We need to talk about Manifestation: It’s not only for the rich.

From a young age I was told that I could do anything. I would hear those sparkly words on Tony Robbins box sets, which were played on repeat in my childhood council house. By the time I was 16 I had read The Secret by Rhonda Bryne 3 times. In my head I had a vision for my life that was as real as the realities of being a kid that claimed free school dinners. So as a WOC with ‘manifestation coach’ in her instagram bio, when I hear the criticism that the concept of the Law of Attraction often doesn’t take into account intersectional issues such as race, class and accessibility I want to say, I hear you. And truly, I know where your coming from. 

 “Saying that anyone can manifest a better life for themselves is the equivalent of when Kanye said slavery was a choice” comments Jasmine, Founder of Babes on Waves. The idea being that the concept of manifestation itself is one that shames and even blames those who aren’t already making time to write gratitude lists before bed. The sentiment is echoed by Sally Chamness, founder of a wellness centre in a mining community in Scotland who, having used spiritual techniques to hit her business goals when Covid left her without financing, agrees that there’s a perception that manifesting is “only for those who can afford to” 

It raises the question about the place this work has in the world. What are its limitations? Who gets to be involves in these conversations and why? I agree that shaming those who are dissatisfied with their life is an approach that would help no one, but I do think the limits of this work are “man” made. 

Our class system is a man-made construct that has a profound and damaging effect on all the humans that live within it. No mother at birth decides that one baby is more valuable than another. Our class systems does that for us.   

Black and brown folks are more likely to experience worst overall health, go to high-poverty schools, and be in unstable employment than their white counterparts. So in 2019 when I found myself temporarily homeless I was hit with the isolating realisation that I was a living, breathing statistic.

I waited a long time for an idealistic socialist government to swoop me in into its arms and lovingly embrace me, to level the playing field as it did so. But when I had my back up against the wall, I had one thing left to try. And that was to become the change I wanted to see. And that started with learning how to use my brain and using what it thinks to intentionally create new experiences. 

Manifesting money, love or even employment requires you do the hard thing of ignoring everything you’ve been told about who you are and where you’ve come from. It’s no easy feat. And would be near impossible to do without the belief that you were made for more. 

Reading the statistics about the prospects for working-class people of colour can leave you feeling hopeless. Maybe your currently watching your friends buy houses and your more inspired to experience feelings of resentment than hope, but in a world that tells us who we should be, it’s a radical act to intentionally re-write that story yourself.  

I started of writing this article not wanting to piss anyone off. I’ve often talked about Law of attraction within the borders of a small neat box as I was afraid of being accused of oversimplifying the challenges that haunt human life. But I soon realised that if I hid my truth from you, I would be letting you down. Manifesting, magic and the fun to be had by adopting these practises is like playing with fire - you’d be unravelling the very fabric of society with a quiet revolution that can only happen from within. There are people who have very real things to gain from you doubting yourself and living out the life a rigid class system has set for you.  

Applying the laws of manifestation to my life gave me hope in the corners of my life where their seemingly was none. That hope looked like believing that even in the darkest of places there’s a glimmer of light that says no matter how much life can suck, you can and will win. I believe that inside us all is a quite knowing that where we’ve come from doesn’t have to decide where were going. Who are you really? Now that’s a story that only you get to write. 

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