Queer Magic

Power Beyond Boundaries

Mystic Productions Press

Introduction: A Journey Into Queer Magic(s)

Queer, strange, weird. Wyrd, the Old English term for fate or personal destiny, twisted through time to say that the Other is that which pulls upon the threads of reality.

As both magical beings and individuals who dance outside the journeys of heteronormativity and cisnormativity, the larger culture has deemed us to be queer, strange, and weird. Our practices and daily lives do not fit into the realities painted as being "normal." Because of this, individuals who fit within LGBTQIA+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex, asexual, agender, and more) have the opportunity to embrace that weirdness, and in turn, their wyrd-ness, and the wyrd of the world.

While we may celebrate and take pride in our fabulous and weird selves, Otherness is often feared by society at large. When we talked with other queer-spectrum individuals, we found that they had also experienced othering and rejection based on their identities or found places where they were overly-embraced. Being placed on a pedestal in pagan communities simply for being queer is certainly not the same as being vilified, but it is yet another form of othering that results in isolation. It is a kind of false visibility, one that praises part of us while ignoring the rest. Even in groups whose pantheons have a diversity of queer and transgender deities, their practitioners often give a confused expression or cold shoulder to their fellow coven-mates, troth-siblings, and fellow journeyers in spirit. In some Asatru groups, for example, racism, sexism, and homophobia run rampant while their followers preach that they bow before Odin, a god who has danced outside of gender norms by both cross-dressing and being a practitioner of seiðr, a magical craft practiced traditionally by women. Women-only Wiccan groups have turned away their trans sisters time and time again, showing the transphobia embedded in a faith that claims to worship all acts of love and pleasure.

In other spiritual traditions – especially those focused on transcendent rather than immanent spirituality – a queer or trans identity held by a practitioner is sometimes viewed as unimportant or unenlightened, a material distraction that they must overcome. This supposed spiritual truth is just one example of spiritual bypassing, or using spiritual ideas to avoid anything difficult or painful to understand or process. In this case, it means ignoring our differences and the way those impact our lives, glossing over that variation in favor of a "we are all one" mentality. This false idea of spiritual attainment is further used to dismiss anything outside of what is considered "normal" as frivolous or a waste of energy that could be better spent working toward some greater spiritual goal. Frequently this is seen in Western or Westernized traditions especially practiced by the most privileged among us who have little to no experience being the Other.

If an individual's queerness or non-normative gender is acknowledged within a spiritual group, it is often assumed to have no bearing on their spiritual practices or experiences. In these groups, all are expected to work within a heteronormative and cisnormative framework for spirituality. These frameworks were developed by straight cis people. Sometimes for the queer practitioner, this means ignoring rigid definitions of masculinity and femininity and focusing on a heterosexual union as the epitome of spiritual experience. This is invisibilizing and challenging at best, though many of us go along with it for lack of a queer- centric option. Those who are often assumed to be cis and straight – especially queer femmes, trans and nonbinary folks, and queer folks in other-gender partnerships – are even more pressured to conform and ignore their invisible identities, lest they get in the way of their spiritual pursuits.

LGBTQIA+ communities have their own problematic issues. Spirit-workers can be lifted up for being the epitome of queer, or ripped down for having any sort of magical beliefs or faith traditions. Just as the spiritual communities are not utopias, collections of people based on orientation or identity can also try to push away or erase differences. Plenty of gatekeeping occurs within queer communities. Those who do not fit into the current queer ideal are often ignored, treated as "not queer enough," and made invisible to their own people, or ostracized for "appearing straight," further perpetuating internalized notions of othering. This is becoming more apparent as our queer communities are being given a chance to face our unconscious (and sometimes conscious) bigotry head-on. After all, pride parades were once protest marches, and the work of Black Lives Matter and Trans Lives Matter are an opportunity to continue to reevaluate our biographies within LGBTQIA+ communities. By doing so, we have the capacity to continue to bring love, pleasure, and justice to the individuals these communities represent, while simultaneously working to end queer erasure, femme erasure, trans erasure, and the erasure of voices of color and indigenous populations within pagan and magical communities.

Having found that others in the world were running time and time again into these challenges, we recognized a very real need to acknowledge and celebrate our wyrd-ness and the ways that our queer identities and our spiritualities inform and encourage one another. From this place of celebration, we put out a call for people to participate in this project. We found that queer flowers of love and beauty are blooming everywhere. We are pushing our way through the cracks in the concrete and carving out spaces for our weird and wyrd ways to manifest. This book is about the blooms that have erupted as a form of resistance. They are a chance to glimpse the diversity of practices and experiences of queer folks that rise above the voices that say that we do not exist. We do exist. We've always existed. We're here, we're queer, and we are magical.

This book represents intersectional populations who are not only queer peoples (self-defined in a broad set of criteria by those participating), but those who practice magic, magick, or magics. We are neo-pagans, druids, agnostics, alchemists, elders, Buddhists, bruja, heathens, diviners, oracles, witches, Jews, atheists, polytheists, and ceremonial magicians. We are practitioners of Santeria, Vodou, Yoruba, Hellenismos, Ifá, Shinto, Huna, tantra, Feri, and Faery alike. We are eclectic beings beyond labels, and deep devotees of mystery cults. We are transgender, two-spirit, queer, agender, drag queens, lesbian, bisexual, gay, non- binary, shapeshifters, kinky, cross-dressers, and radicals who refuse to define ourselves.

We are individuals on the edges of normative culture. We have experienced intolerance, stigma, discrimination, violence, or worse from people who are angry about the many sides of our identities. We survive by turning to each other and lifting one another up. In that tradition, we, invite you to read these words. They contain our hearts and spirits. As you learn about each of us, know the power of your own heart and spirit in turn. This is your chance to channel the power that the larger culture has oppressed and our own queer kin have sometimes pushed aside. It is through projects like this one that we have an opportunity to make magic our own rather than settling. We are beautiful and powerful. We don't have to settle for "good enough." A second-rate status is not our birthright.

In Queer Magic, you will note that there are diverse stylistic approaches taken throughout the book. The reason for this is twofold. The first is to honor queer history by showing the variety of approaches taken throughout the movement for visibility, love, acceptance, and celebration in our queer cultures. The second is an attempt towards a decolonization of language and the false perception that only academic, often white, voices, are the "right" way to communicate information. Our contributors were asked to speak from their authentic voices, their home truths, and in their free and genuine style. By doing so, some authors may resonate more than others. We hope that in this rainbow of voices, there will be some that connect with you on your journey.

Inside Queer Magic, you will find paintings and poster- style art, formal essays, and intimate stories of sub- communities. There are fiction pieces based on life and academic pieces full of citations, comic book pages and poetry. The book includes sigil-art and cartoons, personal stories and how-to rituals, and even interviews with elders who granted us the opportunity to listen from the oral histories of our past. Ours is a multi-pronged approach to finding our spirit and humanity, giving you a snapshot of the diversity of queer experience.

We have been blessed by a wide array of individuals who were able to be part of this book. It has been inspirational to have 43 individuals contribute their passion and convictions to this project. That is not counting our readers, copy and layout editors, distribution team, and the great folks at bookstores large and small who believe in small- press projects like this one. It has been an honor to work with each of you, and to have each of you help bring this project to life.

Our special thanks go out to Butterfly, who listened to late night ramblings from Lee and brought him truffles and sweet kisses, both made with love. To Stian and Kat, who held Tai during the process, offering them snuggles, sympathetic ears, and endless encouragement.

Appreciation must go out to Primal Ordeal, where Tai and Lee brainstormed Queer Magic together, and groups and events such as Black Leather Wings, Living Love Revolution, Dark Odyssey, Keepers Crossing, Primal Arts, Twisted Tryst, Free Spirit Gathering, Turtle Hills Beltane, House Kheperu, PantheaCon, the Sacred Kink intensives, Palimpsest, SW Leather, Paradise Unbound, and the Center for Sex Positive Culture. These events and organizations opened Lee and Tai to the diverse possibilities of exploring queer magic themselves. Thanks also go out to Sarah McBryde whose keen eye helped us make this work excellent, Patrick Califia, who stepped in to help the magic manifest, and Rob River for continuing to answer random questions on tight timelines and designing our beautiful cover.

Inside this book you will find snapshots of queer mysteries and revelations of dangerous truths. They are deeply personal pieces of the soul laid bare for the world to see the magic within. This is a chance to dance in our collective creativity and be inspired by the work others are doing.

We are the past, and we are the future. We are queer, we are magical, we are wyrd. We are now. Let our words ring out and touch the stars, as well as those who thought they were the only ones. So mote it be.

Blessed be,

Lee Harrington and Tai Fenix Kulystin February 2018

Inclusive Wicca Manifesto

by Yvonne Aburrow

Inclusive Wicca is not for people who want to stay safe and cosy in their heteronormative cisgender worldview, pretending that oppression is not happening and that racism is a thing of the past. Being inclusive means becoming aware of others' pain, and supporting the oppressed and the marginalised. It means doing some work to make your rituals inclusive and healing for everyone, and understanding your own privilege - the degree to which your reality and worldview is considered 'normal' and 'natural' by 'mainstream' culture or a given subculture; the degree to which you are safe from oppression; and the extent to which your right to existence is not constantly questioned and undermined. Inclusive Wicca is about being inclusive for everyone.

There isn't a competition over who is more oppressed. There is no queue for liberation. We can work on small issues and large issues at the same time. Not all of the concepts and populations mentioned here receive the same degree of oppression in society. They are included in the list because at some point, they have been excluded from some Wiccan circles for reasons related to prejudice. Inclusive Wicca is not a new or separate tradition. It is a tendency within existing Wiccan traditions.

Inclusive Wicca began as a way of ensuring that LGBTQIA people are included in Wiccan rituals, but has transformed into an inclusive ethos that encompasses more than sexuality. It also means that we have an inclusive approach to theology by encompassing and embracing polytheistic or pantheistic views, and including queer deities in our practices. An inclusive and egalitarian ethos must include all members, making sure that all practices are inclusive, including queer rites of passage. It also encompasses an anti-racist stance, and inclusiveness of people with disabilities and mental health conditions.

One of the key issues is Wicca's focus on polarity, which is an energetic principle that is comprised of any pair of opposites. There are other ways of making energy, such as resonance (creating energy between two people who are alike) and synergy (making energy with the harmony of a group of people). Cakes and wine, quarter calls, invocations, and consecrations must all be respectful and inclusive. The inclusive ethos embraces all aspects of identity, and the egalitarian approach is a necessary corollary of it. Everyone should have a voice, whether they are a new explorer with an interesting fresh perspective, or a seasoned practitioner with more experience. All aspects of the self, including but not limited to sexual orientation, ethnic identity, neurodivergence, and physical difference are welcome in an inclusive Wiccan circle. Therefore, we reject all attempts to exclude anyone based on their differences by embracing theologies and practices that celebrate and include diversity.

Many people seem to think that inclusive means "I've got some gay people in my coven." That is certainly welcoming – but it is not necessarily inclusive. There is a spectrum of inclusivity. One coven might score 95% and another might score 75%, but it is important to note that different people will have different ideas and priorities. We can avoid miscommunications and heartache if individual covens state the ways in which they are inclusive, and in which ways they are not.

A Manifesto

• Diversity is important in celebration, theology, and cosmology. We do not accept the narrative of a goddess and a god interacting at different points of the Wheel of the Year because this reinforces the cisgender and heterocentric gender binary. We explore different aspects of mythology and folklore, including the celebration of queer deities. For this reason, Inclusive Wicca tends towards pantheism, where the divine includes all genders and sexual orientations, or polytheism, where we recognize many deities that have many different gender expressions and sexual orientations. We also embrace deities outside of a heterosexual binary, including deities that have same-sex lovers. We accommodate different theological perspectives, including but not limited to animism, atheism, pantheism, polytheism, and duotheism. Atheist Wiccans are also included in Inclusive Wicca, allowing for individuals who view the deities as archetypes and energies to participate, as long as they can work with those of different theological perspectives in the circle. This applies to those of other theological perspectives.

• Gender identity, gender expression, sex/gender assigned at birth, and biological characteristics are distinct. By this, we mean that these concepts are noticeably different, but can be interpermeable and with fuzzy boundaries. Gender is not a spectrum. It's more of a scatter-plot, and cannot be neatly confined to boxes and categories. Queer expressions of gender are creative and beautiful, and break us out of the tired tropes of 'masculine qualities' and 'feminine qualities.' The arbitrary assignment of characteristics such as bravery, nurturing, or creativity to one gender or another should not be sacralised and reified, but rather broken down, challenged, and resisted. Many Pagan practitioners produce visualisations and workings that rely on perpetuating the gender binary, disempowering cisgender, transgender, non-binary, and gender-fluid people alike. In Inclusive Wicca, we push beyond these arbitrary assignments, as we hold that goddesses need not be soft and fertile, nor gods unyielding and violent. Similarly, we also acknowledge and embrace the prevalence of intersex people, which negates the idea that biological sex is a simple matter of 'male' and 'female': there are seven different sex characteristics that make up biological sex, and any of them can vary from male or female, making gender assignment somewhat arbitrary. The social importance that is attached by 'mainstream' culture to biological sex, and the way children get socialised as one gender or the other throughout their lives, means that Paganism should help people escape from these embedded cultural notions.