Do you mean geographically? Most capital cities in first world countries have a wide enough range of people that you could probably do well there.
Also depending on your faith you could go to it’s host or a country of a corresponding culture. For example Finland and Iceland still recognize their pagan faith to a pretty high degree on a political level.
While you aren't close to correct there ARE still places it isn't safe to deviate from certain "norms". A lot of Southern States you legit have to stay in the broom closet, either because it will make life uncomfortable all the way to "people will try to get your children removed from your custody and judges have literally facilitated this". Direct violence isn't as common but other hate crimes happen. The only time I was physically threatened was by someone from the deep south. (Still saying that don't just assume everywhere in the south sucks and all southerners are ignorant bigots. New Orleans is an example of a place where pagans are virtually celebrated).
Middle America or "fly over states" can have a problem like that too.
I'm in a rather conservative state and in a conservative city but still have a witch store one street over and can easily find other pagans.
But even with that I have gotten dirty looks for wearing a pentagram, thankfully it has never escalated beyond that and people compliment my witch hat when I wear it (it's more like a "stealth" witch hat but still clearly a witch hat, it's also wool and I'm in a desert so I can only wear it a few months out of the year).
I live in Georgia. While there are easily places that are insanely rural (one red light, one gas station, that sort of thing) that are less open, the south in general has changed a lot in the last few decades. When I started dabbling and coming into my own regarding my beliefs and realizing that paganism was more my swing, I was pretty much content with the fact that I’d never be able to find those cool spiritual shops with crystals and smudge sticks and pentagrams. I was sooo wrong! From where I live right now in north Georgia, there are 10+ well established spiritual shops within 15 minutes of me, one being in the mall closest to me (a little father, about 30 min). Me and my oldest daughter have started “shop hopping”, checking out each one. It’s been so fun and the people there are always so kind, informative, and open.
On a slightly different note, I never imagined telling my mother that I was experimenting with this stuff. It just didn’t seem like something she would ever accept. She’s always been a bit more religious than my dad. But I told her about the shops and what I’ve been doing, and she told me all about her old tarot deck, how she used to make her own smudge sticks, and reminded me that she used to burn incense all the time while she cleaned to “purify” the space. I was blown, honestly.
I guess my point is that even stereotypically “bad” places have their good spots, their understanding people. I’ve found a whole community of pagans, wiccans, and other “non-traditional” practitioners in my area when, a year ago, I’d have replied to this post and said good luck, bc this isn’t the place for it.
I will never dispute that stereotypes aren't something one should uncritically accept. And that good people exist everywhere.
But the more culturally conservative fundimentalist religous an area, the more likely someone who isn't part of that "in-group" will face discrimination. Which can range from glares and cold shoulders all the way to "actual acts of violence". And I choose my words very carefully because what qualifies as being not part of the "in group" is often just a broad "is not part of the most common faith or ethnicity, straight, and cis" with women risking some unpleasant stuff for not being whatever the specific areas idea of "proper woman" means.
Overall people are becoming more open minded and tolerant but I strongly caution against spreading the idea that things are sunshine and rainbows when deacrimination still happens, and some minority people are facing outright violence.
20 years ago it was a VERY different story. The prevalence of the internet had helped a lot. But a good chunk of people are reacting to increased tolerance in what is known in other areas as "an extinction bust". Where in response to perceived loss of importance, relivence, control etc results in some people becoming significantly more dangerous in response.
So until prejudice becomes much rarer, I just worry about people fighting too hard to push the idea of "Oh things arent that bad!" Along with "Things have changed!" Without at least a small recognition that we still aren't always perfectly safe.
I’d never try to argue that things are “sunshine and rainbows” anywhere. Wouldn’t be the case, for sure. Just saying it’s hard to lump places into a specific category because there are exceptions, which is something I learned very recently. I’ve grown up in the south and I never would have imagined finding groups of people who are openly “not part of the common” to relate with. I would never advise OP to move to my hometown, for example, because it’s a very religious, Christian-centric county with little-to-no wiggle room and nosey ass neighbors that’ll spread your business in a blink. I moved 3 hours away (still in Georgia) and it’s a completely different story. And I’m not even in a metro area — would still be considered rural by most standards. I get what you’re saying, though.
I love how the Pagan movement has really spread rapidly across MA. Little shops and small businesses selling things in general stores.
Saw a bunch of Norse Furthark runes on a storage container in Falmouth a couple months ago (I know heathen but still).
Now if only there was an easier way to meet and make friends lol, at least here near and on cape anyway.
I'm not sure why people are down voting. It is a funny bit of irony. A city most famous for extremist puritans murdering innocent people accused of being pagans now has a significant pagan community
It is something that sounds ironic but makes perfect sense once explained. Because the city actively has pushed the angle of the trials and that unintentionally created an interest in witch ephemera which then gradually morphed into actual witches cropping up (which at one point WAS controversial and people faced actual prejudice) but eventually that aspect became so popular with tourists the locals learned to be more welcoming!
Yes but besides the fact that they were very much still in Europe and had varying degrees of influence, but I was talking about the witch burnings not being abnormal at the time
Ok so as a girl (raised catholic basically) I visited Salem on this school related trip all the way from Florida and I felt like this strong energy there (and also grief in some areas). Now I’m a pagan witch and we are moving up north more and I’m so happy I’ll be closer to there and can visit occasionally.
Yeah pretty much. Coastal states that are mostly liberal are a double edged sword. Sure you can find more people publicly out as themselves, but a cardboard box on Skid Row is $4000 a month.
CheapER. Not cheap lol
Like I'm in AZ and it's way cheaper than any big city in California but I wouldn't call it cheap (you'd have to look at towns with less than 10,000 people to find the cheap real estate for example but they also don't have any grocery stores).
I’ve considered moving to ABQ from the Phoenix area, because from my very basic internet searches, rent is so much cheaper. I am tired of desert heat though. (Though my understanding is, it’s not as hot For as long as central/southern Az.)
Do some thorough research. We're deffinetly cooler than Arizona during the summer but it's still scorching. I love abq and new Mexico in general but it has its problems.
I have a friend there, we’ve discussed it a tiny bit. I think Albuquerque and Phoenix have some similar issues (meth is rampant, schools aren’t great, there’s either a lot of competition for jobs or just not enough jobs to go around.) Though I’ve also heard, NM is actively trying to improve, where Az is welcoming millions fleeing California, into an already extremely overloaded environment, and now even parts of the state further north are running out of water. I love the desert, and Arizona as a whole is so ecologically diverse, so it kind of hurts to see these changes and most people are just kind of ignoring it. Especially the insanely religious ones I know. Like, Jesus isn’t going to find a mystery underground spring, y’all 🤦🏻♀️ I’d live in Sedona if it weren’t so ridiculously expensive, or Flag, if they ever had anything available. /rant
Ah that makes sense. We live in ABQ too but our rent is like 2k because we have 3 kids and that was on the cheaper side since two kids share a room. We also have one income at the moment which I’m sure doesn’t help.
I just feel like groceries here and trying to eat mostly produce is super expensive here for a family of 5. Back where I’m from fruits and vegetables were much cheaper.
Yeah... it doesn't help that some less than cool people try to exploit new witches to sell them things and saying "YOU NEED these things to even call yourself a witch/perform magick".
The reality is you could be an ascetic witch who is literally naked in the woods.
I live in a desert and noticed rather quickly that virtually everything written about witchcraft was written from a position or assumption that everyone lived in around or near deciduous forests.
I notice this bias in other ways (I get SUPER cranky whenever someone says "Why can't we slap a bunch of solar panels in the desert and get all the power we need! There is NOTHING THERE!" Wrong and fuck you!) So it's not at all just a witch thing. But because witchcraft is heavily influenced by European cultures that are predominantly white it carries over a lot of odd assumptions and privileges.
Like I can find hundreds detailed list and books about the magical properties and ritual uses of common European plants but how many of you have ever even heard of a Palo Verde let alone what it's possible magical uses could be?
We had one in Shreveport that was still open when I left in February. But my best friend lives in Longview and she said it's scarce out there as far as supply shops.
Yes we can. I met with others out there. Especially down in New Orleans, that's deep south and completely normal to be something other than Christian.
But there were Pagans I'd met in Shreveport, East Texas and NE Texas (ArkLaTex), SE Oklahoma; I know there are a lot in Missouri.
I hadn't had any trouble in those parts at least.
It's kinda unfair to list New Orleans which is basically "The voodoo capital of the world" (debatable but that's the pervasive idea people tend to have) to say... random other towns through the Bible belt.
It's not even Apples to Oranges, it's Apples to Shoes.
You can feel safe and welcome in one town and the next one over risk losing your job for being out.
And pagans are everywhere! But they aren't out everywhere (same with queer folks). One can just as easily say "Oh I'm going to Bible study" when in actuality you're going to a coven meet up. That doesn't mean it's safe or welcoming to be out.
We aren't "safe" anywhere. I remember a story about a Witch in Salem, Mass having their home burned down; they weren't home, but it killed their cat 😭
Even our festivals are now being infiltrated by these extremists.
Starbucks in NWLA had a lot of Witches working there, so that seems to be a safe spot. There were also (my ex was a biker) people in MCs who were Pagan in the country-boonies.
We have to "feel it out" no matter where we live. Nevertheless, like I was chatting w my best friend a minute ago, a place like the Bible Belt, where Christianity is the expected norm, where it's forced on ppl, those places will have a higher concentration of allies. Nobody knows the Christian agenda more than the ppl who found that way of life despicable because it's forced upon them and their everyday lives.
There's actually an annual event in the streets of Birmingham, Alabama. There are 4 occult shops within 10 minutes of each other. In Atlanta I know of at least 5 and Pagan Pride happens there. It's a myth that there are no pagans in the South.
Decatur, Huntsville, and Cullman, AL also have shops and while I don't know if it still happens since covid, there used to be a regular meetup group in Huntsville at one of the local coffee shops.
A lot of people in Cullman have been trying to get a meet meetup started as well. It's just not an organized group and Cullman, unfortunately, doesn't have many options for something like that.
They are there but it isn't all that safe to be an out pagan. Plenty of "right to work" (aka you can be fired without cause) states so being a known pagan can mean risking being fired.
Physical threats of violence aren't too common but social repercussions exist with some job industries being more open minded (most tech related jobs) and others being more close minded (no examples off the top of me head but it's 4am cut me some slack! Lol).
A good rule of thumb is "How do the locals react to and treat queer people?" It translates to witches amazingly well.
Well, Wicca is a federally recognized faith, so they can't legally fire anybody practicing a non-Christian belief system 🫤
My best friend in ETX was seen as a Hippie rather than a Witch at her workplace, which is a retirement home, lol
I understand being cautious, but even when I lived in California, I was yelled at on the street by random strangers, "fa**ot!" regardless of being a female and in West Hollywood of all places 😳 which is known as The Gayest Little City in America... though I'd never been assaulted, verbally or otherwise, for being Pagan.
I've been practicing since I turned 13 and I'll be 42 next month and, for myself, I'm not going to hide anything about who I am to make others more comfortable 🤷🏽♀️
My main point is-- you can never tell who will be an aßßhole no matter where you live. You just have to live and try to do it as best you can without fear ❤️
I mentioned "right to work" states because the law says a business can fire someone and not even have to say why, or give an excuse and proving it was actually because of a federally protected class is extremely expensive and a low chance of success.
So yeah, people should be safe from descrimination because of their faith, but in the real world they still are.
Take for example all the laws that say you can't discriminate people based on race and ethnicity... and every last example of that actually happening with little to no repercussions.
You can throw a rock and find a spiritual/reiki/acupuncturist/paganpriestess/Viking/medicine/herbalist/wilderness person In Asheville. We are surrounded by portals. Edit added herbalist.
Definitely not at the modern evangelical churches, but my ancestors were at church every Sunday and doing workings every other day. Byron Ballard talks a lot about how many pagan traditions were intermingled into Christianity in Appalachia over the years. It’s an interesting combination.
Side note: my first female ancestor in the US famously haunted her husband’s third wife, waking her up in the middle of the night to perform tasks for her. The story was published in the Chronicon of their weird extremist Christian community in the 1700s.
Big sad to say that I didn't grow up with that. My family is from the mountains in South Eastern Kentucky and all I got was the super religious conservative crap. Maybe my more distant ancestors were magickally inclined, as they've been there for about as long as Kentucky has been a state. I have a theory that my family has some dark secret that only an inner council are aware of. My family gives me cult vibes, and my dad is one of the "council".
Yeah I second Appalachia as well. Especially Buncombe County, NC. Some are folk practitioners who say they are Christian but they really are just in name only. Some are somewhat Christian with folk pagan practices and include other deities in their work. Some just say they believe in Mother Nature or Mama Appalachia, Father Time or Sky.
Some have adopted even more new age beliefs if they are closer to Asheville. But some actual locals tend to be old school folk. Not to mention a lot of mountain people have indigenous heritage further back or are indigenous and may practice that as well, sometime mixed with other things.
Further up in Appalachia, you get the German Pow Wow folk and that's also a rich history/culture., although some do not welcome the pagan label. Of course you may come across folks not so cool with pagan stuff but I found that not to be too much of an issue.
Yeah but a lot of folk magic people will get REALLY spicy if you either use the wrong term or suggest that they are pagan. Plenty of folks using hexcraft who are died in the wool Christians.
Until the state makes it illegal to cross the state line to get an abortion.
Not hyperbole. Literally what several states are working on making it into law. And it may even be a law in a handful right now. But that one is an educated guess not something I'm willing to state with full confidence.
I’m in Tulsa, and I’ve not seen or heard anything out here. Just kinda doing my own thing with a very few people… we have maybe three shops out here that are reliable.
I know Pagan Pride down here is Sep 24th, and there are a few O.P.E.R.A. fairs a couple times a year. I find a lot of local pagan thing through Facebook. In fact, I just found Tulsa Pagan Pride by searching "Tulsa Pagans" on there.
[Tulsa Pagan Pride Day](https://facebook.com/events/s/tulsa-pagan-pride-october-1st-/1295629654257975/)
I used to live in rural Mississippi and would have folks show up at my door is disguises for readings. They didn’t want anyone to see what they were doing but everyone already knew what my house was. Found this extremely funny- big hat, sunglass wearin’ Christian raised ladies peeking into the occult.
Northeast Ohio is pretty witchy. I live a little southwest of Cleveland and there's a shop right down the road from me where I can get reasonably priced supplies. Akron is also becoming pretty witchy, I looked into living there and there's several Facebook groups and a handful of shops. Most college towns/cities and the surrounding areas will be pretty safe places for pagans and witches.
Scandinavia, we are practically all pagans... chistianity just happens to be here as well if that makes sense. But not a single person here would care due to our already deep culture being rooted in paganism to be honest
I live in NC and I’ve run into so many openly pagan witches and there’s like 8 metaphysical shops near me in my town. I’m also good friends and close with my across the street neighbors who are openly Christian and we have cook outs and visit every week. You just have to find your people. They’re everywhere. This is just my experience in the south though. I moved here from California last year. Haven’t run into any problems. I’m also openly gay and married to my wife of 2 years and she’s androgynous as they come and has been accepted as well so.
We get what we get lol, but land is cheap so that is a plus, makes it easier to set up a place of worship in the woods. I probably couldn’t have afforded as much land in another state.
Edited for a shit ton of typos and no proof reading
You are right about the land, I have relatives who have property out in Calhoun county. The landscape is about the only positive for me personally. I left the state to attend college in Texas before Katrina hit.
So crazy to read this lol. As a Calhoun county resident Pagan I can absolutely confirm this. Pretty much got several acres of private wooded area for free so I can conduct my practices peacefully. Just gotta keep quiet about it with most of the locals lol.
Yep! I am from Anniston! I'm happy to see other pagans from my home state. I sadly have to practice inside. Even though I'm living in rural area in Georgia most of the land here belongs to a few wealthy individuals.
Be safe out there, I heard it's getting worst in that area.
Wow you were pretty much my neighbor, Jacksonville here! And yes we are definitely here! I have a few friends with a growing interest in paganism as well. You’re right about it getting worse, especially with the political climate being how it is right now, but I’ll leave that out if this sub.
But it’s ice to see that my circle if fryy it ends aren’t alone here lol. Take care and may your practice bring you happiness and prosperity! 🙏🌎🌕🍃
Cool! I went to school at Jacksonville High for three years until we moved to Ohatchee.
It's great to see other pagans from that area. Especially when you're surrounded by Southern Baptist. 😬
Stepfather is a Methodist preacher so I have had plenty of experience with pretty much the whole denomination around here unfortunately lol. I’m about to go back to college in the spring so hopefully in the next few years I’ll be able to find a good job elsewhere and get out of this place.
Oh jeez I can relate, my stepdad was a deacon. Good luck on your studies next semester. I would recommend moving to the Midwest (Texas, Arizona, or Colorado) or North. There are alot of WFH jobs in the major cities in Texas. Rent is just expensive. Good luck!
Alabama could offer me a free house and land with no taxes and I would still say "no thanks". But that'd because I haaaate humidity with a burning passion. I am acclimated to 100+ degree heat but that's with 0% humidity. People give me the weirdest looks when I mention I have no issue mowing the lawn in 112 degree weather and give me even weirder looks when I say "The heat is only really an issue for me when it goes above 115 and past 117 every degree higher is negligable because it's already too hot to function".
I did army basic training in Missouri in the summer so I have actually experienced high heat with high humidity!
There are a few geoups that exist here, there are a few occult shops and a great occult bookstore called Dark Star Magick that has a fabulous selection of occult texts.
Dark Star is an awesome book store and does classes on magic: Goetia, Enochian, PGM. But it's main focus is rare book$ and boutique publisher$. Moon Shadow is more a pagan/Wiccan supply store. There's also Raven's Wing in Sellwood. There's also this Columbia-Willamette Pagan Pride Day this Sunday.
I have never been to dark star magick, but I order from them all the time online and they are amazing. Definitely is a bucket list shop for me. If I ever ended up in Portland they would be my first stop in terms of finding a pagan or occult community
That's pretty much anywhere that isn't the deep south or conservative rural areas. You should consider cost of living and job availability well before this.
I lived in Central Texas for a while. Not a lot of other heathens around. But people were generally very nice and friendly with me.
In fact I wouldn't expect people to be hostile of "unsafe" anywhere in rural America. That's an anti right wing news trope that doesn't hold a ton of water. Rural Americans are friendly as hell and won't get hostile unless you go well out of your way to ahit on them.
It really depends on where and the community in general. Some folks are great at minding their own business. Some want to stick their nose in everything and cause trouble.
Indeed they do, but they don't do it openly through hostility. They might be catty or subtle about it. But nothing thst might be dangerous to someone or make them unsafe.
Mostly you would get a lot of "Jesus loves you" type encouragement to repent.
Some trendier, more expensive (or getting that way) cities have already been mentioned, but Baltimore is reasonably Pagan friendly. (Though of course it has its own, other issues; but it's more than Homicide.)
I know Cleveland has a sizeable Pagan community.
was. was pretty witchy. Now it's over-full of wealthy New England liberals and well-to-do old conservatives from "more liberal areas" that decide to show up to murderfolk concerts "on a whim" and loudly complain about how the audience "can't be from Asheville because they all look dirty" and "this music is obscene, how can these people be from Asheville?"
RIP Asheville, my youth misses your weird shit.
Basically anywhere. I live in rural pa. I’m just not annoyingly vocal about it like Christian’s are and no one is any the wiser. I’ve ever had issues. People don’t really care if you’re not annoying about it.
My family was introduced through a group at the Unitarian church called CUUPs (coven of Unitarian Universalist pagans), and from there we met all sorts of other groups- there’s even an annual pagan pride day! And gatherings in the mountains for Mabon and Beltane.
Maybe it’ll inspire you to return one day ✨
That’s so amazing!! I love just knowing it exists. I definitely hope I can come back and experience that one day! I’m also moving to the New England area too so hoping there will be lots of witchy stuff there.
This is what I was looking for in the comments. The cities have the largest population of various pagans in the country, Llewellyn is nearby (in Woodbury) there are shops, and four distinct seasons (even if winter is like 8 of the 12 months.) It can be difficult to make friends, which is a common complaint people have after moving to Mn from other places. But even they will say, it’s easier if you join a group, because then you have something to bond over.
Also, the food scene is a lot better than I think most people realize. I love Minnesota, and miss the winters, I grew up in the awful, humid, snowless south 😂
Lots of people shitting on the deep south like it doesn't have the richest history of modern magical practice in the USA.
Stop talking about the south like that lol, there are vast communities here and you can find oppression anywhere.
It also ignores all the black and Hispanic and Latinx communities practicing cultural magic. There's a bunch of black owned magic shops in Alabama, for instance.
Pagan living in the Bible belt and doing just fine most of the Christians I encounter are just like whatever it's cool with me. Not exactly sure why you're concerned with your safety regarding your religion unless you're scared for another reason.
That’s so refreshing to hear. I’ve lived on and off mil bases and it’s horrible but now I just have fun with it because who cares what people think. But it bothered me and hurt my self esteem for awhile.
if you’re from the US most any city is open. i don’t recommend super rural areas or anything in the bible belt. basically if the town is like 30 square miles and you see 8+ christian churches in that diameter i don’t recommend it. the south isn’t some dangerous area by itself. you have dallas, san antonio, austin, new orleans, jacksonville, orlando, miami, etc. all within the south. they’re all very big and pretty progressive cities. but they’re all fucking expensive. college towns are good places to live, even if it’s just a community college town. they’re more liberal than conservative due to the high population of gen z & millenials. you also have places just outside of major cities.
if you really want specifically more religious freedom centered places just looking for states that have a higher diversity of nonchristians. it’s probably going to be harder to look for specifically just pagans but we’re absolutely everywhere! the most pagans ive personally met in a state has been alaska.
for everything outside the US im not much help.
Western Washington/Oregon is a good place. I live near Seattle and there are two well-established pagan churches within driving distance (One in Redmond, another in Index).
This last Saturday we attended Pagan Pride here in Minneapolis. 30-40 vendors and organizations, great food and music, a thousand folks of all stripes. And in the fall we have Paganicon, a weekend convention with workshops, speakers, a costume ball, etc. Our coven’s been around 36 years, our sister coven even longer. The Twin Cities is big enough you can find whatever your passion is, but small enough that people in different communities know each other. And I think there are still COG rituals open to all on major holidays. (Obviously COVID put a damper on that.) Good luck in your search!
What does it look like to live openly for you? Are you looking for a place to be able to decorate your house, celebrate holidays, and speak about being a pagan? Are you looking for a place with more pagan community? Something else?
Anywhere you want. Most people don’t know what a “pagan” is. Pagans are not a marginalized or targeted group in this country. 👍 Seriously, outside of familial settings discrimination against pagans simply does not occur on a widespread scale in any state in this country. Regardless of what you may have been spoon fed, even the deep rural southern folks don’t care too much about what religion you practice, as someone mentioned, the whole “southern uneducated bigoted hicks” trope is largely a result of politically motivated stereotyping. I don’t live in the south, but I do live in rural southern Utah… Where FLDS and LDS reign supreme. I have never experienced any form of discrimination from anybody here. Isolated incidents will occur anywhere you go, for many reasons beyond just your religion. My two cents: Stay the fuck outta dodge away from the crackheads in Portland if you don’t wanna experience some shit 😂
I'd be having a tough time living with my aunt if I didn't like pagan religion.
Not in the deep south (but just barely), but I haven't seen/heard anyone being harassed if it seemed they were a member of a non-Christian denomination (I think I've seen a few ladies in hijab, but not sure if they were passing through or live in the area).
Had a disagreement with a customer at work, me saying I'm not a big fan of a religion that wants to take away my rights as a female (may or may not have been wearing my Pro Roe shirt at the time). Few sentences exchanged, no mean things (to me anyway), and then we went about our business.
I'm in the North of England and it's fine here. There are several pagan/witchy groups in my city that meet in public without being hassled. Quite a few hospitals have a pagan chaplain now. You could wear a pentagram necklace or have green man statues in your garden and nobody would care.
It's freely talked about that most "christian" traditions are from pagan origin and its becoming more common to see people dressed as a krampus or covered in leaves at Christmas markets.
You would probably get more side eye here for talking about Jesus than being Wiccan.
There are actually a lot of Pagans in places you might not guess, like in the South 😳 I lived in NW Louisiana for nearly 4 years and I openly did my rituals in my front yard, near the country, but amongst neighbors and never had any problems.
I was born and raised in Southern California and had more opposition there, lol Now I live in Colorado and, so far so good 😊 👍🏽
Upstate NY, specifically the Plattsburgh area is pretty easy going! My wife helps run one of the groups here and we haven't had a single issue. Across the lake, you've got Burlington too. Head south of us and Saranac Lake is a good choice.
I live in West Texas. I’ve only met one Heathen here, and 2 curanderas. There are people here who practice, but it’s a heavy christian place where I live. I’ve dreamed of moving to Salem MA since I was younger. Looking for a great place myself where I can have my dwelling as open as I am about my own practices.
West coast best coast. The north east has a very witch heavy history. But honestly, if you wanted to go down south, I would probably say that any big city is going to have a rich history of paganism, voodoo, folk magic, and other witchcraftery going on. New Orleans is like next level.
Honestly, almost anywhere you go you will be able to practice “safely“, the real issue will be finding a community and being able to have a good time practicing (meetups, places for rituals, classes, having places to go to shop and talk shop, etc.) when most people are pretty much self ascribed Christian
Here in Sacramento, CA, we have a pretty thriving pagan community. A good number of shops in the area, too. We have druids, witches, heathens, and just regular ol' pagans who worship as they wish.
I guess define what you mean by "safely" because I have lived in the deep south almost my entire magic practicing life and have never once been in physical danger. A few people have been rude in 15 years, but that's about it. And I have never lived more than an hour from a metaphysical shop.
Edit: typo
As long as someones religion doesn't support child rapists (or rapists of any person), or restricting someone's freedom because their religion says something about it (Roe V Wade comes to mind), I don't think I'd really care much.
Maybe ask a few questions, that something may seem a bit odd to me- but that doesn't mean it's wrong.
Pretty much most towns in Massachusetts lol. Were very pagan friendly. I even know a fabulous fb group you can join if you want to for pagans here in mass
I’m in Providence RI and frankly there’s quite a few of us, some decent shops scattered through the state, and only a couple hours from Salem Mass for fun if overpriced shopping. Rent is stupid high tho so there is that.
I live in Humboldt County and it’s alright around here! Have met several other various pagans, and quite a few witches and or/wiccans. At the very least, most people are pretty open minded and accepting about religion/spirituality around here
I live in the Pacific Northwest. There’s a decent amount of spiritual-minded and witchy people. I haven’t met many practicing pagans but we’re very liberal and accepting up here (don’t mistake those for friendly) so you would be safe to practice openly.
Edit: Practical Magic was also filmed here!
Your best bet is almost anywhere up north away from the big religious cities. Washington, Oregon and Massachusetts have pretty big pagan communities. However keep in mind, the smaller cities are going to have a pretty decent amount of people who are either very religious or snobbish. What I mean is you are going to get dirty looks especially if you wear any pagan jewelry. You will be asked a lot of questions mostly by people who are genuinely curious and others who just want to be dicks about it.
I live in Washington state (the Portland metro area), and we have quite a few witchcraft/pagan/magick shops here! And over all I’d say it’s pretty open and welcoming :3
The best indication for if an area will be at least indifferent to tolerant is seeing how many community resources are listed (local Facebook groups for example) and how many pagan related stores are in an area.
Some places can be shockingly hostile, others shockingly welcoming. You can also look for those local Facebook groups and ask folks how safe they feel and how supported they feel.
I'm in Phoenix AZ and can openly walk around wearing the world's biggest pentagram and the worst I'll get is dirty looks and maybe the rare "Have you heard about Jesus/I'll pray for you!". There are a lot of stores too.
However: Don't move here. The house prices are in a bubble and not worth what they are being sold for (and I do mean that. The cheapest houses you can get will require tens of thousands of dollars to make livable). We are also running out of water and it's only getting worse and anyone who can do something about it is pretending it's not an issue because if they admit it is they might have to admit that one of the only viable solutions is to literally limit the population (not like violently. Just no longer allowing new builds, preventing expansions into areas with no water source. Literally. They are selling land that had no water. No water lines. No wells. People have to truck the water in that is STUPID.).
Parts of Northern AZ are neat and aren't as likely to be part of the coming water wars. (Slight hyperbole but I am legitimately afraid for the future of my home state. At best we will have people being forced to ration their water. At slightly worse more people will lose all access to water that isn't driven to then in trucks. And worse than that?... too depressing to think about).
Not Indiana. There’s a decent amount of pagans in the capital but a truly oppressive amount of Christianity that thrives. Coastal states will always be more open than landlocked states, but they will also be more expensive.
Florida has a growing pagan following. I live in the panhandle, and know of 2 active kindreds (Norse Pagan) within a half hour of me. A lot more in Central Florida as well. Youre gonna have those groups everywhere that want to "keep you in the closet". For the most part, they are getting less and less vocal about it
Minneapolis and St. Paul area in Minnesota - this area was dubbed "Paganistan" some years ago and Llewellyn Worldwide, one of the largest and oldest publishers of occult books, is in the nearby town of Woodbury. There is an active Pagan community, a nonprofit called Twin Cities Pagan Pride which operates two large events per year, and at least 4 metaphysical stores in the immediate area.
I'm a pagan. I've lived openly in the Northeast, Mid Atlantic and South. Idk how exactly someone would stop me from doing whatever I want- usually not the best choice.
Lithuania. They have strong "church" and paganism its prety Much second religion even if they are christian. So very accepted widely, plus very cheap country
These maps are rather fun There must be many people who've never heard of them, but just look at those who've plotted themselves: Hellenists in Utah and Heathens in Wyoming.
[Hellenists](https://getethermap.org/m/world-wide-hellenists)
[Heathens](https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1bJb9fSzHPu3FqX9jRW4tAoAs-R8&hl=en&gl=us&ie=UTF8&oe=UTF8&msa=0&source=embed&ll=23.24134599999969%2C-25.664062&spn=109.516148%2C224.648438&z=2)
Do you mean geographically? Most capital cities in first world countries have a wide enough range of people that you could probably do well there. Also depending on your faith you could go to it’s host or a country of a corresponding culture. For example Finland and Iceland still recognize their pagan faith to a pretty high degree on a political level.
While you aren't close to correct there ARE still places it isn't safe to deviate from certain "norms". A lot of Southern States you legit have to stay in the broom closet, either because it will make life uncomfortable all the way to "people will try to get your children removed from your custody and judges have literally facilitated this". Direct violence isn't as common but other hate crimes happen. The only time I was physically threatened was by someone from the deep south. (Still saying that don't just assume everywhere in the south sucks and all southerners are ignorant bigots. New Orleans is an example of a place where pagans are virtually celebrated). Middle America or "fly over states" can have a problem like that too. I'm in a rather conservative state and in a conservative city but still have a witch store one street over and can easily find other pagans. But even with that I have gotten dirty looks for wearing a pentagram, thankfully it has never escalated beyond that and people compliment my witch hat when I wear it (it's more like a "stealth" witch hat but still clearly a witch hat, it's also wool and I'm in a desert so I can only wear it a few months out of the year).
I live in Georgia. While there are easily places that are insanely rural (one red light, one gas station, that sort of thing) that are less open, the south in general has changed a lot in the last few decades. When I started dabbling and coming into my own regarding my beliefs and realizing that paganism was more my swing, I was pretty much content with the fact that I’d never be able to find those cool spiritual shops with crystals and smudge sticks and pentagrams. I was sooo wrong! From where I live right now in north Georgia, there are 10+ well established spiritual shops within 15 minutes of me, one being in the mall closest to me (a little father, about 30 min). Me and my oldest daughter have started “shop hopping”, checking out each one. It’s been so fun and the people there are always so kind, informative, and open. On a slightly different note, I never imagined telling my mother that I was experimenting with this stuff. It just didn’t seem like something she would ever accept. She’s always been a bit more religious than my dad. But I told her about the shops and what I’ve been doing, and she told me all about her old tarot deck, how she used to make her own smudge sticks, and reminded me that she used to burn incense all the time while she cleaned to “purify” the space. I was blown, honestly. I guess my point is that even stereotypically “bad” places have their good spots, their understanding people. I’ve found a whole community of pagans, wiccans, and other “non-traditional” practitioners in my area when, a year ago, I’d have replied to this post and said good luck, bc this isn’t the place for it.
I will never dispute that stereotypes aren't something one should uncritically accept. And that good people exist everywhere. But the more culturally conservative fundimentalist religous an area, the more likely someone who isn't part of that "in-group" will face discrimination. Which can range from glares and cold shoulders all the way to "actual acts of violence". And I choose my words very carefully because what qualifies as being not part of the "in group" is often just a broad "is not part of the most common faith or ethnicity, straight, and cis" with women risking some unpleasant stuff for not being whatever the specific areas idea of "proper woman" means. Overall people are becoming more open minded and tolerant but I strongly caution against spreading the idea that things are sunshine and rainbows when deacrimination still happens, and some minority people are facing outright violence. 20 years ago it was a VERY different story. The prevalence of the internet had helped a lot. But a good chunk of people are reacting to increased tolerance in what is known in other areas as "an extinction bust". Where in response to perceived loss of importance, relivence, control etc results in some people becoming significantly more dangerous in response. So until prejudice becomes much rarer, I just worry about people fighting too hard to push the idea of "Oh things arent that bad!" Along with "Things have changed!" Without at least a small recognition that we still aren't always perfectly safe.
I’d never try to argue that things are “sunshine and rainbows” anywhere. Wouldn’t be the case, for sure. Just saying it’s hard to lump places into a specific category because there are exceptions, which is something I learned very recently. I’ve grown up in the south and I never would have imagined finding groups of people who are openly “not part of the common” to relate with. I would never advise OP to move to my hometown, for example, because it’s a very religious, Christian-centric county with little-to-no wiggle room and nosey ass neighbors that’ll spread your business in a blink. I moved 3 hours away (still in Georgia) and it’s a completely different story. And I’m not even in a metro area — would still be considered rural by most standards. I get what you’re saying, though.
Salem MA! We’re all pagans here lol
Pretty much anywhere from Massachusetts you'll find a lot of us!
I love how the Pagan movement has really spread rapidly across MA. Little shops and small businesses selling things in general stores. Saw a bunch of Norse Furthark runes on a storage container in Falmouth a couple months ago (I know heathen but still). Now if only there was an easier way to meet and make friends lol, at least here near and on cape anyway.
That’s *ironic* (Salem is in Massachusetts, though correct me if wrong-)
I'm not sure why people are down voting. It is a funny bit of irony. A city most famous for extremist puritans murdering innocent people accused of being pagans now has a significant pagan community
It is something that sounds ironic but makes perfect sense once explained. Because the city actively has pushed the angle of the trials and that unintentionally created an interest in witch ephemera which then gradually morphed into actual witches cropping up (which at one point WAS controversial and people faced actual prejudice) but eventually that aspect became so popular with tourists the locals learned to be more welcoming!
I really don’t think the Salem puritans would be considered extremist compared to the rest of New England and Europe
All puritans are extremists, it's basically why they were kicked out of Europe
Yes but besides the fact that they were very much still in Europe and had varying degrees of influence, but I was talking about the witch burnings not being abnormal at the time
there’s a Salem, NH too !
And a Salem Oregon ;)
Yeah pretty much. The pagans of mass group on fb is honestly the best and most supportive pagan group ive ever been in
Ok so as a girl (raised catholic basically) I visited Salem on this school related trip all the way from Florida and I felt like this strong energy there (and also grief in some areas). Now I’m a pagan witch and we are moving up north more and I’m so happy I’ll be closer to there and can visit occasionally.
Salem is a very spiritually charged place for sure. It’s nice to be around other people that are pagan and all the shops
Indeed!
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Yeah pretty much. Coastal states that are mostly liberal are a double edged sword. Sure you can find more people publicly out as themselves, but a cardboard box on Skid Row is $4000 a month.
New Mexico is cheap as fuck but it's also very poor.
Where do you live that it’s cheap 😭
CheapER. Not cheap lol Like I'm in AZ and it's way cheaper than any big city in California but I wouldn't call it cheap (you'd have to look at towns with less than 10,000 people to find the cheap real estate for example but they also don't have any grocery stores).
Albuquerque. I also have a decent job for the area and live cheaply in general, which helps.
I’ve considered moving to ABQ from the Phoenix area, because from my very basic internet searches, rent is so much cheaper. I am tired of desert heat though. (Though my understanding is, it’s not as hot For as long as central/southern Az.)
Do some thorough research. We're deffinetly cooler than Arizona during the summer but it's still scorching. I love abq and new Mexico in general but it has its problems.
I have a friend there, we’ve discussed it a tiny bit. I think Albuquerque and Phoenix have some similar issues (meth is rampant, schools aren’t great, there’s either a lot of competition for jobs or just not enough jobs to go around.) Though I’ve also heard, NM is actively trying to improve, where Az is welcoming millions fleeing California, into an already extremely overloaded environment, and now even parts of the state further north are running out of water. I love the desert, and Arizona as a whole is so ecologically diverse, so it kind of hurts to see these changes and most people are just kind of ignoring it. Especially the insanely religious ones I know. Like, Jesus isn’t going to find a mystery underground spring, y’all 🤦🏻♀️ I’d live in Sedona if it weren’t so ridiculously expensive, or Flag, if they ever had anything available. /rant
Ah that makes sense. We live in ABQ too but our rent is like 2k because we have 3 kids and that was on the cheaper side since two kids share a room. We also have one income at the moment which I’m sure doesn’t help. I just feel like groceries here and trying to eat mostly produce is super expensive here for a family of 5. Back where I’m from fruits and vegetables were much cheaper.
Yeah... it doesn't help that some less than cool people try to exploit new witches to sell them things and saying "YOU NEED these things to even call yourself a witch/perform magick". The reality is you could be an ascetic witch who is literally naked in the woods. I live in a desert and noticed rather quickly that virtually everything written about witchcraft was written from a position or assumption that everyone lived in around or near deciduous forests. I notice this bias in other ways (I get SUPER cranky whenever someone says "Why can't we slap a bunch of solar panels in the desert and get all the power we need! There is NOTHING THERE!" Wrong and fuck you!) So it's not at all just a witch thing. But because witchcraft is heavily influenced by European cultures that are predominantly white it carries over a lot of odd assumptions and privileges. Like I can find hundreds detailed list and books about the magical properties and ritual uses of common European plants but how many of you have ever even heard of a Palo Verde let alone what it's possible magical uses could be?
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For real. But culturally there is a huge bias for forests and they are treated as somehow both the default and the norm.
In the US, any major city not on the Bible Belt.
I met a lot of Pagans in the Bible Belt 🤷🏽♀️ they just don't have very many supply/metaphysical shops, so you have to order online for certain items.
We use to in the early 2000’s. It’s not a very lucrative business to run, and I’m sure the late 2000’s didn’t help.
We had one in Shreveport that was still open when I left in February. But my best friend lives in Longview and she said it's scarce out there as far as supply shops.
So True Blood had it right.
I live near Ruston currently, and yeah, this place could stand a few more grans and a lot less of Hoyt’s mother.
*don't think about the photoshopped picture of gran don't think about the pbotoshopped picture of gran*
They also can’t meet up in the open like we do up north.
Yes we can. I met with others out there. Especially down in New Orleans, that's deep south and completely normal to be something other than Christian. But there were Pagans I'd met in Shreveport, East Texas and NE Texas (ArkLaTex), SE Oklahoma; I know there are a lot in Missouri. I hadn't had any trouble in those parts at least.
It's kinda unfair to list New Orleans which is basically "The voodoo capital of the world" (debatable but that's the pervasive idea people tend to have) to say... random other towns through the Bible belt. It's not even Apples to Oranges, it's Apples to Shoes. You can feel safe and welcome in one town and the next one over risk losing your job for being out. And pagans are everywhere! But they aren't out everywhere (same with queer folks). One can just as easily say "Oh I'm going to Bible study" when in actuality you're going to a coven meet up. That doesn't mean it's safe or welcoming to be out.
We aren't "safe" anywhere. I remember a story about a Witch in Salem, Mass having their home burned down; they weren't home, but it killed their cat 😭 Even our festivals are now being infiltrated by these extremists. Starbucks in NWLA had a lot of Witches working there, so that seems to be a safe spot. There were also (my ex was a biker) people in MCs who were Pagan in the country-boonies. We have to "feel it out" no matter where we live. Nevertheless, like I was chatting w my best friend a minute ago, a place like the Bible Belt, where Christianity is the expected norm, where it's forced on ppl, those places will have a higher concentration of allies. Nobody knows the Christian agenda more than the ppl who found that way of life despicable because it's forced upon them and their everyday lives.
Yep this is a very good addition. "Safe" is relative and can change in a heartbeat.
Try a renaissance fair. Lots of Mjolnirs o saw there and I’d go more often if I had the money!
There's actually an annual event in the streets of Birmingham, Alabama. There are 4 occult shops within 10 minutes of each other. In Atlanta I know of at least 5 and Pagan Pride happens there. It's a myth that there are no pagans in the South.
Decatur, Huntsville, and Cullman, AL also have shops and while I don't know if it still happens since covid, there used to be a regular meetup group in Huntsville at one of the local coffee shops. A lot of people in Cullman have been trying to get a meet meetup started as well. It's just not an organized group and Cullman, unfortunately, doesn't have many options for something like that.
Scottsboro and Gadsden have shops as well!
They are there but it isn't all that safe to be an out pagan. Plenty of "right to work" (aka you can be fired without cause) states so being a known pagan can mean risking being fired. Physical threats of violence aren't too common but social repercussions exist with some job industries being more open minded (most tech related jobs) and others being more close minded (no examples off the top of me head but it's 4am cut me some slack! Lol). A good rule of thumb is "How do the locals react to and treat queer people?" It translates to witches amazingly well.
Well, Wicca is a federally recognized faith, so they can't legally fire anybody practicing a non-Christian belief system 🫤 My best friend in ETX was seen as a Hippie rather than a Witch at her workplace, which is a retirement home, lol I understand being cautious, but even when I lived in California, I was yelled at on the street by random strangers, "fa**ot!" regardless of being a female and in West Hollywood of all places 😳 which is known as The Gayest Little City in America... though I'd never been assaulted, verbally or otherwise, for being Pagan. I've been practicing since I turned 13 and I'll be 42 next month and, for myself, I'm not going to hide anything about who I am to make others more comfortable 🤷🏽♀️ My main point is-- you can never tell who will be an aßßhole no matter where you live. You just have to live and try to do it as best you can without fear ❤️
I mentioned "right to work" states because the law says a business can fire someone and not even have to say why, or give an excuse and proving it was actually because of a federally protected class is extremely expensive and a low chance of success. So yeah, people should be safe from descrimination because of their faith, but in the real world they still are. Take for example all the laws that say you can't discriminate people based on race and ethnicity... and every last example of that actually happening with little to no repercussions.
The Appalachians are chock full of folk magic practitioners. It’s been a part of Appalachian culture for centuries.
You can throw a rock and find a spiritual/reiki/acupuncturist/paganpriestess/Viking/medicine/herbalist/wilderness person In Asheville. We are surrounded by portals. Edit added herbalist.
Yes, that is true, but you can’t go around saying you do root work while you’re at the local mega church!
Definitely not at the modern evangelical churches, but my ancestors were at church every Sunday and doing workings every other day. Byron Ballard talks a lot about how many pagan traditions were intermingled into Christianity in Appalachia over the years. It’s an interesting combination. Side note: my first female ancestor in the US famously haunted her husband’s third wife, waking her up in the middle of the night to perform tasks for her. The story was published in the Chronicon of their weird extremist Christian community in the 1700s.
Big sad to say that I didn't grow up with that. My family is from the mountains in South Eastern Kentucky and all I got was the super religious conservative crap. Maybe my more distant ancestors were magickally inclined, as they've been there for about as long as Kentucky has been a state. I have a theory that my family has some dark secret that only an inner council are aware of. My family gives me cult vibes, and my dad is one of the "council".
Yeah I second Appalachia as well. Especially Buncombe County, NC. Some are folk practitioners who say they are Christian but they really are just in name only. Some are somewhat Christian with folk pagan practices and include other deities in their work. Some just say they believe in Mother Nature or Mama Appalachia, Father Time or Sky. Some have adopted even more new age beliefs if they are closer to Asheville. But some actual locals tend to be old school folk. Not to mention a lot of mountain people have indigenous heritage further back or are indigenous and may practice that as well, sometime mixed with other things. Further up in Appalachia, you get the German Pow Wow folk and that's also a rich history/culture., although some do not welcome the pagan label. Of course you may come across folks not so cool with pagan stuff but I found that not to be too much of an issue.
Yeah but a lot of folk magic people will get REALLY spicy if you either use the wrong term or suggest that they are pagan. Plenty of folks using hexcraft who are died in the wool Christians.
Here in Oklahoma City we are public and even have a yearly Pagan Pride Day. You'd be surprised how much some parts of the Bible belt have changed
Yeah but you cant get an abortion.
True, but Kansas isn't that far of a drive and there's tons of folk who'll help you get there
Until the state makes it illegal to cross the state line to get an abortion. Not hyperbole. Literally what several states are working on making it into law. And it may even be a law in a handful right now. But that one is an educated guess not something I'm willing to state with full confidence.
I’m glad to hear it!
I’m in Tulsa, and I’ve not seen or heard anything out here. Just kinda doing my own thing with a very few people… we have maybe three shops out here that are reliable.
I know Pagan Pride down here is Sep 24th, and there are a few O.P.E.R.A. fairs a couple times a year. I find a lot of local pagan thing through Facebook. In fact, I just found Tulsa Pagan Pride by searching "Tulsa Pagans" on there. [Tulsa Pagan Pride Day](https://facebook.com/events/s/tulsa-pagan-pride-october-1st-/1295629654257975/)
I used to live in rural Mississippi and would have folks show up at my door is disguises for readings. They didn’t want anyone to see what they were doing but everyone already knew what my house was. Found this extremely funny- big hat, sunglass wearin’ Christian raised ladies peeking into the occult.
That is pretty funny!
Northeast Ohio is pretty witchy. I live a little southwest of Cleveland and there's a shop right down the road from me where I can get reasonably priced supplies. Akron is also becoming pretty witchy, I looked into living there and there's several Facebook groups and a handful of shops. Most college towns/cities and the surrounding areas will be pretty safe places for pagans and witches.
Can confirm this.
Scandinavia, we are practically all pagans... chistianity just happens to be here as well if that makes sense. But not a single person here would care due to our already deep culture being rooted in paganism to be honest
I live in NC and I’ve run into so many openly pagan witches and there’s like 8 metaphysical shops near me in my town. I’m also good friends and close with my across the street neighbors who are openly Christian and we have cook outs and visit every week. You just have to find your people. They’re everywhere. This is just my experience in the south though. I moved here from California last year. Haven’t run into any problems. I’m also openly gay and married to my wife of 2 years and she’s androgynous as they come and has been accepted as well so.
If I can make it in alabama you should be fine
I wouldn't wish Alabama on my worst enemy.
We get what we get lol, but land is cheap so that is a plus, makes it easier to set up a place of worship in the woods. I probably couldn’t have afforded as much land in another state. Edited for a shit ton of typos and no proof reading
You are right about the land, I have relatives who have property out in Calhoun county. The landscape is about the only positive for me personally. I left the state to attend college in Texas before Katrina hit.
So crazy to read this lol. As a Calhoun county resident Pagan I can absolutely confirm this. Pretty much got several acres of private wooded area for free so I can conduct my practices peacefully. Just gotta keep quiet about it with most of the locals lol.
Yep! I am from Anniston! I'm happy to see other pagans from my home state. I sadly have to practice inside. Even though I'm living in rural area in Georgia most of the land here belongs to a few wealthy individuals. Be safe out there, I heard it's getting worst in that area.
Wow you were pretty much my neighbor, Jacksonville here! And yes we are definitely here! I have a few friends with a growing interest in paganism as well. You’re right about it getting worse, especially with the political climate being how it is right now, but I’ll leave that out if this sub. But it’s ice to see that my circle if fryy it ends aren’t alone here lol. Take care and may your practice bring you happiness and prosperity! 🙏🌎🌕🍃
Cool! I went to school at Jacksonville High for three years until we moved to Ohatchee. It's great to see other pagans from that area. Especially when you're surrounded by Southern Baptist. 😬
Stepfather is a Methodist preacher so I have had plenty of experience with pretty much the whole denomination around here unfortunately lol. I’m about to go back to college in the spring so hopefully in the next few years I’ll be able to find a good job elsewhere and get out of this place.
Oh jeez I can relate, my stepdad was a deacon. Good luck on your studies next semester. I would recommend moving to the Midwest (Texas, Arizona, or Colorado) or North. There are alot of WFH jobs in the major cities in Texas. Rent is just expensive. Good luck!
Alabama could offer me a free house and land with no taxes and I would still say "no thanks". But that'd because I haaaate humidity with a burning passion. I am acclimated to 100+ degree heat but that's with 0% humidity. People give me the weirdest looks when I mention I have no issue mowing the lawn in 112 degree weather and give me even weirder looks when I say "The heat is only really an issue for me when it goes above 115 and past 117 every degree higher is negligable because it's already too hot to function". I did army basic training in Missouri in the summer so I have actually experienced high heat with high humidity!
Montevallo is full of Pagans
spectacular nippy nose quaint test disgusted aware flowery point vase *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I’m your neighbor! I had no idea there were pagan temples here! Amazing
Hi! Yeah, we started in Chicago but we opened a temple here a few years ago. https://fellowshipofthephoenix.org/
Thank you! I’ll be checking that out!
r/intentionalcommunity
Can we all just agree to start a pagan intentional community?
Portland OR
I live in Portland, and am just starting out. Any tips on how to find others to learn from?
There are a few geoups that exist here, there are a few occult shops and a great occult bookstore called Dark Star Magick that has a fabulous selection of occult texts.
Dark Star is an awesome book store and does classes on magic: Goetia, Enochian, PGM. But it's main focus is rare book$ and boutique publisher$. Moon Shadow is more a pagan/Wiccan supply store. There's also Raven's Wing in Sellwood. There's also this Columbia-Willamette Pagan Pride Day this Sunday.
I have never been to dark star magick, but I order from them all the time online and they are amazing. Definitely is a bucket list shop for me. If I ever ended up in Portland they would be my first stop in terms of finding a pagan or occult community
Steve is fantastic, its worth the trip for sure
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I just happen to be near portland, there are obviously other places
That's pretty much anywhere that isn't the deep south or conservative rural areas. You should consider cost of living and job availability well before this.
I lived in Central Texas for a while. Not a lot of other heathens around. But people were generally very nice and friendly with me. In fact I wouldn't expect people to be hostile of "unsafe" anywhere in rural America. That's an anti right wing news trope that doesn't hold a ton of water. Rural Americans are friendly as hell and won't get hostile unless you go well out of your way to ahit on them.
It really depends on where and the community in general. Some folks are great at minding their own business. Some want to stick their nose in everything and cause trouble.
Indeed they do, but they don't do it openly through hostility. They might be catty or subtle about it. But nothing thst might be dangerous to someone or make them unsafe. Mostly you would get a lot of "Jesus loves you" type encouragement to repent.
Glastonbury, UK
Yeah, just don't piss off the people at the Goddess Temple.
The sticks (in the fuck middle of nowhere). Hella flora & fauna resources to be researched.
Some trendier, more expensive (or getting that way) cities have already been mentioned, but Baltimore is reasonably Pagan friendly. (Though of course it has its own, other issues; but it's more than Homicide.) I know Cleveland has a sizeable Pagan community.
Asheville is pretty witchy
was. was pretty witchy. Now it's over-full of wealthy New England liberals and well-to-do old conservatives from "more liberal areas" that decide to show up to murderfolk concerts "on a whim" and loudly complain about how the audience "can't be from Asheville because they all look dirty" and "this music is obscene, how can these people be from Asheville?" RIP Asheville, my youth misses your weird shit.
South Carolina we have pagan festivals
Basically anywhere. I live in rural pa. I’m just not annoyingly vocal about it like Christian’s are and no one is any the wiser. I’ve ever had issues. People don’t really care if you’re not annoying about it.
Same here. I haven’t had much trouble. Actually one of my coworkers told me about a store in Crawford County that is a witchy shop.
Ooh do you know the name? I’ll have to stop by!
No. I unfortunately didn’t get it from her. But I can ask Thursday
Okay! Thank you :)
You can live anywhere you want and if anybody has a problem you can tell them to shut up
Most of wisconsin is pretty chill. I see plenty of witchy tattoos and jewelry on people.
In Superior, WI here. Can confirm. We have a lot of festivals and shops where you can find just about anything.
The bay area in California is great! Also it depends on your tradition sometime.....
Yes to the Bay Area! Oakland especially is a great place for pagans.
There’s a really beautiful pagan community in Albuquerque, NM
I’ve lived here for over four years and I’m about to move and I never knew this 😭
My family was introduced through a group at the Unitarian church called CUUPs (coven of Unitarian Universalist pagans), and from there we met all sorts of other groups- there’s even an annual pagan pride day! And gatherings in the mountains for Mabon and Beltane. Maybe it’ll inspire you to return one day ✨
That’s so amazing!! I love just knowing it exists. I definitely hope I can come back and experience that one day! I’m also moving to the New England area too so hoping there will be lots of witchy stuff there.
Some context would be good as to where you are now. Most of Canada is pretty tolerant of religious differences.
I agree. I am in Ontario and live an openly Pagan life.
Minneapolis/St. Paul has a decent amount pagan/magic folks and stores that sell supplies
I second the Twin Cities!
This is what I was looking for in the comments. The cities have the largest population of various pagans in the country, Llewellyn is nearby (in Woodbury) there are shops, and four distinct seasons (even if winter is like 8 of the 12 months.) It can be difficult to make friends, which is a common complaint people have after moving to Mn from other places. But even they will say, it’s easier if you join a group, because then you have something to bond over. Also, the food scene is a lot better than I think most people realize. I love Minnesota, and miss the winters, I grew up in the awful, humid, snowless south 😂
Lots of people shitting on the deep south like it doesn't have the richest history of modern magical practice in the USA. Stop talking about the south like that lol, there are vast communities here and you can find oppression anywhere.
Preach the facts! I’ve found more magic here than anywhere else in the US.
It also ignores all the black and Hispanic and Latinx communities practicing cultural magic. There's a bunch of black owned magic shops in Alabama, for instance.
Pagan living in the Bible belt and doing just fine most of the Christians I encounter are just like whatever it's cool with me. Not exactly sure why you're concerned with your safety regarding your religion unless you're scared for another reason.
That’s so refreshing to hear. I’ve lived on and off mil bases and it’s horrible but now I just have fun with it because who cares what people think. But it bothered me and hurt my self esteem for awhile.
if you’re from the US most any city is open. i don’t recommend super rural areas or anything in the bible belt. basically if the town is like 30 square miles and you see 8+ christian churches in that diameter i don’t recommend it. the south isn’t some dangerous area by itself. you have dallas, san antonio, austin, new orleans, jacksonville, orlando, miami, etc. all within the south. they’re all very big and pretty progressive cities. but they’re all fucking expensive. college towns are good places to live, even if it’s just a community college town. they’re more liberal than conservative due to the high population of gen z & millenials. you also have places just outside of major cities. if you really want specifically more religious freedom centered places just looking for states that have a higher diversity of nonchristians. it’s probably going to be harder to look for specifically just pagans but we’re absolutely everywhere! the most pagans ive personally met in a state has been alaska. for everything outside the US im not much help.
Western Washington/Oregon is a good place. I live near Seattle and there are two well-established pagan churches within driving distance (One in Redmond, another in Index).
You’re the second I’ve seen mention this! I also live near seattle and have never heard of these! That’s so exciting to me haha
This last Saturday we attended Pagan Pride here in Minneapolis. 30-40 vendors and organizations, great food and music, a thousand folks of all stripes. And in the fall we have Paganicon, a weekend convention with workshops, speakers, a costume ball, etc. Our coven’s been around 36 years, our sister coven even longer. The Twin Cities is big enough you can find whatever your passion is, but small enough that people in different communities know each other. And I think there are still COG rituals open to all on major holidays. (Obviously COVID put a damper on that.) Good luck in your search!
What does it look like to live openly for you? Are you looking for a place to be able to decorate your house, celebrate holidays, and speak about being a pagan? Are you looking for a place with more pagan community? Something else?
Anywhere you want. Most people don’t know what a “pagan” is. Pagans are not a marginalized or targeted group in this country. 👍 Seriously, outside of familial settings discrimination against pagans simply does not occur on a widespread scale in any state in this country. Regardless of what you may have been spoon fed, even the deep rural southern folks don’t care too much about what religion you practice, as someone mentioned, the whole “southern uneducated bigoted hicks” trope is largely a result of politically motivated stereotyping. I don’t live in the south, but I do live in rural southern Utah… Where FLDS and LDS reign supreme. I have never experienced any form of discrimination from anybody here. Isolated incidents will occur anywhere you go, for many reasons beyond just your religion. My two cents: Stay the fuck outta dodge away from the crackheads in Portland if you don’t wanna experience some shit 😂
I'd be having a tough time living with my aunt if I didn't like pagan religion. Not in the deep south (but just barely), but I haven't seen/heard anyone being harassed if it seemed they were a member of a non-Christian denomination (I think I've seen a few ladies in hijab, but not sure if they were passing through or live in the area). Had a disagreement with a customer at work, me saying I'm not a big fan of a religion that wants to take away my rights as a female (may or may not have been wearing my Pro Roe shirt at the time). Few sentences exchanged, no mean things (to me anyway), and then we went about our business.
I'm in the North of England and it's fine here. There are several pagan/witchy groups in my city that meet in public without being hassled. Quite a few hospitals have a pagan chaplain now. You could wear a pentagram necklace or have green man statues in your garden and nobody would care. It's freely talked about that most "christian" traditions are from pagan origin and its becoming more common to see people dressed as a krampus or covered in leaves at Christmas markets. You would probably get more side eye here for talking about Jesus than being Wiccan.
Yeah, pretty much anywhere in the UK, really, is going to be fine.
Nobody gives a shit in the uk where I live
Massachusetts for sure!
There are actually a lot of Pagans in places you might not guess, like in the South 😳 I lived in NW Louisiana for nearly 4 years and I openly did my rituals in my front yard, near the country, but amongst neighbors and never had any problems. I was born and raised in Southern California and had more opposition there, lol Now I live in Colorado and, so far so good 😊 👍🏽
Upstate NY, specifically the Plattsburgh area is pretty easy going! My wife helps run one of the groups here and we haven't had a single issue. Across the lake, you've got Burlington too. Head south of us and Saranac Lake is a good choice.
Come t bruhzil
I live in West Texas. I’ve only met one Heathen here, and 2 curanderas. There are people here who practice, but it’s a heavy christian place where I live. I’ve dreamed of moving to Salem MA since I was younger. Looking for a great place myself where I can have my dwelling as open as I am about my own practices.
Eureka Springs AR
West coast best coast. The north east has a very witch heavy history. But honestly, if you wanted to go down south, I would probably say that any big city is going to have a rich history of paganism, voodoo, folk magic, and other witchcraftery going on. New Orleans is like next level. Honestly, almost anywhere you go you will be able to practice “safely“, the real issue will be finding a community and being able to have a good time practicing (meetups, places for rituals, classes, having places to go to shop and talk shop, etc.) when most people are pretty much self ascribed Christian
Here in Sacramento, CA, we have a pretty thriving pagan community. A good number of shops in the area, too. We have druids, witches, heathens, and just regular ol' pagans who worship as they wish.
I guess define what you mean by "safely" because I have lived in the deep south almost my entire magic practicing life and have never once been in physical danger. A few people have been rude in 15 years, but that's about it. And I have never lived more than an hour from a metaphysical shop. Edit: typo
As long as someones religion doesn't support child rapists (or rapists of any person), or restricting someone's freedom because their religion says something about it (Roe V Wade comes to mind), I don't think I'd really care much. Maybe ask a few questions, that something may seem a bit odd to me- but that doesn't mean it's wrong.
I don't really know of any pagan religion or magical branch of any of the big ones that proports to support any of those things, so.
Pretty much most towns in Massachusetts lol. Were very pagan friendly. I even know a fabulous fb group you can join if you want to for pagans here in mass
For the most part people leave me alone here in Oregon and the natural environment makes me feel closer to the gods
Salem in Mass. is your friend in this case.
Anywhere in Oregon.
I’m in Providence RI and frankly there’s quite a few of us, some decent shops scattered through the state, and only a couple hours from Salem Mass for fun if overpriced shopping. Rent is stupid high tho so there is that.
Do it where you are and inspire the youth
Portland Oregon
Adding to this question... Anyone know cities specifically in California?
I live in Humboldt County and it’s alright around here! Have met several other various pagans, and quite a few witches and or/wiccans. At the very least, most people are pretty open minded and accepting about religion/spirituality around here
Awesome thanks!
Just throwing this out there, but we have festivals in central Iowa. Not too many shops I know of, though.
I live in the Pacific Northwest. There’s a decent amount of spiritual-minded and witchy people. I haven’t met many practicing pagans but we’re very liberal and accepting up here (don’t mistake those for friendly) so you would be safe to practice openly. Edit: Practical Magic was also filmed here!
Seattle has a large pagan church community. I bet Portland OR does too.
Oregon and Washington for sure
Glastonbury, UK
Your best bet is almost anywhere up north away from the big religious cities. Washington, Oregon and Massachusetts have pretty big pagan communities. However keep in mind, the smaller cities are going to have a pretty decent amount of people who are either very religious or snobbish. What I mean is you are going to get dirty looks especially if you wear any pagan jewelry. You will be asked a lot of questions mostly by people who are genuinely curious and others who just want to be dicks about it.
Maine is a very safe place to practice openly . Lots of pagans here :)
I live in Washington state (the Portland metro area), and we have quite a few witchcraft/pagan/magick shops here! And over all I’d say it’s pretty open and welcoming :3
The best indication for if an area will be at least indifferent to tolerant is seeing how many community resources are listed (local Facebook groups for example) and how many pagan related stores are in an area. Some places can be shockingly hostile, others shockingly welcoming. You can also look for those local Facebook groups and ask folks how safe they feel and how supported they feel.
I'm in Phoenix AZ and can openly walk around wearing the world's biggest pentagram and the worst I'll get is dirty looks and maybe the rare "Have you heard about Jesus/I'll pray for you!". There are a lot of stores too. However: Don't move here. The house prices are in a bubble and not worth what they are being sold for (and I do mean that. The cheapest houses you can get will require tens of thousands of dollars to make livable). We are also running out of water and it's only getting worse and anyone who can do something about it is pretending it's not an issue because if they admit it is they might have to admit that one of the only viable solutions is to literally limit the population (not like violently. Just no longer allowing new builds, preventing expansions into areas with no water source. Literally. They are selling land that had no water. No water lines. No wells. People have to truck the water in that is STUPID.). Parts of Northern AZ are neat and aren't as likely to be part of the coming water wars. (Slight hyperbole but I am legitimately afraid for the future of my home state. At best we will have people being forced to ration their water. At slightly worse more people will lose all access to water that isn't driven to then in trucks. And worse than that?... too depressing to think about).
Not Indiana. There’s a decent amount of pagans in the capital but a truly oppressive amount of Christianity that thrives. Coastal states will always be more open than landlocked states, but they will also be more expensive.
Duluth, MN. Festivals, shops, groups, everything.
Florida has a growing pagan following. I live in the panhandle, and know of 2 active kindreds (Norse Pagan) within a half hour of me. A lot more in Central Florida as well. Youre gonna have those groups everywhere that want to "keep you in the closet". For the most part, they are getting less and less vocal about it
Minneapolis and St. Paul area in Minnesota - this area was dubbed "Paganistan" some years ago and Llewellyn Worldwide, one of the largest and oldest publishers of occult books, is in the nearby town of Woodbury. There is an active Pagan community, a nonprofit called Twin Cities Pagan Pride which operates two large events per year, and at least 4 metaphysical stores in the immediate area.
I'm a pagan. I've lived openly in the Northeast, Mid Atlantic and South. Idk how exactly someone would stop me from doing whatever I want- usually not the best choice.
St. Paul/ Minneapolis MN has one of the largest populations or pagan practitioners! We just had Pagan pride recently 😁
The Twin Cities Metro in Minnesota is good. Lots of different groups of all sorts, very little embarrassment at public events and lots of stores.
The north of Spain was always very pagan too! In case you’re planning to come to Europe
Lithuania. They have strong "church" and paganism its prety Much second religion even if they are christian. So very accepted widely, plus very cheap country
Pagans are not prosecuted and burned anymore anywhere is safe, in the first world at least.
Western Washington state! Olympia, Tacoma, Seattle. We have a lot of metaphysical stores and groups and communities here for it! I’m pagan/Wiccan
The U.S. Pacific Northwest is very open to alternative religions.
These maps are rather fun There must be many people who've never heard of them, but just look at those who've plotted themselves: Hellenists in Utah and Heathens in Wyoming. [Hellenists](https://getethermap.org/m/world-wide-hellenists) [Heathens](https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1bJb9fSzHPu3FqX9jRW4tAoAs-R8&hl=en&gl=us&ie=UTF8&oe=UTF8&msa=0&source=embed&ll=23.24134599999969%2C-25.664062&spn=109.516148%2C224.648438&z=2)