Greetings from Ghana!

You might be thinking-- is this some sort of early Halloween post? Well, most Ghanaians don’t celebrate Halloween, so that would be a no. However, if you are in Ghana, not a day goes by without hearing some story or comment about witches or juju (like voodoo). This got me curious-- what do Ghanaian witches do? What do they look like? So, to get me out of my house and better integrated into my community, I took a day to ask people for the answers to these questions. Q: What is a witch? A: Someone who is accused of casting spells, causing problems for the community. The vast majority of the accused are women, although some are men. Oftentimes, the accusation is based upon strange behaviors seen or sounds heard from the house of a “witch.” Many report that witches become invisible in the night or turn into black cats to be able to carry out their magic (hence why black cats are often killed in Ghana). Only the ones being victimized by their sorcery can see them when they are i

As soon as you step off a plane in Ghana or anywhere in West Africa, you immediately notice just how colorful people’s clothing is. In fact, this bright-colored fabric is a big part of the culture of this part of Africa. Just walk into any market and you are surrounded by stalls selling dozens of fabric designs in flaming orange, bold turquoise, deep purple, and neon yellow. Buyers purchase 2-3 yards (depending on the clothing item they want) and take it to a seamstress/tailor to have a piece fitted to them. While one would be hard-pressed to find a community where no one wears the fabric, the influx of used clothing from China into Ghana has made Western clothing more common for everyday use. Instead, the bold fabric swatches are saved for jobs considered “white collar” (i.e.,working in an office of some sort) and special occasions, like weddings, funerals, and religious ceremonies. A typical fabric shop in West Africa. Image credit These wax prints are part of a long histor