Frith Forge as inclusive Heathens began to see each other and work together for international cooperation.

Because of the clarity, forcefulness, and the actionable nature of the document, it quickly became the standard for determining whether or not a community was “safe” or at the very least “safe enough” to get to know. Up until that point, Heathens had very little to help them in the way of determining whether or not another group was safe for them. As many BIPOC and LGBTQIA Heathens had been saying for years: sometimes this wasn’t just a matter of being “annoyed” that you once again ran into a group of white supremacists playing Heathen, sometimes it was a matter of personal safety.

Intentionally or not, Declaration 127 provided a much needed tool for LGBTQIA and BIPOC Heathens to navigate the religious landscape.

Declaration 127 2.0 was released in 2021

While not an inspiring name (probably due to the fact that 90% of Heathens work in an IT Department) the Declaration 127 Committee took the criticism they had received and broadened the focus of the original declaration. It was also a more inclusive process overall, as the committee recruited Heathens specifically from marginalized groups to draft, critique, and ideate the new version.

Declaration 127 2.0 did not merely talk about the behavior of a single named organization; rather, Version 2.0 was a much more comprehensive non discrimination statement.

In short: where Declaration 127 gave people something to stand against, Declaration 127 2.0 set a standard of conduct for people and organizations to follow.