The Hit List - What if metaphysical authors and practitioners walked away from Instagram?

Last week, author Rashunda Tramble (@staywoketarot) left Instagram. After dealing with way too many imposters and zero support from the platform, she had it. She was out of there.

A few other authors have taken down most of their photos, leaving only a handful of pictures on Instagram. It means scammers have fewer images to pilfer, which makes those pages less attractive.

Some of us have tried other means, such as drastically reducing who we follow (many scam accounts like to snag the names of the people we follow to see if they can defraud them). I’ve done this, and while it has reduced the number of imposters, a few popped up – including one that took multiple reports before Instagram finally removed it.

While the imposter problem for metaphysical authors and practitioners has been reported by the media, such as over at LA Times, Instagram still seems reluctant to solve the problem. Oftentimes, impersonation reports are ignored. Plus, it’s almost impossible to get verified over there if you’re in this industry, even if you have street cred. Either they don’t care, or they want inflated numbers of “users,” even if those numbers are bots or scam accounts.

I’ve said this many times: it’s no longer safe over there if you’re a metaphysical author, practitioner, or someone who enjoys things such as tarot, astrology, crystals, and so on. Either your work gets ripped off – or your followers do. It’s both maddening and sad. Instagram used to be fun.

I posed this question the other day over on Twitter: “I wonder what would happen if all the legit metaphysical professionals and mystical authors left Instagram. If only the imposters remained, what would happen to the platform?”

It’s a question worth pondering. If we all stopped using the platform or perhaps staged a boycott, would anything change? Would that get their attention? Would this lead to an overhaul? Or would they continue on business as usual? (I suspect the answer is the latter.)

Astrology and Tarot are popular on social media. Look at any account, and you’ll see plenty of engagement. Our presence helps social media platforms attract advertisers, followers, and investors. If we’re gone, and the sites become known only for hosting frauds, at some point, they will lose revenue and value.

While I’m reluctant to step into the Norma Rae role, this is something for the metaphysical community to begin discussing. After all, if they won’t protect us or the people who love our work, why should we help them succeed by being another number for them to crow about to their investors?

Theresa

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Classes

Intro to Tarot Card Reading. Get introduced to the basics of Tarot reading with this foundational class. When: Saturday, April 29th, 2023, from 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM CST. Hosted by the Infinity Foundation via Zoom.

Intermediate Tarot Techniques. Ready to level up your Tarot skills? Join me for a five-part live workshop: Intermediate Tarot Techniques. Enroll before January 31st and save some dough! Class starts March 23, 2023. Hosted by Insight Events USA via Zoom.

Join my Patreon Community! For just $10 a month, you can get oodles of tarot and astrology goodies – including a hot date with me on the 1st of each month. I do a video broadcast and discuss all the important astrological dates coming up soon. Get more details and sign up: Patreon. Treat yourself!