Lately, I’ve been thrown off balance by the number of tarot readers who venture into politics online. Today, someone I admire greatly for her kindness and generosity promoted a Deepak Chopra essay on Sarah Palin that was so vitriolic and mean-spirited that it literally took my breath away.
You can go read Chopra’s work for yourself, if you like. It’s a pretty straightforward attack on conservatives. Chopra writes that Republicans represent the shadow side of life, and he says that Republicans base their opinions on fear, rejection, hostility to change, and narrow-mindedness.
Here’s what the tarot community needs to remember, though: Half of this country is conservative. Half of this country regularly votes Republican. Half of the people you meet in everyday life lean toward the right, and half of the people who might be interested in learning or reading about tarot could very well disagree with you politically.
What’s more, no conservative would ever agree with Chopra’s assessment of their beliefs — and no conservative could ever feel comfortable confiding in a tarot reader who publicly suggests, as Chopra does, that Republicans are a demoralizing force who exhort others to obey their worst impulses.
On a practical level, I’m always shocked when tarot readers attack conservatives. As a professional tarot reader and an author, I don’t think I can afford to antagonize half of my prospective clients and readers.
I also think that political attacks cross an ethical boundary we need to recognize. Most of us would never demean a client based on religious beliefs or cultural differences. We go out of our way to be non-judgmental when it comes to other characteristics that define us as individuals, like race and sexuality.
For some reason, however, political opinions don’t fall under the same umbrella of compassion and protection. In fact, politics seem to be the only arena in which tarot readers regularly feel free to make insulting remarks about other people; you can hardly go to a tarot conference or symposium in which most of the speakers don’t make disparaging jokes about conservatives and Republicans.
I don’t think we should keep going down this road. It’s not healthy on a personal level, to feel either on the defensive or on the attack.
It doesn’t suit us professionally, either. As tarot readers, we’re already marginalized enough. A lot of us even know what it feels like to be demonized for our beliefs. We face an uphill battle when it comes to gaining respect from the general public — and we don’t need to go looking for people to hurt or offend.
Books You Might Enjoy:
Zoroaster - The Chaldean Oracles
Marcus Bottomley - Nine Proven Magical Rites
Anonymous - Wicca Beliefs And Practices
Sepharial - A Manual Of Occultism
Archmage Bob Andrews - Old Witchcraft Secrets
