Have you seen people styling their hair into cornrows, or wearing chopsticks as hair accessories? Or have you seen people get tattoos in a language they have never taken the effort to learn and do not understand? All of these are examples of cultural appropriation. Adjudicating between cultural appreciation and appropriation is never simple. Cultures are vast, complex, historically determined, and ever-changing. Nevertheless, we have a moral obligation to be mindful and informed.
The difference can be condensed to this:
Appreciation is a desire to understand and develop a deeper knowledge of all aspects of a particular culture, not just those aspects that look pretty, provide profit, or offer benefit.
Appropriation is adopting specific aspects of a certain culture without their consent, or in a way that bothers them. It involves cherry-picking the specific aspects of the culture you find appealing without taking the effort to understand their significance or their cultural context. Appropriation is exploitative by nature- it is a privileged dominant group that appropriates the culture of a marginalized group.
Getting henna body art might seem like a harmless way to appreciate something beautiful. However, when you wear henna for non-traditional reasons and fail to acknowledge its actual meaning and importance, you’re appropriating, not appreciating.
Appropriation belittles a community’s cultural legacy and disseminates stereotypes and racism. It drowns out the voices of the people of color and undermines the respect that their culture deserves. What it boils down to is an imbalance of power and the perpetuation of it.
It is also necessary to understand that it is not possible to appropriate a dominant culture. People of color who wear western clothing and hairstyles, speak English, or eat fast food are not appropriating, but assimilating. They are forced to adopt aspects of the dominant culture to survive and avoid discrimination.
How can we do better? When a person from a specific culture explains that your actions are harmful, listen, learn, and change your behavior. Do your own research. Get involved with cultural sharing and ethical cultural exchange. Amplify the voices of people of color.
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