Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender & Vodou

"...that is considered a big sin, here..." were the words my translator relayed to me from my Godmother when asked if LGBTQIA+ people and practices were permissible in Vodou.

Why did I ask this question? Because I didn't ask for priesthood; I didn't ask to be Nana; mostly because I didn't want the scrutiny or judgement because the LGBTQIA+ is as much mine as the African American community and I am intimately familiar with how so called Black folks feel about LGBTQIA+. It was explicitly clear that this behavior wasn't welcomed in her temple. But this is Vodou and I was literally called to serve the vodous. I had a means to ask Them if it was acceptable to be LGBTQIA+ or not. The answer I got was "Sometimes. But mostly, We don't care."

It is easy for us to forget that ultimately the vodous are agents of destiny. When they levy their taboos, it's done in furtherance of that destiny. For various sex related rules to exist suggest two things; these expressions are natural and involuntary, and their indulgence or intolerance are determined by their likelihood to negatively impact your purpose for living.

The Ancestors' are primarily concerned with returning so naturally they're inclined to advocate for romantic partnerships that can "bare fruit" and we are encouraged to be wary of a vodounsi with no children. Not because he might be gay, but because it appears that no Ancestor wants to return through them. That said, the Ancestors are not adverse to passing dalliances, intimate expressions of fraternal/sorority bonds, or even marital unions that improve the fiscal or social fortune of the family as long as that fortune can translate into wealth or standing for subsequent generations. Additionally, Ancestors who were themselves LGBTQIA+ in life may advocate for an opportunity a descendent to live a truth they were not allowed.

Ultimately, no matter what type of union you seek to share with another person (whether cis-het monogamous normative or otherwise) the Ancestors and vodous should be consulted and their blessings solicited or it will be a perilous association and that is bad for society. It is for this reason that my fome advocates for cis het, cis homo, trans het, trans homo, whether monogamous or polyamorous, marital oaths of commitment, only after being duly counseled by the vodous and Ancestors.