Cultural Appropriation

[sillynate 6,170]

23 minutes ago, Mary Jane Wayne said:

Cultural appropriation is just another term popularized by sjws 

I usually ask myself, "was this issue a problem 10 years ago?" 

If yes, keep fighting for whats right 

If no, it's probably a silly argument/cause 

[Guest]

5 minutes ago, MonsterPaws said:

But did they?

Depends on the situation, for katherine, no, because she is just a fake bitch. However in some cases celebrities wear things to bring attention to cultural issues.

[Supersonic 49,376]

37 minutes ago, Simon said:

But all this is not black and white thinking. Is that not cultural appropriation because it affects Ashkenazi Jews, because they are mostly White?

(That's Macklemore singing Thrift Shop btw) 

I just don't like the discussion when this discussions leaves so many out and only White people can be aggressor to PoC. There are so many layers and people just simplify everything. 

Whoopi Goldberg got a fake Jewish surname and claimed to be of Jewish ancestry but it didn't got any backlash.

I mean, I never implied that the culture of white people can be appropriated, neither did I deny that colorism and ethnic-based discrimination within white people as a whole. These are all issues that have to be adressed and talked about.

Just because there's one building burning, doesn't negate that another building is also burning. Addressing white supremacy issues doesn't take away from all of that?

[Supersonic 49,376]

11 minutes ago, Chrastapher said:

Gaga made Americano is that considered Cultural Appropriation 

Not really, she's talking about immigration policies and criticizes the racism that latinx people experience in the USA. It would be cultural appropriation if she just made "latin sounding" song, wearing a sombrero, a fake moustache and poncho while chanting "ayayayayayayay ARRIBA ARRIBA OLÉ!" with Asia being dressed up as a chihuahua.

[DeanWinchester 41,390]

2 hours ago, holy scheisse said:

I think ur absolutely.ignorant and probably absolutely white for posting this 

Educate yourself 

 

2 hours ago, holy scheisse said:

 it's 2017 I can't understand how y'all haven't grasped this as a concept by now and it's also not my duty to educate every ignorant person

Serious question though. What do you think about say the Japanese actually finding it cool that other people are interested with their culture and that they do not feel "fetishized" or something like that when Westerners don Japanese-inspired clothes? I completely understand native Americans not wanting people to wear ceremonial headdresses reserved for esteemed people in their culture but I'd just like to point out not every culture feels offended the same way.

[stvn 618]

37 minutes ago, DeanWinchester said:

 

Serious question though. What do you think about say the Japanese actually finding it cool that other people are interested with their culture and that they do not feel "fetishized" or something like that when Westerners don Japanese-inspired clothes? I completely understand native Americans not wanting people to wear ceremonial headdresses reserved for esteemed people in their culture but I'd just like to point out not every culture feels offended the same way.

Serious answer: the context in every situation is different. There are questions you should ask yourself when talking about a possible cultural appropriation situation. Having the culture in question be flattered makes it less serious, but still does not necessarily mean the action will not have detrimental effects.

[DeanWinchester 41,390]

1 minute ago, stvn said:

the context in every situation is different

Which was my point. But the problem is, in Katy's scenario specifically, Japanese people themselves did not seem to take offense (until the interviewer told them about the reaction in the west) but people on the West were attacking Katy "on behalf of the Japanese people" and I think that's where this concept fails. If it was for another culture that truly feels offended, then of course cultural appropriation needs to be called out. Like you said, it varies in context. I am just presenting a different one, and not trying to invalidate the whole idea of "cultural appropriation".

 

[DeleteMyAccount 11,881]

My issue is that we scorn white people for cultural appropriation even though it exists everywhere including in the asian and black communities. CA happens all the time and it's stupid, but it's even worse to be hypocritical and only attack certain groups for doing it when everyone can be an abuser of the act.

[stvn 618]

1 hour ago, Supersonic said:

First: it's shouldn't be a privilige, it should be a right to wear the clothes you wanna wear and not experience death threats (unless you're wearing a t-shirt that specifically says "please threaten to kill me")

Second: It is virtually IMPOSSIBLE to not address all of this when you're fighting for somebody's right to be themselves. You can't fight for people of color to be respected without having to address racism and white supremacy. It's like... you can't fight for gay marriage without condemning homophobia. It's a conversation that is tiring and reptitive but it kinda has to be done.

Also, i'd like to make it very clear that not only white people are capabale of stealing, ridiculing and exploiting cultures.

Part of life is learning that just because somebody is disadvantaged in life, doesn't mean that they are automatically a good person.

6

First: it's shouldn't be a privilige , it should be a right to wear the clothes you wanna wear and not experience death threats

No one should ever experience death threats for anything. That is not cool. However, that does not mean that people should not be respectful of other cultures. If the appropriation is being done in a way that commoditizes and/or fetishizes a culture / if it doesn't come from a genuine place / if it does harm to a community by stereotyping them or painting them in a bad light / if it does harm to a community by cheapening the actual cultural message / if it presents itself in a way antithetical to the actual meaning of the cultural item or custom / etc., THEN IT SHOULD NOT BE DONE. There are certain questions that should be asked in these situations because the context is different in any situation. Eminem gets a pass from the black community because 1) he grew up in a hip hop culture and is legitimately a part of it and understands it 2) he never claims to be black and doesn't use the N word and knows why he shouldn't. Eminem is not bad cultural appropriation because he has an intimate understanding of the culture he was influenced by. On the other hand, you have Lana Del Rey who threw on an indian headdress with presumably no knowledge of its sacred meaning and significance, and that is flat rude and damaging. Imagine your favorite movie in the whole world being used to sell albums for someone who literally didn't even know the plot. It's ignorant and uneducated.

Also, i'd like to make it very clear that not only white people are capabale of stealing, ridiculing and exploiting cultures.

True, but they are the best at it, and that matters. Soooo much privilege and ignorance in this entire thread.

Part of life is learning that just because somebody is disadvantaged in life, doesn't mean that they are automatically a good person.

I literally don't even know why you said this or what your point is, but it certainly sounds like you're blaming victims. Like this is the kind of mindset where you say poor people are poor because it's their fault and it has nothing to do with a greater societal structure. If this isn't what you meant, please clarify why you said it.

[stvn 618]

2 minutes ago, DeanWinchester said:

Which was my point. But the problem is, in Katy's scenario specifically, Japanese people themselves did not seem to take offense (until the interviewer told them about the reaction in the west) but people on the West were attacking Katy "on behalf of the Japanese people" and I think that's where this concept fails. If it was for another culture that truly feels offended, then of course cultural appropriation needs to be called out. Like you said, it varies in context. I am just presenting a different one, and not trying to invalidate the whole idea of "cultural appropriation".

 

Okay, but don't use one example you don't like as evidence that cultural appropriation doesn't exist at all and is not a problem. 

[stvn 618]

49 minutes ago, Lnds500 said:

/rant mode on

Culture appropriation is an ugly term only politically correct liberals in America could come up with.

Suddenly being inspired by anime or JP culture is "wrong" - why exactly? Because we can't be inspired or pay an homage to another culture? Because getting to know and appreciate something/someone who is different than us is bad? GTFO.

Democracy, civil rights movements, art, theatre, cinema, poetry, physics, mathematics etc are global because they were appropriated at some point.

You live in a nation which consists of every different ethnicity on the planet, you are using a language which is an appropriation of Latin and by extension ancient Greek and you have "appropriated" your land from Native Americans. Stop overcompensating. 

Pull yourself together America. 

1

Being inspired by other cultures is fine. But you have to do it respectfully, and if you move forward commoditizing/fetishizing/misrepresenting the culture WITHOUT having properly understood and studied the meaning of the cultural practice or item you are referencing THEN THAT IS PROBLEMATIC. Not all situations are the same. Just because being inspired by diverse things isn't inherently bad doesn't mean there aren't situations in which it's done callously and in ways that could harm communities.

[stvn 618]

1 hour ago, holy scheisse said:

I'm baffled by the amount of white gay ignorant twinks on this site. But actually I'm not cause it's typical of the LGBTQ+ community . White privilege supercedes all potential empathy to imagine and honor the experience of other minorities I see. 

Thank you, we have to stick together. There is so much ignorance and privilege present here. I am white, and I try my best to listen. Thanks for being on my side in this thread

[DeanWinchester 41,390]

3 minutes ago, stvn said:

Okay, but don't use one example you don't like as evidence that cultural appropriation doesn't exist at all and is not a problem. 

 

6 minutes ago, DeanWinchester said:

I am just presenting a different one, and not trying to invalidate the whole idea of "cultural appropriation".

[Chr 4,217]

21 minutes ago, Supersonic said:

Not really, she's talking about immigration policies and criticizes the racism that latinx people experience in the USA. It would be cultural appropriation if she just made "latin sounding" song, wearing a sombrero, a fake moustache and poncho while chanting "ayayayayayayay ARRIBA ARRIBA OLÉ!" with Asia being dressed up as a chihuahua.

Yeah I understand it's just funny cos I see wearing a Sombrero as a racist stereotype Instead of culture appropriation tbh me being Latino only wear a sombrero when I see it at a party store or something 

[stvn 618]

1 hour ago, Oriane23 said:

This "cultural appropriation" is the new thing, it really pisses me off. Like only the people who "invented" something (music, fashion...) in the culture have the right to like it. And there's such a double-standard. White guys who like hip-hop get laughed at for trying to "appropriate black culture" but then they're going to complain if black girls struggle to become ballerinas ?

And another example : recently in OITNB, one of characters cries because a white girl plays a role in a musical that was originally by a black performer, and she says that white people stole black culture etc. But then when they want to do a black Hermione or a black James Bond they're all here for it ?

5

Like only the people who "invented" something (music, fashion...) in the culture have the right to like it.

Nobody is saying they don't have the right to like it. If they're going to commoditize or fetishize or misrepresent something that they don't fully understand and haven't experienced then that can harm communities. Please read my previous comments where I talk more about this.

recently in OITNB, one of characters cries because a white girl plays a role in a musical that was originally by a black performer, and she says that white people stole black culture etc. But then when they want to do a black Hermione or a black James Bond they're all here for it ?

Okay, this is just ignorant. I'm not trying to be rude against you personally, but this is a fully ignorant statement. CONTEXT MATTERS.

1) Hermoine's race was never a central issue in the book, and in fact, her skin color was never mentioned.

2) Black actors are still to this day misrepresented and unrepresented and unfairly cast and treated, so giving a black actor a white (or what people perceive to be white) role is not the same in effect as giving a black role to a white performer. That doesn't mean that in ALL cases it's problematic for a white person to play a role previously played by a black person, but the context matters.

3) Dreamgirls is specifically a story about black women. That is central to the narrative -- the way black culture was, the way black people (and women especially) were treated -- this was what the story was about. If you can't empathize with a young black girl who is marginalized and living in a poor community for feeling like people like her are erased, that's kind of monstrous. The inability of some of you to put yourself in someone else's shoes and understand complex situations and different context is seriously mind-boggling.