Origins of Magic: The Gathering and the Legends Expansion
There’s a reason why Invoke Prejudice in Magic: The Gathering still sparks anger whenever its name surfaces in discussions about controversial cards. This particular Magic card, which first appeared in the 1994 Legends expansion, features hooded figures that resemble a hateful organization from real life.
That alone is enough to make many players furious. But it’s not just the art that’s the problem. The mechanics behind this prejudice enchantment also raise questions about how this card ever got approved, and why it took Wizards of the Coast so long to remove it from official circulation.
Invoke Prejudice in Magic the Gathering
Invoke Prejudice in Magic: The Gathering was designed to penalize someone for casting creature spells of a different color from what a player already had on the field. Some might say that color in Magic simply refers to the five shades of mana: white, blue, black, red, and green.
The problem lies in combining that theme of color-based punishment with the card’s illustration, which looks suspiciously like members of the Ku Klux Klan standing in menacing poses. The hooded figures aren’t an accidental design choice. Plenty of Magic artists have toyed with dark or macabre elements, but very few have ventured into imagery that aligns so closely with hateful groups. Harold McNeill, the artist behind Invoke Prejudice, has been linked to white supremacist ideologies in other works, and that connection makes the Magic community even more uncomfortable.
Invoke Prejudice Mechanics
When someone sees the card name Invoke Prejudice for the first time, they might assume it’s a condemnation of unfair treatment. But after a closer look, it becomes clear this is a prejudice enchantment with deeply racist undertones. Its effect, loosely paraphrased, says that whenever an opponent casts a creature spell that doesn’t share a color with creatures you control, counter that spell unless that player pays an additional cost.
Whenever an opponent casts a creature spell that doesn’t share a color with a creature you control, counter that spell unless that player pays {X}, where X is its mana value.
In game terms, it’s basically a roadblock against multi-colored decks, forcing a player to pay double if they want to get their new creature out. At the time of printing, it was a powerful niche effect, though it never reached widespread play because it’s expensive to cast and was only truly relevant in certain deck builds.
But that’s not the only reason it never saw broad use. A large part of the community found it disturbing even if the specifics of the art went unnoticed at first. Some realized the possible real-world parallels: punishing someone for being a different “color” is a loaded concept, especially when the figures on the card evoke the garb of the Ku Klux Klan.
Eventually, word spread that Harold McNeill had produced other pieces of art featuring Nazi references and white supremacist imagery, which prompted some players to question why Wizards would ever print something like this.
Origins of the Card
It’s worth remembering that back in 1994, Magic was in its infancy. Wizards of the Coast didn’t have as many layers of oversight as it does today. The game had only been around for about a year, and expansions came out quickly to feed the growing demand. Magic artists weren’t as closely vetted, and there were fewer checks on what got printed. Most eyes were on game mechanics, not on making sure a card didn’t accidentally endorse hateful themes. That might explain how this prejudice enchantment slipped by, but it doesn’t justify leaving it in circulation for over two decades.
Four Iconic Cards from MTG Legends:
Tabernacle
A powerful land that imposes a tax on all creatures, forcing players to pay mana during their upkeep or sacrifice them. A staple in control and prison strategies.
Moat
This enchantment prevents all non-flying creatures from attacking, locking down the battlefield and protecting you from aggressive ground-based threats.
Karakas
A legendary land that can return legendary creatures to their owners’ hands, offering a repeatable way to protect your creatures or disrupt enemy threats.
Mana Drain
One of the most iconic counterspells in Magic’s history, Mana Drain not only nullifies a spell but also provides you with mana equal to the countered spell’s cost during your next main phase.
For many, the biggest outrage is how long it took Wizards to ban the card. It wasn’t until June 2020 that the company finally removed Invoke Prejudice from its official database and banned it from play. That’s a quarter-century of official silence from a publisher that claims to cherish inclusivity. Even before that ban, rumors had circulated for years about the offensive nature of the art. Players who had studied the illustration up close suspected the card had white supremacist connotations. The name alone—Invoke Prejudice—wasn’t doing it any favors either, given the hooded figures in the image.
Some people argue that Wizards only acted when public conversations about racial injustice reached a boiling point in 2020, spurred by global protests. That’s when many companies began reevaluating old products and content that contained racist or offensive elements. Wizards made a statement that it had no place for racism in its game, and it banned not only Invoke Prejudice but also other cards such as Cleanse, Jihad, Crusade, Pradesh Gypsies, Stone-Throwing Devils, and Imprison. For many players, that was a relief. But for others, it felt like a hollow gesture that came far too late, since none of these cards were highly relevant in modern gameplay. It was obviously the right call to ban them, but the question remains why it took so many years for a card that so blatantly references hate group attire to be removed.
The Multiverse ID
Another shocking fact came to light around the same time: the Gatherer database assigned Invoke Prejudice a multiverse ID of 1488, which is a number strongly associated with white supremacist slogans. That might have been a coincidence from an automated system, but it didn’t help the public relations disaster. Even if that ID was random, it underscored how clueless Wizards seemed about the problem, especially after the card had been online in that database for so long. They eventually changed the ID, but by then the controversy had flared even more.
At its core, the card is a four-mana blue prejudice enchantment that says whenever an opponent casts a creature spell that doesn’t share a color with a creature you control, counter that spell unless that player pays X, where X depends on the difference in color. This means that if you have, say, a white creature you control on the battlefield, and your opponent casts a creature of any other color, they either have to pay double in some sense or watch their creature get countered. If they can’t pay that cost, the creature spell goes straight to the graveyard. On paper, that might sound like a unique control effect for a multi player game, but it’s the flavor, the card name, and the art that make the whole concept offensive.
The full rule text has been interpreted in different ways, but the gist is that whenever an opponent casts a creature, the ability triggers if that creature’s color doesn’t match a color of creature you control. Then, unless that player pays the required mana, you control counter that spell. Converted mana cost has always been an integral concept in Magic, and paying more for a creature can swing the game in certain decks. But tying this game mechanic to something that looks suspiciously like Klan imagery is a huge misstep.
Harold McNeill: a Confirmed Racist
It also doesn’t help that Harold McNeill, the artist, has come under scrutiny for more than just this painting. Some people claim to have seen his private portfolio showcasing Nazi and white supremacist themes. Others say he openly shared hateful beliefs at conventions. Whatever the exact story, his reputation took a nosedive, and that negative buzz spread across the Magic community. People started to ask how many other magic artists had questionable backgrounds or how many other Magic cards might harbor hidden offensive messages. The controversy surrounding Invoke Prejudice raised alarms about how Wizards vetted contributors, especially in the early years of Magic.
Those who argue in favor of ignoring the card sometimes claim that it’s just an old relic with limited impact on modern formats. After all, it’s not as if you often see anyone playing Invoke Prejudice in tournaments. It has a high mana value for a control strategy, and it’s been overshadowed by newer spells that do the job better and without the social baggage. But that argument sidesteps the central issue, which is that a major publisher allowed a hateful-looking card to stay in its official database for decades. That’s a serious oversight, especially for a multi player game that prides itself on representing a diverse fantasy universe.
Here are a couple quotes from McNeills home page:
“Society, is a sheeple thing… individuals have their own paradigms, where sheep either follow or get eaten… an individual may see a modern oppression of the freedom to acknowledge that women go to perverse ruin unless disciplined, and that diversity in races means equality is absurd…”
“I knew a kind of Fascism was inevitable, & resonated with aspects from birth, but was also determined to see it never lack Empathy… for that is how the weak, pretend to be strong, by a Talmudic narrowing of Empathy… it is hard to be whole, it is wrong to be less… blinking Unpeople, make things worse… Love is Will, Truth is Honor…”
Wizards Decades of Baffling Inaction
The inaction from Wizards still puzzles a lot of people. They wonder if they just hoped the card would just disappear into the ether. But the real world caught up with them, especially in an era where the internet makes it easy to share questionable images. Once the public became aware of the racist undertones, the calls to ban the card got too loud to ignore. Some think if not for the global conversation about racism in 2020 the card would still be sitting in Gatherer waiting for newer players to stumble upon it.
They weren’t entirely unaware of revising or banning problematic content before. In the past they’ve changed or removed cards with references to real world religions or culturally insensitive terms. But it was always piecemeal and some big problems slipped through the cracks. Invoke Prejudice was the biggest elephant in the room because it literally had the word prejudice in the name and robed figures many people associate with one of the most notorious hate groups in history. It was so obvious it’s amazing it lasted as long as it did.
Even the fantasy of the game can’t excuse it. Magic pulls from mythologies and historical imagery but that doesn’t justify something that appears to glorify or even reference modern hate. The “color matters” angle of Magic is just a game mechanic until you pair it with robed humanoid figures that resemble racists who used real violence. That’s what makes this card different from other conflict in the game. It’s not the war or fear in the art it’s the specific reference to a group that terrorized entire communities.
Many longtime players now say Invoke Prejudice is a nasty reminder that Magic’s early expansions didn’t get a thorough review and some magic artists had disturbing personal beliefs. The card also represents a broader failure in the gaming industry to address hate content quickly. If a multi billion dollar company can’t be bothered to remove something so obviously problematic until public outcry forces their hand that says a lot about priorities.
Not everyone in the community found out about the card at the same time. Casual players may have gone years without ever seeing it. But once the images started circulating online especially on social media word spread fast. People who had never heard of Harold McNeill were appalled that Wizards might have knowingly printed or tolerated hate content. And if you try to explain to a new player today why a card from 1994 punishes “other colors” while showing robed figures the reaction is usually shock followed by disappointment it wasn’t dealt with sooner.
In a game where everyone is supposed to sit around a table and have fun the existence of a prejudice enchantment that references real world hate is jarring to say the least. Opposing players might not even want to play with you if you pull that card from a dusty binder. Sure it’s banned now but that doesn’t erase its memory. The image of those hooded figures is forever linked to early Magic. Some say removing it from Gatherer is like trying to bury the past instead of owning up to the mistake. But most would agree it’s better than leaving it up especially with that 1488 database tag for Legends.
The conversation also brings up questions of gatekeeping and inclusion in gaming spaces. If a new fan discovered Magic for the first time and stumbled upon this prejudice enchantment how would they feel about the community? Would they think it’s welcoming? Probably not. That sense of exclusion can affect how safe or valued people feel when they join a hobby. Every piece of official content sends a message and that includes older obscure cards.
Some players wondered if they should have just renamed or re-illustrated the card. But given the imagery and name that’s not an option. Wizards chose to ban it and remove it from all official resources which is probably the only move that makes sense. If the entire concept is a reference to hate themes no amount of re-illustration or name change can redeem it.
Meanwhile Harold McNeill fell out of mainstream fantasy art circles for obvious reasons. Most fans don’t want to see his work or any other magic card that has the same undertones. His style which was once seen as edgy or intense was now seen as hate. And it didn’t help that other pieces rumored to be in his possession had Nazi symbolism or idolization of Adolf Hitler. That gave players even more reason to disassociate themselves from the card and the man behind it.
Final Thoughts
Ultimately, the presence of Invoke Prejudice in Magic: The Gathering is a stain on the game’s history. It’s evidence that hateful imagery can lurk in unexpected places if nobody’s paying attention or if nobody cares enough to speak up. Wizards did finally address the problem, but only after facing overwhelming criticism and a cultural moment that made it impossible to ignore. It shouldn’t have required the largest wave of protests in a generation for a publisher to see how offensive this card was. And yet, that’s the unfortunate reality of how long it took to remove something that many would argue should never have been printed in the first place.
Players will remember it as a moment when Magic confronted its own past mistakes, when the community realized that some aspects of the game we love can carry real-world hatred hidden beneath the surface. It forced everyone to ask if the things we celebrate—fantastical art, creative mechanics, powerful cards—might inadvertently promote or reflect vile ideologies. In the case of Invoke Prejudice, the answer was clear, and that’s why it remains one of the most notorious examples of what can go wrong when those in charge neglect to keep hateful symbols out of a hobby meant to bring people together.
