Ashley Branton lays out tarot cards in the back of her shop, Velvet Witch, in Norfolk, Va., Thursday, June 13, 2024. The city of Norfolk recently repealed its 45-year-old ban on “the practice of palmistry, palm reading, phrenology or clairvoyance, for monetary or other compensation.” The 1979 ordinance was not being enforced, however, and the psychic services industry is growing. Ashley Branton lays out tarot cards in the back of her shop, Velvet Witch, in Norfolk, Va., Thursday, June 13, 2024.
Branton, 42, who previously worked as a makeup artist, said the market is expanding for psychic mediums because social media has fueled awareness. An aversion to organized religion also plays a role, along with the nation’s divisive politics and a growing sense of uncertainty, particularly among millennials and younger generations.
“I always had interactions with spirits,” she said. “I’ve always been an empath. I can feel people’s energies.”“I’m very proud of that,” she said. “There’s going to be scammers and people out here doing this for just the money. Obviously, this is my way of living now. But it was never about money for me.”
Fortune telling bans stemmed from anti-witchcraft and anti-vagrancy laws in 18th century England, said Charles McCrary, a professor of religious studies at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida.