Jezmina Von Thiele (they/she) is a writer, educator, performer, podcaster, and fortune teller of mixed Sinti Romani heritage. Raised in their family’s divinatory tradition, they read tarot, palms, and tea leaves, and teach workshops on spiritual practice and creative arts. Jezmina is co-author of Secrets of Romani Fortune Telling (Weiser Books, 2024) and co-host of the Romanistan podcast with Paulina Stevens. Their work appears in Prairie Schooner, The Kenyon Review Online, and Narrative Magazine. Jezmina also has a monthly tarot forecast in Bustle. They perform regularly with The Poetry Brothel and at literary, cultural, and spiritual events across the U.S.

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The term Roma refers to the diasporic ethnic group originally from India, also known by the slur/misnomer Gypsies. The Romani people are not the same as Romanian or Roman, though the words sound similar. Due to centuries of persecution after displacement from India, Roma have developed a number of survival trades, and fortune telling is just one of many. Roma and related groups are welcome to reclaim or use the word Gypsy as they wish, but non-Roma (gadje) are asked not to use or appropriate it.