Navigating Gatekeeping in Witchcraft

Fostering Inclusivity While Respecting Tradition

In recent years, the big wide world of witchcraft and spirituality has seen a significant revival. With this resurgence has come a growing and diverse community of practitioners, each bringing their own unique backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives to the craft. However, alongside this increase in interest, a troubling trend has emerged: gatekeeping. Gatekeeping occurs when certain individuals or groups within the community attempt to control who can or cannot participate based on criteria like ancestry, geographical location, or specific knowledge.

As discussed in a previous blog, while it’s important to preserve the integrity of magical traditions, gatekeeping often creates unnecessary divisions and prevents genuine seekers from accessing valuable knowledge. In this blog, we’ll explore how witchcraft communities can remain open and inclusive while still respecting and honouring the traditions they are built upon, with a special focus on the exclusion of people not in the "right" geographical location or those displaced from their ancestral lands.

What Is Gatekeeping?

Gatekeeping, in the context of witchcraft and spirituality, refers to limiting who can engage in a particular practice based on rigid or exclusionary criteria. This could manifest as someone being told they can’t practice a certain type of magic because they aren’t from the right cultural background, don’t live in the correct geographical location, or are displaced from their ancestral lands. It might also involve policing how rituals are performed or dictating which deities one can or cannot honour.

For example, practitioners might hear, "You can't work with a deity from that land because you don’t live there," or "Since you no longer live in your ancestral homeland, you can’t practise your traditional family craft." These exclusionary statements can be hurtful and divisive, invalidating someone's deep personal connection to their heritage or spiritual path.

Gatekeeping often arises from a desire to protect the authenticity of traditions. However, when done in an exclusionary or elitist way, it can have a negative impact on the community as a whole. It discourages newcomers, alienates those who genuinely want to learn, and fosters an atmosphere of hostility rather than mutual support.

The Importance of Inclusivity in Witchcraft

One of the most powerful aspects of witchcraft is its ability to be both personal and transformative. Many practitioners are drawn to witchcraft because it allows them to connect with nature, deities, ancestors, and their own inner power in a way that feels authentic to them. This sense of personal connection is why inclusivity is so important—each person’s path is different, and what resonates deeply with one practitioner might not be the same for another.

Being inclusive doesn’t mean that all traditions are open to everyone without thought. It means recognising that spirituality is a personal journey, and different people connect with traditions and deities in different ways. It’s about creating space for learning, growth, and mutual respect. This becomes especially important for those who have been displaced from their ancestral lands or live in areas where access to certain traditional practices might be limited by geography.

Why Does Gatekeeping Happen?

Gatekeeping often stems from a desire to protect sacred traditions, especially those tied to specific cultural or ancestral practices. There’s a legitimate concern about cultural appropriation, where aspects of a culture or tradition are taken without proper understanding or respect for their origins. For example, certain Native American rituals or African spiritual practices are deeply tied to the history, land, and experiences of those cultures. When these practices are appropriated without context, it can be damaging and disrespectful.

However, there’s a fine line between protecting traditions and excluding people who may have a genuine tie and desire to honour those practices. For instance, it is not uncommon for someone with Scottish heritage to be told they cannot engage with Scottish witchcraft because they do not live in Scotland. This perspective disregards the familial and ancestral connections that many practitioners have, even if they live elsewhere.

In many cases, gatekeeping comes from fear—fear of losing control over sacred knowledge, fear of dilution, or fear of cultural erasure. While these are valid concerns, they don’t justify creating a closed-off or hostile environment. Instead, we should focus on education, dialogue, and building relationships that honour the past while making room for the present and future.

The Dangers of Gatekeeping

Gatekeeping can create division within the witchcraft community. It fosters an environment where some people feel superior to others based on arbitrary criteria, which goes against the very nature of witchcraft—a practice that is often about self-empowerment, connection to the divine, and finding one’s own truth.

Here are a few of the key dangers of gatekeeping:

1. Exclusion of Genuine Seekers: When people are told they can’t participate in certain open practices because they aren’t from the right background, live in the wrong country, or have been displaced from their ancestral lands, it discourages them from learning more or even participating in witchcraft at all. This stifles curiosity and personal growth.

2. Fostering Elitism: Gatekeeping can lead to the development of cliques or hierarchies within the community, where certain individuals or groups feel superior to others because of their perceived "authenticity." This creates division rather than fostering unity.

3. Invalidating Personal Experiences: Many people come to witchcraft because of a deep personal connection to the divine, nature, or their ancestors. When gatekeeping occurs, it often dismisses or invalidates these personal experiences, leaving people feeling disconnected or unwelcome, especially when geographical location becomes the gate.

4. Stifling Growth: Traditions are living things—they grow and evolve with the people who practice them. By trying to rigidly enforce how things "should" be done, gatekeepers can prevent traditions from adapting to the modern world and the diverse range of practitioners who engage with them, whether or not they are in their ancestral homelands.

Balancing Tradition and Inclusivity

It’s important to strike a balance between preserving the integrity of traditions and fostering an inclusive community. Here are a few ways to navigate this delicate balance, while recognising that people might not always be in their ancestral lands, but that doesn't lessen their connection to their heritage or spiritual practices:

1. Encourage Education Over Exclusion

Rather than shutting people out, encourage them to learn. If someone expresses interest in a tradition outside their cultural background or is geographically displaced, guide them to do their research, ask respectful questions, and approach the tradition with humility. Gatekeeping prevents learning, while education fosters understanding and appreciation.

2. Recognise the Difference Between Appreciation and Appropriation

Appreciation involves learning about, respecting, and honouring a tradition, often under the guidance of someone who is part of that tradition. Appropriation, on the other hand, involves taking elements of a tradition without understanding or respecting its origins, often for personal gain or convenience.

It’s important to educate people on the difference between the two, so that those who are genuinely interested in learning can do so in a respectful way, and those who are simply looking for "exotic" or "mystical" elements to add to their practice can be guided toward a more respectful approach.

3. Honour Ancestral Traditions While Acknowledging Global Influence

Many magical traditions are deeply tied to specific lands, cultures, and ancestors. However, in today’s world, people move, cultures blend, and traditions evolve. It’s possible to honour the roots of a tradition while also acknowledging that spiritual practices can be influenced by global connections and personal experiences. For example, a practitioner might not live in the land of their ancestors but can still honour the deities and spirits from their family’s traditions through offerings, rituals, and research into their cultural background.

4. Create Space for Personal Interpretation

One of the most beautiful things about witchcraft is that it allows for personal interpretation and adaptation. While it’s important to honour the core tenets of a tradition, it’s also important to allow room for practitioners to connect with that tradition in a way that feels meaningful to them.

Rather than enforcing strict rules, encourage a mindset of exploration. People can follow traditional paths while also creating their own unique practices that reflect their personal connection to the divine, their environment, and their spiritual journey.

5. Promote Dialogue and Open Communication

Gatekeeping often stems from fear of misunderstanding or misuse of a tradition. One of the best ways to combat this fear is through open dialogue. Rather than shutting people out, engage in conversations about the traditions, their significance, and how they can be respected.

Encourage people to ask questions, and provide thoughtful, informed answers. This not only fosters understanding but also builds stronger relationships within the community, allowing for both the preservation of tradition and the growth of inclusivity.

Practical Steps for Fostering Inclusivity While Respecting Tradition

Here are some practical ways to promote inclusivity while still maintaining respect for the traditions and cultures that are central to many forms of witchcraft:

1. Create Inclusive Spaces for Learning: Whether online or in person, create spaces where people can learn about different traditions in a respectful and open-minded environment. This could include workshops, discussion groups, or online communities where people can share knowledge and ask questions.

2. Lead by Example: If you’re part of a specific tradition, show others how to engage with it respectfully. Demonstrate what it means to honour a tradition while also allowing room for personal connection and growth.

3. Be Open to New Voices: Every tradition was once new, and every practice has evolved over time. Be open to hearing new perspectives and interpretations, and recognise that the future of witchcraft is shaped by both the old and the new.

4. Acknowledge the Complexity of Cultural Practices: Many spiritual practices are complex and nuanced. Encourage people to approach them with humility and a desire to learn. This might involve seeking out teachers, reading books written by practitioners from that tradition, or participating in rituals as an observer before attempting to engage fully.

5. Foster Mutual Respect: At the end of the day, respect is the key to both preserving tradition and fostering inclusivity. Encourage people to respect the origins of the practices they engage with, the experiences of others, and the community as a whole.

Finding the Balance

Navigating gatekeeping in witchcraft and spiritual communities can be challenging, but it’s possible to find a balance between fostering inclusivity and respecting tradition. By focusing on education, open dialogue, and mutual respect, we can create a community where people feel welcome to explore their spiritual paths while still honouring the roots and integrity of the traditions they engage with.

In the end, witchcraft is about personal empowerment, connection to the divine, and finding one’s own truth. There’s room for everyone in this practice, as long as we approach it with respect, humility, and a genuine desire to learn and grow. Let’s create a community that reflects these values, allowing both tradition and inclusivity to thrive.