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feeling" people. And then, of course, there's the witches of Hallowe'en… So, the "white" part is a response to the bad reputation that still exists today. Though the Wicked Witch of the West is a marvelously delicious character, she is a complete fantasy.
What does the "green" part mean?
Again, opinions abound, but one aspect of being a "green" witch is someone who is willing to look at the dark side. {Ouch! Yucky stuff.} In one sense, it's important to know about the dark side - because you'll come across more than one person who feels that they've been cursed or hexed or that they have extremely bad luck or that they're haunted. You need to be able to help them. Knowledge of the dark side, in these cases, is helpful.
Some green witches, in order to understand the bad and the evil, feel the need to experiment with the dark side. My personal opinion is: "Not cool! Too scary and too dangerous." But, I do understand that some people need to experience something in order to be able to deal with it. I feel that only research and knowledge is all you need.
Green witches are also very definitively eco- and nature-oriented {not that other witches and Wiccans aren't}. Additionally, green witchcraft spells emphasize the use of herbs rather than other tools and objects such as, stones, crystals, etc.
How do you know if you're a witch?
If you think or feel that you are a witch, then you probably are. If you say that you're a witch, well… As long as you follow the Wiccan Rede and you're spellcrafting/divining of some sort, then you can probably say, in all fairness, that you're a witch.
But, let's face it, we live in a snooty world. All too often, when someone says that they are something, there is someone else who says, "Not! What gives you the right to make that claim? Who are you? Where are your credentials? Etc, etc, etc, blah, blah, blah"
{So, my answer to those "snooty" people is:} If you genuinely believe that you are a witch/ Wiccan {and you don't have to belong to a coven - you can be a solo practitioner [solitaire]} and that you're following / learning what Wicca/witchcraft is all about, then you have that right. If you {or others} are still uncomfortable with the claim, then perhaps, if you say that you're a student witch/Wiccan, you'll find more acceptance from yourself and others.
In addition to this, there are a number of Wiccan covens that emphasize very strongly that you cannot call yourself a witch {or priestess/priest or high priestess/priest} until you've gone through initiation and intensive training {usually long-term training with a number of different "degrees"}. I have absolutely no argument with those covens - they have every right to practice Wicca in the way or tradition that they wish to do so and also as strictly as they wish to do so.
BUT what none of these people {the "snooty" ones as well as "strict" Wiccans} do not have any right to do is to put down, denigrate, or be rude about someone else's "tradition" or belief. Quite frankly, I don't care if a person is a "tradition" or "belief" of one - and supremely eclectic, to boot. The point is that if the belief is genuine, if the person is doing no harm, and if the person is spellcrafting and/or divining, then that person has the right to call her/himself a witch or Wiccan.
It's important to remember that both witchcraft and Wicca support very strongly the concept of free will - it is part and parcel of not doing any harm.
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