Social Justice

This page lists articles I have written on witchcraft, paganism, and spirituality. Some articles are listed under multiple headings.

Here you will find all of my writings that directly pertain to social justice issues. I believe all people are deserving of equal rights and opportunities, and stand firmly against all forms of bigotry and discrimination, including but not limited to racism, bigotry, transphobia, ableism, antisemitism, xenophobia, ageism, classism, sexism, and misandry.

Gender Diversity Sigil - with intents, by Sidney Eileen

Gender Diversity Sigil

Details about the creation and symbolism within this sigil for gender diversity, acceptance, and inclusion in pagan and magical spaces, community, rituals, and workings. Read More

Uterus Bodily Autonomy Sigil, by Sidney Eileen on http://TheBalancingPath.blog

Uterus Bodily Autonomy Sigil

This sigil was created to help combat authoritarian violence against those who possess a uterus. It helps to protect and aid those with a uterus, and to empower those who are fighting to restore the basic human right to bodily autonomy. Read More

Spells for Black Lives Matter, article by Sidney Eileen on http://TheBalancingPath.blog

Spells for Black Lives Matter

We need to put effort and energy into social justice both now and into the future in order to achieve true equality for everyone. These links might help. Read More

Closed Traditions, Cultural Appropriation, and Race, article by Sidney Eileen on http://TheBalancingPath.blog

Closed Traditions, Cultural Appropriation, and Race

“Closed” traditions, cultural appropriation, race, ethnicity, and how those issues all play into each other, is an incredibly complex topic. Read More

Accountability Culture, Personal Responsibility, and Our Communities, article by Sidney Eileen on TheBalancingPath.blog

Accountability Culture, Personal Responsibility, and Our Communities

I am a very strong proponent of Accountability Culture.  Accountability is key to personal and community growth, healing and reconciliation, and achieving peaceful intersectional inclusion.  Accountability Culture is to Cancel Culture, what Call-In Culture is to Call-Out Culture, in that it holds people responsible for their words and actions, while also providing the opportunity for growth, change, and reconciliation before bringing down the hammer of ultimate judgement and banishment on those who refuse to be accountable. Read More

The Trojan Horse of Pagan Unity, by Sidney Eileen on TheBalancingPath.blog. The drama over Diana Paxson's expulsion from The Troth found its way onto my socials, which I am very glad for. I am a big fan of accountability, and of organizations adhering to principles of accountability.  It is a very rare thing, and yet it is so very important in order for a community to be a genuinely safe and supportive environment for all of its members, especially when inclusivity is a goal.

The Trojan Horse of Pagan Unity

The drama over Diana Paxson’s expulsion from The Troth found its way onto my socials, which I am very glad for. I am a big fan of accountability, and of organizations adhering to principles of accountability.  It is a very rare thing, and yet it is so very important in order for a community to be a genuinely safe and supportive environment for all of its members, especially when inclusivity is a goal. Read More

Death is Required for Living: A Spiritual Argument Against Aggressive Moral Veganism, article by Sidney Eileen on http://TheBalancingPath.blog

Death is Required for Living: A Spiritual Argument Against Aggressive Moral Veganism

Unless you are solely eating items that are cast off or harvested from still-living plants or animals, you are taking a life to survive. Every. Single. Day. Even leafy greens cause death unless you are able to harvest the leaves individually from your own garden. Read More

Touching in Ritual, article by Sidney Eileen on http://TheBalancingPath.blog

Touching in Ritual

When is it OK to touch another person in ritual?  The answer is the same as at any other time: unless it is an emergency, only with consent.  Not everyone is comfortable being touched, under any circumstances. Read More

Public Ritual Should Never be Exclusionary, article by Sidney Eileen on http://TheBalancingPath.blog

Public Ritual Should Never be Exclusionary . . .

If you are involved in running an event that includes presentations and rituals given by a variety of people, watch out for anyone who seeks exclusivity. Read More

Including Queer and Genderqueer Fertility, article by Sidney Eileen on http://TheBalancingPath.blog

Including Queer and Genderqueer Fertility

Ostara through Beltane in pagan circles tends to include a deluge of fertility themes. This time of year also usually includes a dominating emphasis on male-female sexual pairing, especially cis binary sexual pairing, yet they are far from the only kind of pairing or fertility that exists. Read More

Why and How to Use Gender Neutral Language, article by Sidney Eileen on http://TheBalancingPath.blog

Why and How to Use Gender Neutral Language

When hurtful and exclusionary words come from authorities in pagan, pword, and magical circles, that diminishes our communities and supports an unwelcoming atmosphere for marginalized people. It can be hard to know how to avoid such harm, so here are some tips on why, when, and how to use gender neutral language. Read More

Easy Alternatives to White Sage for Smoke Cleansing, article by Sidney Eileen on http://TheBalancingPath.blog

Easy Alternatives to White Sage for Smoke Cleansing

There are innumerable easy alternatives to white sage and palo santo. It is not fair to the varied practice of smoke cleansing, or to the huge varieties of reasons for doing it, to place all that weight on one single plant and one single style of working. Read More

Words Have Power - We Need Acceptance Instead of Tolerance, article by Sidney Eileen on http://TheBalancingPath.blog

Words Have Power – We Need Acceptance Instead of Tolerance

It is common to see acceptance and tolerance treated as synonyms, but this creates a false equivalency that distorts the core meanings of both words. Read More

The Magic of Unfriending, Blocking, and Banning, article by Sidney Eileen on http://TheBalancingPath.blog

The Magic of Unfriending, Blocking, and Banning on Social Media

Curating, unfriending, blocking, and banning in online spaces creates peace and has magical application for both social justice and personal wellbeing. Read More

Ethical Baneful Magic for all Skill and Experience Levels, article by Sidney Eileen on TheBalancingPath.blog

Ethical Baneful Magic for all Skill and Experience Levels

In order to ethically engage in baneful magic, you need to have a clear understanding of your moral compass, and the why, what, and how of your spellwork. Read More

A Brief Introduction to the Craft of Blessing Magic, article by Sidney Eileen on TheBalancingPath.blog

An Introduction to the Craft of Blessing Magic

Understanding and learning how to effectively use the versatility of blessing magic is worthwhile, especially in difficult and tumutluous times. Read More

Title image for The Interplay of Baneful and Blessing Magic

The Interplay of Baneful and Blessing Magic

Harm and benefit are not absolute universal values, and the magics we weave can and do often incorporate aspects of both baneful and blessing energies. Read More

25 Forms of Banishing - A Versatile Tool in Witchcraft, article by Sidney Eileen

25 Forms of Banishing – A Versatile Tool in Witchcraft

Banishing is used across all forms of magic. It is a loss that is welcome or needed, and most deliberate changes involve some kind of loss or banishment. Read More

Is It Fate, Cause and Effect, Coincidence, or Self-Determination?

How the events of our lives shape reality is a complicated mess of interrelations, cause & effect, random chance, personal choices, & metaphysical impetus. Read More

Working With Fear as a Positive Force for Good, article by Sidney Eileen

Working With Fear as a Positive Force for Good

No emotion is inherently good or bad, which is a fantastic thing, because we cannot simply will ourselves into not having the emotions we feel.  If our emotions were inherently good or bad, we would not be able to escape that valuation because our emotions exist whether or not we want them to.  Instead, what can sometimes be classified as good or bad is how we respond to our emotions, and the actions we take because of their presence.  That means that if we are conscientious and deliberate in working with our fears, we can choose responses and actions which foster good instead of adding to the misery in the world. Read More

Positive Political Impact Sigil, by Sidney Eileen on http://TheBalancingPath.blog/

Positive Political Impact Sigil

This sigil was created to give magical backing to your opinions and votes, to give them strength so they are harder to ignore or cast aside. This can help at any time when you are voting or voicing your opinions on social changes, be that at on a ballot, a petition, a poll or survey, a letter, etc. Read More

Sigil for a Thriving Work Environment, by Sidney Eileen

Sigil For a Thriving Work Environment

EVERYONE deserves to have a thriving work environment, no matter what job they are doing, or who they are.  I have created this sigil in support of thriving work environments everywhere.  This sigil is designed to be used by anyone who is looking for a new job, seeking positive changes in their work environment, or doing magical activism in support of those who need thriving work environments. Read More

Sigil Ward Against Random Racists and Bigots - with intents - by Sidney Eileen

Ward Against Random Racists & Bigots

This sigil is a ward against random harmful encounters with prejudiced individuals, by protecting, averting harm, and supporting availability of aid. Read More

Speak Honestly of the Dead Even if it Means Speaking Ill of Them, article by Sidney Eileen on TheBalancingPath.blog

Speak Honestly of the Dead Even if it Means Speaking Ill of Them

How the concept of “don’t speak ill of the dead” is typically utilized is fraught with dismissal and erasure. Every time someone problematic dies, it is nearly inevitable to hear statements of “don’t speak ill of the dead,” but who does that idea serve? What benefit does it have? Certainly, if we want to learn from the past and honor those who have been harmed by people now deceased, we must speak honestly of the dead, even if being honest means speaking ill. Read More

Color Magic - White is Not Justice for Black Lives Matter, article by Sidney Eileen on http://TheBalancingPath.blog

Color Magic – White is Not Justice for Black Lives Matter

Color associations are complex, multi-layered things. In the context of Black Lives Matter, white color magic is not necessarily positive or beneficial. Read More

Sigil for Continuation of Democracy, by Sidney Eileen

Sigil for the Continuation of Democracy

May we be blessed with mass voting and the preservation of democracy in the USA, so that we may have the opportunity to build a new foundation for equality with an awareness of the fragility and mutability of both our democracy and our society. Read More

Lament for the Lost, poem by Sidney Eileen on TheBalancingPath.blog

Lament for the Lost

The Lament for the Lost commemorates different kinds of major losses that have been suffered, from lives, to livelihoods, normalcy, dignity, and sanity. Read More