Meaning of cacería de brujas by furoya

In fact this locution began as a more literal phrase, since in modern Europe and its American colonies people were persecuted (especially women) with the accusation of performing witchcraft and pacts with demons. In reality, any neighbor who was unfriendly was accused, only for harming him, since in many countries (such as Germany and Holland) the religious trial included torture and even executions of those found guilty. Today, a persecution organized and implemented by an intolerant government that harasses members of its society with unfounded accusations or for reasons that do not constitute a crime under the rule of law is called a "witch hunt." By extension it is any unjust persecution of a group on ideological grounds. See "witch hunt", McCarthyism .