Magic for Haiti - The "Voodoo" Magic plot

[Just1pin]

Hello Exo Magic,

I just found you through A Fields I noticed two things right away that i wanted to share. A) as a graphic designer i think the site is one of the cleanest and best designed i have seen (along with the Buck's site) B) the ExoMagic Haiti Relief Project you have on the front page. You get a lot of respect for that from me. Concerning Magic and Haiti... I have been thinking about this quite a bit and recently wrote up my thoughts for other magic forums and i would like to share them here with you and continue this discussion. So here goes....

Magic for Haiti - The "Voodoo" magic plot

After hearing about David's work using magic to help raise money for Haiti after the Earthquake. I thought it was a good time to bring up some of my thoughts around the "voodoo" plot in magic. I hope this is the appropriate place to do so. This is not a fly-by-night post. I have put a good deal of thought into this and taken the time to, hopefully, explain my position clearly. It is not a short post, but i hope you will take the time to read it and find it valuable in addressing what, i see, is one small issue hurting the art of magic.

If you go to any Magic retailer and search "Voodoo" it will return dozens of effects and still countless others are buried in books throughout the magic library. The plot has a long history in magic, (no doubt going back to some of the periods i will talk about in a moment) and i'm sure many of you have, or currently perform an effect that uses the plot in the presentation. Indeed there are many great effects constructed and marketed around this plot.

I am an American and speaking from an American perspective and mostly in regards to North America and American culture.
When we hear the term "Voodoo" it evokes images of sorcery, sticking pins into dolls, zombies, black magic, witchcraft, juju, mojos, greegrees, love potions, hate potions, etc.

Why do we have these images in our heads? Where do they come from? Do they have any basis in reality? What is "Voodoo" anyway?

We, as magicians, have been exploiting these images and perceptions already in our spectator's minds. While we give great consideration and time to other aspects of our presentation i feel that most of us, including the creators and magicians writing these effects and patter have given little thought to this plot. We, as magicians (like the spectators we are preforming for) generally know little or nothing about the history and practice of Vodou. Instead we play on the cliches and erroneous conceptions of Vodou to present our effects. These same misconceptions which have been regurgitated for decades and have there roots in Racism, Colonialism, Religious Bigotry, and Fear. If you read almost any description of a "voodoo" effect i think you will find this to be true. I don't want to single anyone out hear, let me be clear....this is not about accusing anyone or casting blame. I think most of us are guilty and most likely unaware of this. This is about moving past this inaccurate and antiquated plot in the art of magic.

About the term "Voodoo"
Offense is taken when "voodoo" is used to describe the African-derived religious practices and beliefs. Many feel Voodoo is a derogatory word derived from the time of U.S. occupation of Haiti from 1915 to 1934. Practitioners most often use the Creole spellings "Vodou" (also spelled Vodoun, Vodun, or Vodu) to distinguish the religion from the popular misconceptions of "voodoo" spells and black magic.

I believe it is very important to let people speak for themselves, and as am not a practitioner of Vodou i want to add this quote..

"As a Vodou priestess who knows many Haitians, I will tell you that using the term Voodoo is quite offensive to many, especially when used in the way that Western society uses it, to mock and denigrate not only a religion, but an entire cultural lifestyle which it does not even bother to understand. The "Christian" majority of the United States will loudly defend their right to worship a resurrected cosmic Jewish zombie (in the Hollywood sense of the word), eat his flesh and blood on special occasions, a man who was his own father in their dogma (since God in three persons is in fact, one God -- go figure)... but will protest that anyone who doesn't believe in the zombie is going to be roasted alive and tortured by a horned red-faced goat demon for all eternity. Yet they like to mock the religions of others and do not care how insensitive they are towards them. One more case for majority rules, but might doesn't make right, as we have so often seen, sadly, throughout the history of humanity."
- Anonymous Vodou Priestess

From here on i will use the term Vodou

A little history
Vodou, which means "sacred" or "spirit" in Haitian Creole, is used to identify the divinity of nature that is staple to the Vodou tradition. The Ewe tribes use the term to describe not only nature, but the totality of existence and harmony within the juxtaposition of the worlds of the living and the spirit realm. It was brought by slaves to the Caribbean islands in the 17th and 18th centuries. This New World religion combines elements of West African faiths, Roman Catholicism, and Freemasonry. When slaves were first brought from Africa to America, Vodou was immediately outlawed by the largely Christian slave owners and demonized as a savage religion. Immediately, the religion became one of the key ways for slaves to resist the oppression of their slave owners, and it gave them a very personal connection with their African homeland.

Vodou is one of the official religions of Haiti, and its designation in 2003 merely granted official acknowledgment to a longstanding reality. The slave revolt that brought Haiti independence indeed relied on Vodou, the New World version of ancestral African faiths. To this day, by various scholarly estimates, 50 percent to 95 percent of Haitians practice at least elements of voodoo, often in conjunction with Catholicism. Most Haitians accept Vodou as a religious practice and a living tradition, while most Americans have grown up with a very distorted sense of it. American fear of Vodou dates back to the anxiety felt in the United States in 1804, when Haiti became the first free black republic.

-Donald J. Cosentino, curator of Sacred Arts of Haitian Vodou

"Haiti was the only successful slave rebellion and developed its own culture, so from the early 19th century Haiti scared the shit out of American slave owners," Cosentino says. "The demonization of Vodou began at that time, and it was later exacerbated by a U.S. [military] occupation of Haiti that began in 1915 and didn't end until 1934. So one way to justify the occupation was to think that the black folks in Haiti were like malevolent children."

Hence the Hollywood movies, (White Zombie-1932, I Walked with a Zombie-1943 among many others) which influenced American kids who grew up to assume leadership positions in government, business, and the arts. Although there has been serious American scholarship on Vodou for decades, Cosentino says most Americans have never shaken their simplistic notions about Vodou.

Hunter-Hindrew, considered a holy leader in the religion, points out that some of the things that have led to the mislabeling of Voodoo practices in the west are misconceptions about magic and animal sacrifice.

"This is perhaps one of the biggest myths regarding the esoteric understanding of African Traditional Religions in general," she says. "and the Vodoun religion in particular. There is no use of magic in Vodoun as it is understood and practiced in the West. However, there are aspects of phenomena, or what some would regard as "miracles" that are made manifest by the Vodou spirits themselves. But, these manifestations in no way involve the use of "magic" or "trickery" as Hollywood has often misrepresented it."

I think that last line says a lot as it relates to us and the ideas i am presenting here.

Why does it matter?
I think this lays at the heart of respecting our art, respecting ourselves, and respecting our spectators, not to mention respecting Africa, Haiti, Vodou and it's practitioners. If we continue to feed these misconceptions in our society, by presenting Vodou as something dark, mysterious, sinister, strange, magical, and altogether inaccurate, we continue the repeat this mistakes of the past. We as magicians should be the first to understand how easy it is to be misled and deceived and how easily false impressions are made in people's minds. People make choices based on those misconceptions. This is a very real issue that effects real people's lives today. There are reports every day of Vodou practitioners being attacked, denied food and aid, they continue to be demonized, misrepresented and feared by people who do not understand the first thing about the practice of Vodou or those that practice it.

Lisa Derrick: Evangelicals Throw Rocks at Haitian Religious Service
On Religion - Myths Obscure Voodoo, Source of Comfort in Haiti - NYTimes.com

What to do about it?
I wouldn't want offer a critique without also offering some solutions.
There are several ways i can think of to address this issue, I'm sure you will also think of many more

(1) Alternative presentations and patter for the "Voodoo" plot. These suggestions mainly apply to effects where altering one thing effects another

- Interconnectedness of all things / energy
You could approach this from either a traditional or new age angle if that's your style.

- Identical twins / Human bonds
I think you will find this idea already familiar to most of your spectators. You can also find writings and research relating to this fairly easily

- Quantum Entanglement or "quantum non-local connection" (My personal favorite and what i use)
If you are not a Science and Physics geek like me , A little investigation will provide you with more then enough ideas to craft a presentation and patter, Plus you get to use real modern science to enhance your effect and intrigue your spectators.
Quantum entanglement - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

(2) Take the time to educate yourself about Vodou and use the effect / presentation to educate your spectators on the topic

I can assure you that any time you spend learning about Vodou, The Caribbean, or Haiti's history will be time well spent. There are numerous books and documentaries on the topic and most are easily obtained. I would also encourage you to seek out a Vodou Priest or Priestess to talk with if you happen to have a Haitian community near you.

There is a radio program "Speaking of Faith" that recently did a wonderful show on the topic of Vodou. You can listen online:
Living Vodou [Speaking of Faith® from American Public Media]

Haitian Vodou - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
That Old-Time Religion: Demystifying Sacred Arts of Haitian Vodou at the BMA | Baltimore City Paper
Voodoo Likely the First African-American Religion in America

(3) Drop the Vodou plot from your performing repertoire and replace it with another effect

(4) If you are magic retailer... Would you sell an effect that falsely denigrates Christianity, Judaism, or Islam? If not, why is it okay, and goes unnoticed, if it is an Afro-Caribbean religion? I would ask that you phase out your inventory of these effects and in the interim offer alternative patter and presentation ideas.

I hope that those of you here, and in the magic community in general, will seriously consider and think about what i have said as we move our art forward to a more just and respectful future. Thank you for taking the time to read this and I look forward to hearing your thoughts on the subject.

Love, Respect, Astonishment,
J1P

[Just1pin]

No one has any thoughts or opinions on this? Agree? Disagree? Indifferent? Let's discuss it.

[Alex Hess]

I will be honest, I have not taken the time out to read this yet. I myself will be traveling to Haiti in the near future, so I def have some interest in this article.

It's a long read, but I will hopefully have it finished and post something back tonight

[Misjief]

Hiya-

Actually I am a little upset! As the FORMER CHAMPION and title holder of the Exomagic's longest post I concede and hand that title off to you. Also as such I know understand why so of my posts get the lack of response. LOL WOW! This required thinking - and people as a rule don't like to think!

This was a pretty impassioned post. Obviously it wasn't something you came up with in 15 minutes, as it reflects a lot of thought. I don't feel like I am a 'strong' christian. Lately, in fact I have had many arguments with people because I believe the bible is a good book, but in the end it is ONLY a book (IE: it describes the power - it's not the power). I say this because STRONG CHRISTIANS don't agree as to what the final word of a Christian God is, and that fact alone tends to polarize and separate people into small minded cliches. Basically it comes down to arrogance of the Fanatics and the strongly implied belief that I am not smart or wise enough for the maintenance of my own soul. I would hope, and believe that was never 'God's' intent. I believe it is better to examine, scrub and mend your own soul rather then point out the flaws in your neighbors moral fiber. Sometimes constructive criticism is good, that is what fellowship is for, the support of the soul. But to try to FORCE your beliefs upon another is rather short sided especially when you are using Jesus Christ as an example. It is my strong opinion that in the end your relationship with 'God' should be between the two of you, and the two of you alone.

Anyways... I bring it up because I didn't realize until I read your post and a Houdini post on a similar topic {Foreign Christians throw rocks at locals during Vodu ceremony}, how much the Christian Faith is a part of my Core Belief System (And I am not as indoctrinated and invested into it as much as some). AS such it doesn't require any thought on my part (as the 'thinking' is already DONE) - I stack and make many other decisions based on this already made one in layer cake kind of fashion. The idea is basically the same story as the 'princess and the pea' as the layers get thicker, I consciously become more separated till I can no longer recognize the true source of the original decision (right or wrong). As a hypnotist it is always fun (and easy) to see this in others. But when I see it in my own life I like to kick back for a moment and go 'Whoa!'

For what it is worth, this article had that impact on me. I sat back and looked at the evidence of it in my life. Evidence that had always been there, but my awareness of it was sparkling shiny and new.

***

That said...

Different symbols mean different things to different people. I see the Christian Cross tattooed on people who based on their actions and activities would NOT be very welcome in most churches nor would they be happy or comfortable there. For my part I don't think it would be a very safe activity to bring such a subject up with them. The cross as a symbol, in many ways has become more of a fashion statement then a religious one. I bring it up because in many people eyes that would be abuse of another different religious symbol, to a much larger degree in the same audience you are addressing. It happens all the time. As such I can't get too emotionally invested in it without going crazy.

On the other hand... because of my early surrounding growing up I pickup cussing as a habit the way some people pick up cigarettes. It disgusts me, not because I find it repulsive in others, but because others find it repulsive in me. I don't want to offend people (usually) - in fact I very much want to be liked. If a simple thing like not cussing or using a devote symbol in a negative fashion will further me along those lines I am all for it. But I would have to say magic as an art is chock full of things, SOMEONE is going to find offensive and where do we draw the line? It gets Silly fast!

Do we get rid of the beautiful assistant for the feminist?
Do we do away with mentalism and hypnosis for the hardcore Christians?
Wands for the wiccians?
Rabbits and doves for the animal activist?

Pretty soon what will be left?

If you water things down to fit everyone's palate then all you end up with is water! Wouldn't it be easier to separate vodoo ('the stuff of ignorance & Myth') from Vodu ('the religion'). Wouldn't such a approach in such an act do more good then simply dropping it from our routine? It requires as much energy or more to BE OFFENDED as it does to give it.


Just my opinion.

-misj-

[Just1pin]

Originally Posted by Misjief

Actually I am a little upset! As the FORMER CHAMPION and title holder of the Exomagic's longest post I concede and hand that title off to you. Also as such I know understand why so of my posts get the lack of response. LOL WOW! This required thinking - and people as a rule don't like to think!

HAHAHAHA. Really? Nooooooooo. Now i feel bad I don't want to take your title away. Perhaps since i originally wrote this for another magic forum i don't qualify and you are still the title holder for "Exomagic's longest post"
What was your post?

I know it's long for a forum post, but i feel that if you are going to make a critique or offer a different perspective then it's important to try and be as clear and informative as possible and to try and back up your statements. I feel there are too many discussions and arguments that just turn into outbursts and personal attacks and i don't feel that is ever constructive. I tried to keep it from going too long, i could have said more

Misjief, Thank you. Thank you for your thoughts and bringing your experiences to the discussion. I appreciate what you said and i think you bring up some interesting points.

First i want to be clear that this is not an attack on Christianity. That is not my goal nor my intention.

Also I don't want to give the impression that all the "Voodoo" tricks and effects should end up in the garbage can. I have tried to give a few different options for ways to evolve this plot past the ignorant, damaging ideas of the past. Indeed I preform a version of Guy Hollingworth's "Voodoo" card plot. Like i said in the post i use quantum entanglement as my presentation instead of talking about Vodou.

To me this is a little deeper then someone taking offense to something we say or we do. No one i know of has taken offense to a "voodoo" trick. It's about presenting false information that can have a harmful impact on people's lives. I believe that Voudu practitioners are being persecuted (especially right now) and for the wrong reasons. If you want to critique a religion, or anything else, for solid factual reasons that's one thing, but to attack something for false and inaccurate reason, that is not acceptable to me. Now i don't necessarily believe that we are "attacking" Voudu with our effects, but we are repeating this false information that has and is being used to attack Voudu. So for us I feel it's about making decisions, individually, and as a group of magicians to steer our art to better place

Originally Posted by Misjief

But I would have to say magic as an art is chock full of things, SOMEONE is going to find offensive and where do we draw the line? It gets Silly fast!

Do we get rid of the beautiful assistant for the feminist?
Do we do away with mentalism and hypnosis for the hardcore Christians?
Wands for the wiccians?
Rabbits and doves for the animal activist?

Pretty soon what will be left?

Whooooooooooow boy! I could really open the floodgates here but i won't (for now) Like i said before i don't think this is really about people taking offense or getting rid of things, it's about evolving our ideas and presentations to a better understanding. Even if the answer to all of these questions was "yes" (which i don't not think it is) What will be left? maybe real magic, moments of astonishment, amazement, and memorable experiences that we can help create for people. Moments that make everyone happy and make the world a better place for all of us.

Thanks again Misjief,
J1P

[Brandon Pomeroy]

Long, but interesting. I was completely unaware that vodou was a religion practiced seriously (But then, the extent of my knowledge on the whole subject is the episode of Scooby Doo and the Witch Doctor, and, of course, "voodoo" dolls).

Now, onto your post... I mostly agree. There should be a point at which you say "This is too offensive". Taking Misj's example of female assistants; I believe that that is totally acceptable. Having women assistants clad in an amount of fabric that a mouse couldn't use as a blanket... Not so much. Really, it depends on the person. Some people are very sensitive towards others, some are not. Some people have characters that are sensitive towards others, and some that are not. I think that if it fits something your "Magic personality" would do (i.e. one that pokes fun at others), then it is appropriate there. It would even give you an opportunity to poke fun at the audience; ask them who knew that Vodou is an actual religion, then ridicule them for not knowing.

But I digress. It is my opinion that the idea of "voodoo" dolls is too ingrained in, at least, my generation to be able to phase out. Mention a doll that hurts people, and most people think voodoo. I think, rather than phase out, it would be more effective to separate the two. Explain to them that you want to try something with "Voodoo", but mention that the "voodoo" you are doing is the Hollywood type, that there is a true religion out there, but that's not what the trick is working off of. Instead of trying to push away the "bad" part of voodoo, market it as entirely different from the religion. Instead of trying to make people think that it is completely wrong to use "voodoo", educate them, explain the differences. Chances are they will at the very least remember what you said, and may think of it and pass it on later.

It is very difficult to erase something in the human mind; just look at the psyche trauma victims. It is much easier to teach it to differentiate.

My .02$.

[Just1pin]

@ Alex Hess, I look forward to hearing your thoughts. Best of luck with all your efforts and trip to Haiti.

@Brandon Pomeroy, Hey Brandon, Thanks for your response and all your great insight and ideas. I hear you, i grew up on Scooby Doo too I'm glad you learned a little something.... good luck with your magic!

[Misjief]

Just1pin-

I didn't take your post as an attack on Christianity. LOL Nor would I care...
Because If you and the big guy get in a fight, I'll watch with interest and I may even cheer you on... But I won't be betting on you. LOL He can take care of himself, just fine.

I have yet to ever met anyone who practices vudo as a religion...
So I was kind of wondering what set you off in this direction. Just curious!

As I said I read yours and Houdini's post back to back ... And the Houdini post really got me because it had a vudo queen describing Christian beliefs in a some rather low light. It really made me stop and think how an outsider might view my beliefs. She really got her point across as far as I was concerned.

I also brought up Christianity simply because in my mind I am far more likely to offend along those lines. I have one of those personalities that refuses to recognize boundaries - So I offend people all the time (sometimes without even realizing it). It is really funny and all too easy to do, sometimes.

With that said I had to laugh because Vudo is pretty low on my list of things to avoid mentioning. I didn't want to offend you because you were obviously sincere but I can't see it coming up on my radar screen anytime soon. LOL

You had me and my thoughts going in a million and one directions and I really did think it was funny. You also have to realize that I am constantly reading Psychology books and exo is my escape from it... So my thoughts tend to get in a rut along those lines as well.

See ya!
-misj-

[DanielSmith808]

Originally Posted by Misjief

I also brought up Christianity simply because in my mind I am far more likely to offend along those lines. I have one of those personalities that refuses to recognize boundaries - So I offend people all the time (sometimes without even realizing it). It is really funny and all too easy to do, sometimes.
-misj-

Reminds me of a quote;

"I love to disturb people, only by disturbing people can I make them think"
-Osho

[lag]

I must say I was completely taken by surprise and I'm glad i took the time to read this post. All this while, I've always related voodoo to voodoo dolls. Anyway, it led me to do a quick search on the defintion of voodoo. Yep, it is indeed a religion. However, it also has other definition as it can be used to mean to bewitch.

Still, I must say that the misconception of voodoo is really MASSIVE. And it would be very hard to change their impression of this word. So, instead of refraining from using the 'voodoo' plot, I would suggest a quick education for the audience on the word voodoo. Nobody would be against from some quick trivia knowledge that would let them know something that others do not know. Especially, when the audience are eager to sponge up on what you, a magician are about to reveal to them. Furthermore, you cant 'unknow' what you already know right?

[Afields]

Originally Posted by lag

I must say I was completely taken by surprise and I'm glad i took the time to read this post. All this while, I've always related voodoo to voodoo dolls. Anyway, it led me to do a quick search on the defintion of voodoo. Yep, it is indeed a religion. However, it also has other definition as it can be used to mean to bewitch.

Still, I must say that the misconception of voodoo is really MASSIVE. And it would be very hard to change their impression of this word. So, instead of refraining from using the 'voodoo' plot, I would suggest a quick education for the audience on the word voodoo. Nobody would be against from some quick trivia knowledge that would let them know something that others do not know. Especially, when the audience are eager to sponge up on what you, a magician are about to reveal to them. Furthermore, you cant 'unknow' what you already know right?

A couple of things, great post 1pin, really great thoughts.

Now lag, the first thing is that the definition to bewitch is a social definition of the word, if they dictionary doesn't tell you what the word has come to mean in society, then you'll have tons of bastards out there who will become your enemy quick.

As the the second part, we can start to change by being politically correct ourselves, and just mentioning something like "this is not voodoo, voodoo is a religion in Africa, this is telekenisis." and being specific, even going as broad as saying it's black magic.

And you can "unknow" what your already know. Sorry Misjeif, but you're my example. Misjeif "knows" that God exists, but with no real evidence other than his social network has a "connection" with god and a book tells him that there is a god. Now that is "knowledge" isn't it? he knows that it exists, but it is an abstract knowledge. Our "knowledge" of voodoo is a social definition of voodoo, and is an abstract knowledge, yet we offer a solution by doing a tangible demonstration, that demonstration being called voodoo solidifies that abstract knowledge in the spectators mind. Just as if Misjeif saw the big man himself save someone from a car fire or what have you. Now if we do a trick and say this isn't voodoo, it's (whatever). Then we eliminate the solidity from happening.

[lag]

Afields,

Sorry, I think I did not make myself clear in the previous post. What I was trying to say is that we still use the voodoo plot (in the context that is misunderstood) and educate the audience that voodoo is actually religion so what u are actually performing is actually similar to black magic (or something) but it should not be confused with voodoo.

Regarding the word bewitch, the fact that it is used to define voodoo in the dictionary would lead laymen to further relate it to the voodoo misconception.

[Afields]

Originally Posted by lag

Afields,

Sorry, I think I did not make myself clear in the previous post. What I was trying to say is that we still use the voodoo plot (in the context that is misunderstood) and educate the audience that voodoo is actually religion so what u are actually performing is actually similar to black magic (or something) but it should not be confused with voodoo.

Regarding the word bewitch, the fact that it is used to define voodoo in the dictionary would lead laymen to further relate it to the voodoo misconception.

yeah that's what I meant with what I was saying. If we don't make it better , then we can also make it worse.