Some also wear it to get a feel of the local culture. In some countries, it is highly recommended (or even required) for foreigners to dress like the locals as a sign of respect to the culture. For example, wearing other cultures’ clothing is not necessarily cultural appropriation. But there is a fine line between appropriation and appreciation that many often fail to cross.Ĭultural appreciationinvolves learning about another culture, why an attire, item, or practice is held sacred to help understand the differences between their culture and another culture. This does not necessarily mean that foreign cultures are barred from being shared with the rest of the world. When people joke or disrespect items that hold sacred value and then pass it off as a joke.When white restaurant owners group Asian countries together by creating an Asian-themed restaurant and interchanging Chinese and Japanese ingredients and not acknowledging the difference between the two Asian cultures.Minorities like Mexicans and Mexican Americans being looked down upon for dressing a certain way, but when wealthier people dress up in that style, it’s praised for its “street” fashion.People attending Halloween parties dressed as a gypsy, geisha, or Hula girl.When major organizations like the Washington Redskins refuse to change their name (which is an offensive term for Native Americans) and have a mascot of a Native American in a headdress.It’s when black Americans are called dirty and looked down upon when they wear dreads or cornrows, but when a white American does it, it’s edgy and high-fashion.Cultural appropriation is prevalent in practices, norms, and iconography.
People who culturally appropriate most likely do not know (or even worse, they do not care) about the meaning of what they wear but only use it for the sake that it looks pretty. It’s an insult to the minority cultures because it waters down the cultural practices they have. Yet, to those who wear them in Coachella, it merely becomes a fashion statement. In their culture, it is the greatest honor to wear this headdress.
Native American headdresses, for example, is a symbol of strength and bravery and are only worn by the most powerful and influential in a Native American tribe. In the cultures these fashion pieces come from, there is sacred value behind them. But then you have people showing up in Native American headpieces, Bindis, dashikis, and war paint – and that just screams of privilege and cultural appropriation. People come to Coachella sporting a Boho-inspired look and, for the most part, there isn’t anything wrong with that. In simpler terms, cultural appropriation is the practice of taking an element from one (usually the minority) culture and then using it for your own interests, removing what makes it valued in its original culture.įor the best example of cultural appropriation, take a look at the ever-controversial Coachella attires. So, for advertisers, marketers, product developers, and more, here’s what you need to know about cultural appropriation and why a product can stir so much controversy when it fails to cross the fine line between cultural appreciation and cultural appropriation. If you look at the reviews on Mattel’s page for Dia de los Muertos Barbie, one woman claims she gave the doll as a gift to her young granddaughter, who calls it “Mexican Barbie.” Others, however, see something distasteful in the way Mattel uses Mexican culture to create a product that is a caricature of their culture. Some people may not see anything wrong with it. Barbie – a traditionally white, blue-eyed and blonde-haired doll with a history of controversial designs and body measurements that would make her fit the weight criteria of an anorexic woman – was dressed in black and wore makeup in reference to the Mexican holiday of Die de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead. Take for example Barbie as Dia de los Muertos. It’s even more unacceptable for large corporations with plenty of sound business professionals at their disposal to release a product that’s totally insensitive to certain cultures. In this day and age, it’s unacceptable for anyone to be culturally insensitive or deaf to cultural differences.
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