Beyonce Cultural Appropriation

[Borislshere 52,644]

3 minutes ago, Bam said:

Let's bash gaga then. She's appropriating black and middle eastern and south asian culture. 

If you want to 

[Meruk Holland 2,000]

It's interesting to me that society makes such a big deal about "race". That we hold such importance to where our ancestors are from and to phenotypes like skin color is strange to me. There's something to be said that we treat those that are unlike ourselves unfavorably, but you'd think we would have gotten passed that by now, considering we are a civilized people. Well, we like to think we're civilized anyway.

[ALGAYDO 26,587]

1 hour ago, MJHolland said:

Saying this is like saying the Eskimos and Cherokee/Navajo/Sioux Indians all have the same cultural ancestry and cannot appropriate each other's cultures because they're all from North America  Or like saying a Vietnamese person can't appropriate Japanese culture because they're both Asian  

No, Beyonce is not Egyptian and it's pretty ignorant to say she is close enough because she has Nigeria blood (VERY distant Nigerian blood).

Let's not play cute. We all know why people are not mad a Beyonce when they were mad at Katy Perry for the same thing.

1.) Beyonce can get away with anything. Nobody is allowed to criticize her anymore without being a hater. I love Bey and think she's SO talented (one of the most), but I'll get screamed at for any criticism, online or in person. 

2.) People only care about race issues such as appropriation when white people do it because SJWs are anti-white. They literally think you cannot be racist if you are not white. You see it all the time in the media now, people making fun of others for being white or "too white". Personally, I don't care about ragging on people for being "white-acting" if you can also handle being ragged on for being black-acting. But issues like these are entirely biased against white people specifically. 

I mean, I even stated that Egypt is more Middle-Eastern when it comes to politics and culture, and that I really wouldn’t know whether it’d be considered appropriation because I’m a little ignorant when it comes to African cultures. I wasn’t “playing cute” so maybe cut some of that attitude out? I literally said “I really wouldn’t know” lol 

And for your Beyonce comment, I agree. I witnessed this first-hand here whenever I post anything about Bey that doesn’t involve me licking her asshole every time she does something, or when I offer constructive criticism. It’s annoying 

and finally, I would have to both agree and disagree with your final comments. Yes, it’s ridiculous that some say POC can’t be racist when I’ve literally witnessed racism from POC all the time, but it’s not nearly at the same level as racism against POC. Gotta think about the power dynamics between races. Because, generally, racism against, let’s say Blacks, leads to stuff like Travon Martin, unfair unemployment, etc. Whereas racism against whites generally only leads to a little hurt feelings. Both are bad, but only one is deadly. 

[Bebe 16,562]

5 hours ago, Bam said:

 

Is this appropriation? When white people wear dreadlocks, people bash them.

There is a vast difference between "appropriation" and "assimilation". 

Many people of colour must assimilate in order to be accepted in a culture that celebrates whiteness.  Unfortunately in this society not all cultures are perceived as equal. That’s the truth. Minorities take on aspects of dominate cultures to survive or be accepted (or even to hopefully perceived as equals). Where as cultural appropriation sees dominate cultures taking on elements of a minority often for the sake of being ‘trendy’, ‘fashionable’ etc.

This article is great:

"The idea that any non-European who straightens his or her hair must be taking something from white culture acknowledges just how Euro-based our thinking is, and fails to understand the difference between voluntary adoption and forced conformity.

That emphasis placed on European standards of beauty for black people is not just implied; it stems from an actual monetary value. The notion that kinky, textured hair was worthless came from the fact that slaves with more distinct African features were actually valued less. Slaves with lighter skin and straight hair commanded higher prices at auctions, going for five times more money from potential buyers than those with darker skin and kinkier hair. Even after slavery ended, black women who straightened their hair were seen as being more “well-adjusted” and had an easier time gaining employment from white employers than women who maintained their natural texture.

Often, straight hair was mandatory for blacks to gain entry into schools, businesses and social organizations after emancipation. So black people’s decision to straighten their natural hair texture is not just based on wanting to shrink African features; the decision has a foundation in a century-long rule set that conformity is necessary for survival.

I don’t want to default every issue in the black community to a historical legacy of slavery, but the connection between public acceptance and appearance has been learned and passed down from these times. There is a big difference between appropriation for benefit and assimilation for livelihood.

People of color can be guilty of cultural appropriation. Just as people of color can be prejudiced and can discriminate. I am in no way hinting that oppressed populations can’t turn right around and do the same messed-up stuff to other groups.

When Beyoncé portrayed a Bollywood star in her video for “Hymn for a Weekend,” a song with Coldplay, many of her most committed stans questioned whether she were wearing that culture as a costume."

https://www.theroot.com/black-people-please-stop-saying-straightening-our-hair-1790857373

The hatred of black hair is not just historical though it also shows itself in contemporary society.

There was a study last year that showed implicit bias against black textured hair that found:

-Black women suffer more anxiety around hair issues, and spend more on hair care than their white peers. They are almost twice as likely to experience social pressure at work to straighten their hair compared to white women.

-a majority of people, regardless of race and gender, hold some bias towards women of color based on their hair.

(https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2017/02/06/512943035/new-evidence-shows-theres-still-bias-against-black-natural-hair)

You see the bias in the media:

In 2015, Fashion Police host Giuliana Rancic said that the dreadlocks Zendaya rocked at the Oscars must have smelled of “patchouli” and “weed.” Earlier this year, when Democrat Rep. Maxine Waters of California criticized President Donald Trump’s policies, former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly said that he wasn’t listening to her because he was instead “looking at the James Brown wig.” Even football player Colin Kaepernick, who refused to stand for the national anthem before games to protest the oppression of people of color in the United States, faced criticism for his afro: fellow player Michael Vick said that Kaepernick should “cut his hair” and “try to be presentable” if he wants to get signed with another NFL squad.

You still see discriminatory practices in schools and workplaces:

- In March 2014, the U.S. Army issued a new policy that banned traditional black hairstyles, including cornrows, twists and dreadlocks. The regulations even described these styles “unkempt” and “matted.”

-In April of 2017, administrators at a high school in Massachusetts reprimanded and threatened to suspend 16-year-old twin sisters Mya and Deanna Cook for having braided hair extensions. The school banned extensions, calling the hairstyle “distracting.” The school later suspended its dress code after charges of discrimination, according to NPR.

-A month later, 17-year-old Jenesis Johnson alleged that a school administrator told her that she couldn’t wear her hair in an afro in school because it was “extreme and faddish and out of control.”

- In 2016, a school in Kentucky attempted to ban dreadlocks, cornrows and twists — but eventually reversed course after many called the policy racist.

(http://time.com/4909898/black-hair-discrimination-ignorance/)

 

Hell even last month there was a story posted here about a 9 year old girl who commited suicide after classmates relentlessly bullied her over her natural, textured hair. 

 

It's not something unique to the U.S either:

"London girl told - 'your afro hair is unprofessional'"
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-36279845

"Protests over black girls’ hair rekindle debate about racism in South Africa"
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/protests-over-black-girls-hair-rekindle-debate-about-racism-in-south-africa/2016/09/02/27f445da-6ef4-11e6-993f-73c693a89820_story.html?utm_term=.0e8a10f687f4

"Natural girls in the Bahamas were told their hair is "untidy.""
https://www.teenvogue.com/story/support-the-puff-natural-hair-hashtag

 

Many black POC feel pressure to conform, or are forced to conform, to white European standards of beauty in order to fit in socially, in order to work, in order to go to school. 

We call that assimilation not appropriation. The difference between cultural exchange and appropriation is acknowledgment and inclusion. The difference between assimilation and appropriation is history and power.

We can't have a culture that pressures people of colour, mainly women of colour but men too, to hide their natural hair and conform to european standards of beauty and then also turn around and chastise them for working to conform to the standards society is forcing upon them. Black women are assimilating. 

But it's also ****ed up that there are young children committing suicide due to bullying they receive over their natural hair, children being kicked out of school for wearing natural hair, people being fired or reprimanded at work for wearing their natural hair and constant media critiques of natural black hair while Kylie Jenner, Kim Kardashian or Katy Perry can rock those same hairstyles and be praised for being fashion forward and beautiful. Those women are appropriating. They are getting praised for starting trends and being rewarded for wearing their hair in a manner that black women are chastised for. It's appropriating because black hairstyles are only seen as acceptable and beautiful on white bodies. 

[SychosSoChic 9,995]

Only on Right Wing Daily will people say Egypt was a white civilization

[Jed 7,716]

22 hours ago, Bam said:

I get it she's AFRICAN but she's AMERICAN--PURE BRED AMERICAN. Just like katy is not EUROPEAN but AMERICAN. Some half-cultured people won't take culture from what they don't know and what they didn't live. I guess that's what the people's justification is.

 

I just wish people won't be throwing the appropriation tag everywhere especially caucasian people.

What does pure bred american mean? None of us are “american” unless we are iroquois or mohawk or some other native american. Shes of african decent and katy isnt. Shes a hell of a lot closer to egyptian than katy is or than katy is japanese...

[Debithius 5,078]

23 hours ago, VOLANTIS said:

She's an AFRICAN-American woman. Katy Perry is not. I think that's how that works. 

Still doesnt make ANY sense at all. 

[Kattys 4,319]

7 hours ago, swordstalker said:

Ancient Egypt was around for an incredibly long time and was invaded, inhabited and repopulated so many times, of course it wasn't racially homogeneous. Just because there was a country (Ethiopia), that was invaded by a European country and managed to stay relatively tied to their African roots, doesn't mean that's the case for every region. Also, that's a ridiculous comparison. The lifetime of Italian Ethiopia is negligible compared to the thousands of years that Ancient Egypt was around. 

The journal Nature is esteemed and highly reputable, and reports that Ancient Egyptians were more closely related to people from the Levantine than Sub-Saharan Africa. Source: https://www.nature.com/news/mummy-dna-unravels-ancient-egyptians-ancestry-1.22069

Further, let's take a look at the results from genetic testing of various mummies. Ramesses III was part of Haplotype E1b1a, which is most commonly found in West, South and Central Africans

Meanwhile, Tutankhamun was part of Haplotype R1b, which is very clearly dominated by Western and Central Europe:

Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23247979

Finally some reason here

[Sizzily 14,543]

Not her culture but cultural appropriation is stupid.

[doppelganger 3,742]

22 hours ago, Fable said:

I'm not actually from the U.S, but of course people aren't stupid - everyone knows Hollywood is a money making machine - but most people also recognise that media representations really matter. 

Stories affect how we live our lives, how we see other people, how we think about ourselves. 

"Martins managed to co-author one study, however, about television’s effect on self-esteem with Kristen Harrison of the University of Michigan, published in 2012. Focusing on children, the pair found that TV made subjects feel good about themselves ― if those subjects were white boys. Girls and boys of color, on the other hand, reported lower self-esteem as they watched. 

“We feel pretty comfortable that it’s this lack of representation that could be responsible for this effect,” Martins said. 

“There’s this body of research and a term known as ‘symbolic annihilation,’ which is the idea that if you don’t see people like you in the media you consume,” she explained, “you must somehow be unimportant.” (In a 1976 paper titled “Living with Television,” researchers George Gerbner and Larry Gross coined the term with a chilling line: “Representation in the fictional world signifies social existence; absence means symbolic annihilation.”) 

In Ramón’s words, “You may wonder, ‘Do I matter? Does society value me as a person?’”

https://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/entry/why-on-screen-representation-matters_us_58aeae96e4b01406012fe49d

It's disturbing that "Holly-woodness" has to equal "white". There are black and brown actors in the U.S, Hollywood has the big budgets, but instead of representing people of colour in their own stories and histories, they cast white people. 

The white-washing of Ancient Egyptians in popular culture has changed the way a lot of people view history. The most popular and circulated images have a way of sticking with you. Ancient Egypt was an amazing civilization. It's a symbol of pride and wonder still today. And there's been a feeling that, when we think of Egypt, we don't often acknowledge its African history.

Hollywood is currently in a system where actors and actresses of color don't get prime billing, save for a few exceptions and this isn't just about movies honestly... it's true in music, fashion, television, novels... It sends the message that white people are responsible for achievements (like the ancient Egyptian civilization) made by non-white people. It's subtly reinforcing the racial hierarchy. White actors usually play the good guys, and so it perpetuates the image that the whiter you are, the better you are as a person.

People get mad when white people appropriate stuff like Ancient Egyptian culture because it happens in aggregate and therefore helps propagate this racial hierarchy. 

I get your point but i don’t actually look to Hollywood to represent stories authentically. I tend to really dislike Hollywood blockbuster films and certainly don’t think white people are superior. In its recent pursuit for more diversity i feel that the efforts are extremely disengenous and calculated ; whiteness replaced with American ideal.

I get that this is an issue, I really do, but is it really bad that I really don’t care what Hollywood does. 

[MonsterofFame 1,758]

How about Nicki Minaj very clearly appropriating Asian culture with Chun Li? There's a hell of a lot more to Asian culture than a video game character and making kung-fu references.

Sadly, most people's attitude today is that black people can't culturally appropriate anything. And everything a white person does is. I can't believe Taylor is getting crap for covering September JUST because she sang a song from a black group. 

It's unfair, ridiculous, and frankly hurts the case for real cultural appropriation from all of this "crying wolf" going on.