Etsy

Etsy’s Ban on Spells and Metaphysical Products Infuriates Wiccans and Other Practitioners

etsy

Etsy decided to throw a wrench into its thriving market of spells, potions and crystals by banning them and the site’s Wiccan community is not happy.

Up until a few days ago, the Etsy online market platform was a place to get a variety of magic portions, spells and other metaphysical products. From the sizeable community of Wiccans and other witches to the priestesses of occult or pagan religion who are part of the 1.4million sellers on Etsy. These thrived on their sales of spells, wands, tarot reading cards and other such artifacts to worldwide clients until a recent policy change which has seen a number of such shops suspended and more at threat to be shut while changing the way they have been promoting their products. This action has led to a furor among this community in various online forums and a petition is now being planned to protest the changes.

According to several sellers of these products interviewed, there was a first policy change which saw them required to sell their products only if they had a disclaimer that the spells were not guaranteed to work and if they produced something tangible. However, the recent policy change from Etsy appears to abolish the sale of spells and hexes as it states “any metaphysical service that promises or suggests it will effect a physical change (e.g., weight loss) or other outcome (e.g., love, revenge) is not allowed, even if it delivers a tangible item.” These changes do not have a date so it is difficult to say when they were effected though many affected say the changes began taking place in June and with no prior warning.

Communication from Etsy does accept that they indeed updated their policy guidelines though it does not say when and stresses that they still stand by their values of promoting creative freedom and safeguarding the safety of all those using the market place. According to Etsy only those who have failed to implement the recent changes have been affected.

The witches’ community does not seem to go by this view and instead believes the marketplace is specifically targeting them while artifacts from other religions like the rosaries, Vatican prayer cards and Kabbalah items were still being sold under the previous guidelines.

Several theories have emerged amongst the forums as to why Etsy who had welcomed this community when eBay had banned them has now turned against them. Many now consider moving away and it appears they already have a suitor in Amazon which has been inviting the sellers to its newly created ‘Handmade’ section.

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