The Ghetto Tarot is an interpretation of the well-known traditional Rider-Waite-Smith deck by photographer Alice Smeets. Set in the Haitian ghetto, these fresh scenes were inspired by those originally created in 1909 by the artist Pamela Colman-Smith. The scenes were replicated by Alice Smeets with the assistance of a group of Haitian artists called Atis Rezistans using only material they were able to find or create locally. While Tarot originated many years ago when the circumstances within the world seemed very different, they still resonate today with timeless symbols that can be applied to our busy modern world. And not just our modern, Western world, but also to any other continent, country or culture, including the Haitian Ghetto. So here comes a contemporary, provocative and vivid tarot deck! The photo project aims to reach beyond cultural boundaries of prejudice and ignorance to achieve a much-needed transformation of the collective conscious perception of the ghetto whilst discovering the power of our own thoughts. Therefore the Haitian slum is presented in another light and the pictures highlight the creativity and strength of its citizens.

Since 2007 Alice Smeets has been a regular visitor to Haiti and has lived in the country for 2 years. Its complexity and spirituality have played a big role in her life. The observations of the Haitian society have brought answers to many of her questions. So taking the tarot pictures in the ghetto of Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince was the obvious choice to create a very personal deck: moving away from the cliched images of poverty, illustrating the spirits and meanings of the cards with a touch of humor in the middle of the slum and showing colored people on the traditional, old European cards to break stereotypes.

Now this deck has received a lot of criticism being labeled as cultural appropriation. Though Alice, the deck creator had known the group of artists “Atiz Rezistans” for a long time and they immediately jumped on board to create the Ghetto Tarot deck together. Being very spiritual themselves and working a lot with voodoo symbolism, they immediately understood the spirits of the cards.

I feel the intend of a person is important. This is a day and age where the internet reeks of cancel culture and faceless keyboard warriors who waste their time constantly taking swings at each other for no good reason. In general people have become overly cautious over everything in order to avoid people becoming offended, and influencers getting called out for controversial sayings or actions has become way more prevalent. Isn’t it an honor if people are celebrating other cultures? Of course it is a different story when there is mockery involved, but when done out of curiosity of another culture and wanting to learn is that so terrible? Isn’t the world a much richer place if we want to learn from and about each other? The internet has become more sensitive than it was before, and people have to learn to not get offended over something that is not even theirs. But, it is also essential to understand the dangers of using elements of a culture that you are not completely familiar with, it’s a thin line, but canceling people or lashing out is not helping learning from each other, it shuts down all communication and makes for hostility. It is also equally essential to realize the beauty of various cultures and coming together to celebrate them despite hailing from a different background.

And for the word “Ghetto” in Haiti, ‘ghetto’ means a life in the slums. It means living without financial security. Yet ‘ghetto’ also means community, family, solidarity, strength and rich creativity. The Haitians are claiming the word ‘ghetto’ for their own. The word reached the island from overseas where it was associated with racism, poverty and exclusion. They liberate themselves of this unfavorable interpretation and are turning it into something beautiful. Their act of appropriating a cheerless word by altering its meaning is an act of inspiration.

What is hiding deep inside of me that needs to come to the surface?

As a deck that seems to trigger people, I guess it is appropriate that the guidebook features a ‘Reveal my shadows” spread:

  1. What is my shadow side? What do I resist and repress the most?; VIII Strength speaks of raw force and an animalistic nature. I am invited to explore this more animalistic nature and become master of the ‘darker’ forces inside of me as these reveal the amount of light within me.
  2. How does my shadow side manifest in my emotions? VII of Cups tells me my shadow self manipulates my emotional life by my tendency to get lost in illusion and dreaming of a better life, instead of taking action due to too many choices and options. There are challenges in choosing and committing, overwhelm and fear of missing out.
  3. How does my shadow side manifest itself in my material concerns? X of Pentacles shows that when it comes to money and security I mustn’t forget my spiritual goals and inner wellness in my material endeavors, these parts of life don’t need to be separate, in the contrary they should go hand in hand in order to solve issues of loneliness and financial failure.
  4. How does my shadow side manifest itself in my mind? XI of Brooms shows my shadow self controls my mind by giving me a sense of failure, lack of confidence and giving up, defeat. Yes insecurity and not feeling good enough are my default thought when I am not feeling great.
  5. How does my shadow side manifest itself in my spirituality? 3 of Machete shows that my shadow self blocks my creativity by apathy, a sense of loss, depression, heartache and disappointment. And yes pushing away my true light has a tendency to depress me and I have been feeling very disappointed and heartbroken lately. I have been feeling tired and useless. I feel my wild, more natural side, is being locked in and kept on a leash. I think we are all experiencing this. I just want to roar. This so shows I need to use my creative outlet, so I can unleash my energy there.
  6. Which light aspect of yourself are you suppressing at the same time that will come to the surface together with your shadow side? XVI The Tower, oh yikes my stalker card (this card pops up all the time in my personal readings). Though The Tower doesn’t unleash a sense of joy when I see it, I do know it means a breakthrough and rebuilding from the ashes, something better. So in this sense it means a spiritual breakthrough (and let’s face it these generally don’t come when we are in a state of bliss, but mostly come when we are down in the dumps), rebirth, breaking of mental and spiritual doctrinal regidities (oh yes been doing a lot of that in the past years) and big changes as destiny is unfolding with invigorating and liberating experiences. I am learning to no longer fear change and to know and love my shadow, for it makes me whole.

I hope you enjoyed this post and invite you to become friends with your shadow. Don’t let it sabotage your life. There are many ways to work with the shadow. SoulCollage®  is one of them.

I also backed Alice Smeet’s new deck, expecting to receive it next month or so, https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-gift-of-life-tarot#/

Thank you for visiting and be well.