#*made by m

[lcverrpc]

voodoo , witchcraft and the rpc

or  why you should think before including voodoo in your roleplay . ( this will contain discussions of slavery and racism , for my own comfort i will not be going into true detail of these and the other dark topics surrounded with the stereotypes )

now , i would like to preface this by saying i am not a practitioner or follower of the voodoo ( vodou but for the sake of this post we'll use voodoo ) religion , however i am black ( caribbean specifically ) and after seeing an uptick of voodoo in the rpc lately , it's occurred to me that this puts me in the position to say something . so lets get into it .

witches and magic have been a staple of both the horror and supernatural genres for years and voodoo has worked its way into the entertainment industry alongside this but lets get into what vodoo actually is : a religion with its own spiritual hierarchies , ritual ceremonies, customs and practises .

a closed religion at that .

unless you are invited into it , you can not and should not practise it . it was developed by african slaves - it's entire foundation incorporates blended religions , cultures and sufferings of african slaves . it's commonly known that enslaved people were separated from their religious and spiritual identities , the only way that this knowledge and religion still exists is from being passed down from generation to generation .

'what if my muse was invited into it?' in my opinion , you as a mun who has not been invited into this religion who does not practise it , can not fully understand the weight , traditions and complexities of it . even with research , you will be missing pieces of the information .

closed religion aside , lets now talk about the stereotypes surrounding voodoo and magic .

the term black magic was often used in regards to african spirituality and in media it's not uncommon to see voodoo be used and misrepresented as something backwards , perverse and downright evil . where does this come from ? well as simple as i can make it , it's racism . voodoo and hoodoo were used to further demonise black people , it gave us the reputation that we could enslave you , that we would take away your will and autonomy and force good innocent white people into doing things they didn't want to do ( ironic isn't it ) think of media such as ahs or even princess and the frog for modern examples of how this stereotype continues .

when portraying black witches who dabble in the stereotyped portrayal of 'voodoo' , or white characters with 'voodoo' superpowers it's important to be aware of the history and of the image you will be projecting with your character .

this is not to say you can't play black characters as witches or other magical species , but you can do so in a way that doesn't enforce damaging stereotypes and tropes . ( bonnie bennet from tvd is a witch the same as her many white counterparts , the most recent reboot of charmed features black female leads as powerful witches - although both of these are not perfect depictions )

tldr : this is no where as detailed as i wanted it to be as im saving my energy and i can't tell you what to do but voodoo is a closed religion that should not be used in roleplays as a source of magic or witchcraft . please respect it and it's roots . if you want to play a black character with magic , do so the same way you would their white counterparts but be aware of stereotypes ( particularly the magical n*gro stereotype )

as always im open to questions and comments on this . my knowledge is not absolute so i'm happy to amend things in this post . keep discussions civil and polite pretty please and remember that people of colour do not owe you education , especially at their own expense so be patient and listen .

[lesbianweed]

Marcille and Falin || Dungeon Meshi 1x12

[popinade]

a pika party!⚡️

[lgbtiwtv]

in light of recent events

[mathysphere]

In 1999, on the 30th anniversary of the first moonwalk, the members of rec.crafts.textiles.needlework shared their memories of the historic event. Transcripts in alt text.

[henrykudhirai]

s1 doctor who (2005) is so special to me. they had the budget of a potato. a dustbin eats a guy and burps in the pilot. it only really picks up around ep 5. nine in his jacket. rose in her peak dumbass era. the special effects that are just so bad so awful so terrible. the introduction of captain jack harkness the world was never the same. are you my mummy? what do you mean the time lords are dead doctor what the fuck do you mean you killed them all. bad wolf? bad wolf? fucking iconic.

[ruscha]

THE SHINING (1980) dir. Stanley Kubrick

[bigfatbreak]

Birds of a Feather previous / next

[j3st3erjynx]

Ace's High but Harry is a dumbass

[abyssal-ilk]

thinking about sten again. thinking about him calling the warden kadan and never explaining what it means. thinking about him offering to take the warden back with him to par vollen, but it's never actually an option the warden takes, even if you agree. thinking about how sten responds the best to a warden who stands their ground even if he doesn't agree with them. thinking about how he loves sweets and art, and how he plays with kittens. "it's training," he says. but come on. he's playing. thinking about what else he's had to justify to himself for liking.

and he calls alistair kadan! shale as well! do you think it was ever extended to the other party members? just,, agh

[radarsmenagerie]

henry made it home safely with a pinup of klinger in his wallet

#just mash things

part 30

[paintedmesgolden]

[ffolty]

who else is a steve enjoyer?

[pokemon-radical-red]

“Yeah, so like I’m actually a trans man! Uh, I finally worked up the courage to tell you, so yeah…”

“Ewww… why would anyone choose to be a man? KAM! Like you have the choice to be a WOMAN and you CHOSE to be a man?????”

“Huh? You’ve always said you’re a trans ally. Some of our other friends are trans. Why would you-”

“Are you trying to say I’m transphobic? I acknowledged that you’re a man!”

[utilitycaster]

There are actually only two genres of high fantasy:

Once there were more dragons and more magic in this land, but those days have passed; perhaps the dragons shall return some day and bring a new era.

How the FUCK do we get rid of these fucking dragons

[apocalyypse]

Dean Winchester ★ S1EP7: Hookman