So why don't white people belong in Voodoo? Well, the simplest reason is their ancestry. As stated before, part of Voodoo is ancestor worship. Practitioners call upon their African ancestors to assist with their specific needs. Although there are many different branches of Voodoo (Haitian, Louisiana, West African, Dominican., Cuban, and Brazilian), all branches lead back to Africa.
Imagine being an African ancestor being called upon to assist with the struggles of this life. You cross the veil to assist your descendant and instead find the descendant of the colonizer who committed genocide against your people. They enslaved your tribe and stripped you of your indigenous language and religion before shipping you across oceans and delivering you into captivity. Now one of their great-grandchildren wants you to serve them for whatever trivial needs they seek to fulfill. How likely are you to grant that petition? Quite frankly it's an insult. After all that white people have destroyed in the name of colonization and Christianity, they now want to appropriate one of the last surviving sacred gems from the very people they sought to destroy.
Another reason is that white people commercialize everything they touch. Once white people were brought into Voodoo communities, Voodoo became accessible to anyone and everyone online. Wiccans were combining Voodoo spells with their own and were marketing it as authentic Voodoo spells. Etsy and Ebay stores popped up with goods and services by a "real initiated Voodoo Priestess." Shops in Louisiana became novelties, owned and operated by white people dressed in Gothic attire. Each proprietor claimed to be an authority on someone else's culture and religion. Today, there is no part of Voodoo culture or religion that is not for sale. It was never meant to be this way.
Though there are several more reasons, the final reason i'm going to list is appropriation. Cultural appropriation is the act of taking on another culture as your own, without permission, and presenting it to others with autonomous authority. Take Yoga for example. Yoga is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines originating in Ancient India. Now, it is a way for white American women to stay fit and socialize during collective "me time". Yoga pants have disappeared and have been replaced with stretch pants bearing the stolen moniker. There is zero spiritual connection with yoga now. Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism have been replaced with the local gym instructor and goats. Honest to God, goat yoga exists now. Show me a white woman with a sippy cup of Starbuck's coffee and I'll show you a cultural appropriator on her way to yoga class. I can't remember the last time I found a yoga class led by an Indian man or woman. This is what white people do to Voodoo.
Herbs and candles have quadrupled in price as they invade the botanicas and nurseries that used to be exclusive. Voodoo dolls are sold as cute emo toys and key chains. They vacation in Africa and post sacred rituals on YouTube. Everywhere there is an offbeat African drum, there is a white person being initiated into a religion that was never meant for them. They then create Facebook groups where they regulate conversations they have no authority over in the first place.
If you're a white person seeking spiritual guidance and belonging, try wicca or Christianity since your people committed genocide across the globe in honor of it. But please, leave voodoo alone. It isn't for you. It never was and never will be.
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