Into
In the summer people wear flower crowns and get excited for the music festivals that come with the season. Their hair is in braids and they have henna sticker tattoos on them. Tanned, smiling and holding hands they head towards the festival 's entrance. One could say this is the new version of the “Flower Power” era from the nineteen sixties and seventies (). However people continue to make the same mistake as the generation before, people decorate themselves with culturally significant items, but they know little about it. 88
Cultural appropriation is inevitable like Globalization The cultural exchanges of ideas, beliefs, and technology, the greater chance of cultural appropriation. This phenomenon is called globalization. Cultural appropriation is inevitable, but it can be viewed in a positive perspective instead of the current negative one. Consider the first time blue jeans became popular in American culture, now across the global people wear blue jeans and some consider it a major part of American culture (). The piece of clothing is so synonymous with American culture some countries like North Korea, have banned the item because the country believes its citizens would start supporting American ideals instead of wearing blue pants. Or the multinational company of Coke-A-Cola has marketed its product across the global but many consumers can identify its products as American goods. Items like blue jeans, dream catchers and henna can carry a lot of
The Hispanic Culture is beautiful because it varies from clothes, food, and music in the different types of Hispanics from North America, Central America, and South America. The Hispanic culture is being appropriated by people who don't care for it, they are being appropriated from people who want to make money off it. From Puerto-Ricans to Mexicans, Latinos are tired of their culture, who they are proud of and embrace without shame to be taken by companies, designers, and musicians. As a Hispanic I am one of those people, I'm tired of our culture and heritage being stolen from my ancestors. The Hispanic Culture should not be a tool for people to make money off of by appropriating it.
or the other is not looked upon as politically incorrect or wrong-minded. However, it allows
Living in the 70s was in the midst of a unique culture. Theatres in the 1970s were very popular as various people rushed to theaters to watch plays and movies. This was also the era in which many owned bizarre items such as pet rocks, mood rings, bean bag chairs, and more. “Have a nice day!” became a slogan that earmarked the 70’s,and was almost always accompanied with the notorious smiley face icon. Sickening sweet happy faces were plastered everywhere; they were spray painted on the side of buildings and even worn on bandanas and t-shirts. Another distinct culture featured in the 70’s was the fashion. Fashion fads in the 70’s took off like rockets. Clothing styles such as shirts with colorful geometric shapes and bell-bottoms emerged. The rise of disco also played a big role during this time. In contrast to males in today’s society, some men in the 1970’s wore shoes with giant heels. Culture proved to play a big role in the 70’s and profoundly affected the civilization’s view upon The American Dream.
Women who are consider achieving a wife status might desire a wedding ring. Today makeup is very common among women, but also men. Makeup products make people who are less confident to become more confident in front of people. The blog post “ Industry News: Art Transcends” was posted by Dani Fonsecg at on Makeup Magazine on Spet. 21,2015, this blog entry is about a man and women who paint their chest and go topless in Times Square to fill the street with fashion. New York City’s, Bill De Blasio, believes it is not right to be topless. However, because this is twenty century many people support artistry and want this kind of makeup to continue in. They argue to make the New Yorker and visitors engage with New York. These actions cause lots of problems, but also benefits. Makeup in art is considered fashion and fashion should pass on as time passes
In Western culture, people seldom realize the amount of cultural appropriation that occurs around them. Westerners are blinded by cultural mockery and cultural appropriation without realizing its offensive effects to minority groups. During the Halloween holiday, in Western culture, people of all ages dress up in a variety of costumes such as horror themed, fairy tale themed, job themed, cultural themed and much more. Harvard University members have argued that a cultural themed costume is a form of cultural appropriation. Also in Western culture, in the music industry, white artists have utilized and exploited aspects from minority cultures to boost their fame. Costumes, props, ideas, music, and others considered as cultural appropriation is often overlooked but it is apparent when closely examined.
Anyone who knows me, knows me knows that I love to watch reruns of “What not to wear” on TLC, As it teaches me something I clearly know nothing about, fashion. However anyone who is in my Spanish class known that I not only care about my culture but others as well. This school year has been interesting both fashion-wise and politically, from the Kylie Jenner Lip challenge, to Donald Trump running for president. It has been such a weird school year however, that it has pointed out a sad fact about the current fashion world, that is prevalent through the politics we discuss in our everyday lives, and that is cultural appropriation. As cultural appropriation according to the Oxford Dictionary is “A term used to describe the taking over of creative or artistic forms, themes, or practices by one cultural group from another. It is in general used to describe Western appropriations of non‐Western or non‐white forms, and carries connotations of exploitation and dominance.” And despite how much we would like to believe that this issue doesn’t exist in our present day society, if one looks In clothing stores, fashion magazines, and even Halloween parties, cultural theft is occurring. This can be seen especially with indigenous cultures as: elements of indigenous cultures are morphed into fashion trends and costumes for those who will never understand their significance. “Navajo print” leggings, “tribal” jewelry, and “Indian princess” Halloween costumes are examples of gross
A man stands proud and tall, an elegant headdress of feathers adorning his head. He is not at a ceremony, nor is he going to war to preserve his way of life. He is not Native American, either, and he is not alone. At the Coachella Valley Music and Arts festival, people like this man gather in throngs to listen to alternative rock and electronic dance music. They often claim to be honoring Native American tradition, but others consider his choices offensive. Cultural borrowing and assimilation have been, and continue to be an integral part of American society, but some think that this diffusion has gone as far as theft. In order to determine that, however, on must cast a discerning eye on both arguments.
At a birthday party there is an African American boy wearing a sombrero while hitting a piñata. Down the street, there is a Russian girl who dances with a Japanese fan that her neighbor gifted. These two children, according to the current media, are displaying cultural appropriation. In America, citizens have the rarity of experiencing what many call the “Melting Pot” of different cultures and ethnicities. To many other countries, the different cultural exposures are not of such a common privilege. Cultural appropriation is what sets us back from connecting to other cultures around the world. I understand that it may bring misunderstanding of what certain clothing items and practices really mean respect and value wise. However, demonstrating
The United States is abundantly diverse in distinct cultures. There are cultures coming from all around the world mixed up into one little area. So the crossing of cultures is inevitable. It will not be hard to catch yourself using another cultures customs, beliefs, styles, and/or traditions without putting much thought into it. Ultimately when one of these many things is borrowed, from one culture to the other, no insult is purposefully made. Depending on what was adopted or stolen if not careful enough it could be a huge insult to the owning culture. This is where the term cultural appropriation comes into play. Many are confused as to why using something from one culture and making it their own could cause offense to the owning culture. A lot of people think the concept is
Cultural appropriation is shown in many ways among the public. When a member of the majority takes an element of a minority culture and attempts to make it their own, they are appropriating the minority’s culture. Appropriating a culture is disrespectful and can lead to loss of valuable meaning of cultural practices. This is shown in many ways, such as the use of blackface or wearing a significant piece of Native American history as a fashion accessory. Each of these elements is an example of appropriation of a minority culture and is never acceptable and needs to be stopped.
In their study, “Exploring Masquerade Dress at Trinidad Carnival: Bikinis, Beads and Feathers and the Emergence of the Popular Pretty Mas”, Raedene Copeland and Nancy Hodges employ an ethnographic methodology to understand dress in contemporary Carnival. The authors collected research in Trinidad during the Carnival season through participant observation, interviews and photographic documentation. The interviews were conducted with nine participants aged 25-60 (five females and four males, both local and foreign-based) who were involved in planning and engaging in Carnival activities (including costume design, masquerade group directors or “mas band managers” and masqueraders). Many participants noted that traditional Carnival costuming is losing popularity as generations get older and skills such as wire-bending and costume-making are not passed on (Copeland and
The fashion industry is one of the most prevalent and visible forms of influence on today’s society. Billboards, malls, magazines, TV, movies, advertisements, runways, etc. are filled with fashion campaigns usually distributed to make a statement and to influence the consumers. Often times, the fashion industry engages in offensive promotions like romanticizing eating less and the “thigh gap” or producing clothing that has “depression” plastered all over it. One of the most offensive trends of the fashion industry is the use of cultural appropriation to promote their company or clothing. Cultural appropriation is the taking of something produced by members of one culture by members of another culture. The products of that culture usually have a special sacred or cultural significance to them, which is why cultural appropriation is seen as offensive and exploiting rather than appreciated. The public tends to overlook these extreme messages and appropriation from the fashion industry, brushing them off as trendy and ideal. This becomes a problem because the fashion industry’s blatant use of cultural appropriation in editorials and ads influences people to show admiration for products from other cultures yet still remain prejudiced against the people who created and continue to practice that culture.
The public place, in which I chose to observe fashion, was a community fall festival. This festival occurs once a year and brings people from several communities. I arrived at the festival in early afternoon, around 12:30 pm. The festival was just starting to get crowded. At this time there were mostly families with children present. I observed numerous families with babies in strollers. There were at least twenty “vendor” booths
Globalization is commonly examined by simply dissecting its political and economic consequences. As a result, the effects on culture are often overlooked. According to U.S. Census projections, by 2043 non-Hispanic whites will become a minority consisting of 47 percent of the U.S. population (Barreto, et al 1). Examining the world as a whole, a 2015 study by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs/Population Division found that between 1950-2000, an average of 2.8 million people per year migrated to North America and Europe. From 2000-2015, that rate accelerated to 4.1 million per year. What is more, this study projects that from 2015-2050, 91 million people are expected to migrate to high-income countries and produce an 82 percent increase in population in destination countries. Clearly, the prospect of steady migration and the continuing effects of globalization are expected to produce more multicultural societies. Unfortunately for many, “foreign” has become synonymous with danger (Rothkopf). The debate between cultural unity and cultural plurality dates back to the Greeks where they questioned universal human goodness and the differences between societies. More than two millennia later, the issue of a common versus diverse human culture remains contentious. This paper argues that a diverse human culture is more desirable than a universal culture because states and societies benefit from promoting and protecting diversity.
Cultural imperialism, the main focus of globalisation is defined as the domination of culture from some countries to the rest of the world (Tobin, 2016). It could be the cultural goods flow to the other countries, normally from the more influential or stronger countries such as the United States and some Western countries which inculcating their values through the goods or advertisements. For instance, the origin of Starbucks, McDonald’s, and