Cultural Appropriation : What Does It Mean?

Cultural appropriation is the adoption or use of elements in one culture by members of another culture. There has been a lot of cultural appropriation throughout the years. Lately, many people have been noticing it more often. One of the largest issues in the cultural appropriation that has hit the media lately is hair. There have been many white celebrities who have been culturally appropriating Black hairstyles. The most recent have been the Jenner/Kardashian sisters. On the other hand, some believe the same goes for vice versa; African-Americans have been appropriating White culture. One example can be Malcolm X. He even wrote a speech about how he realized that wearing a conk made him look more “White” and he felt he was trying to be exactly that. Recently, that idea has changed. Many people believe that it is only cultural appropriation when a White person does it. This social issue has been a large debate on whether White people are culturally appropriating Black culture by wearing traditionally Black hairstyles.

“You see, the discussion surrounding appropriation takes on so many more layers than most think-piece authors care to engage with-layers that desperately need to be brought to the discussion”(Jaikaran, Elizabeth). “Movements that advocate the equality between races, religions, and cultures are extremely prominent in our modern-day society”(Cohen, Amanda). Cultural appropriation in pop culture allows for cultures to be spread and ultimately accepted by a wide variety of people.  Once an audience sees someone they follow do something,  they will likely accept it and try the same things; people in the media pave the way for everyone else and can start a movement.  Putting cultures in separate groups and not allowing for certain styles to be used by others is the root of discrimination of cultures. The main influencers in pop culture have been knocking down these separations and preaching the idea of mixing cultural styles into every aspect of life.  Pop culture has some of the most influence on society and the example that it sets for people to follow is needed

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

In America, cultural appropriation has been a prominent topic in the media. From the afro in the 70’s and perms in the 80’s, some ethnic groups see some ethnic groups culture fashionable and “aesthetic.” Though not intended, those specific groups (mostly African American and Native American cultures) see this as a form of mockery and feel discredited when someone with power in the media takes a certain style and profits. I believe that if you take a specific item out of it’s original context it is cultural appropriation by using certain items in the media as everyday

Cultural appropriation is a huge topic, within today’s society, many question what is cultural appropriation and what is not. The definition of cultural appropriation is, “....the use of ideas, symbols, artifacts, images, objects, etc., derived from contact between different cultures. It often implies a negative view towards the minority culture by the dominant one and is often culturally insensitive”(Biron). Examples of cultural appropriation would be portraying a culture through stereotypical depictions of them or wearing a culture as a ‘trend’. Another example would be wearing a headdress to portray a Native American or wearing a sombrero and a poncho to depict a Mexican. Just those words sound degrading and racist each of these ethnicities. Many think it is socially acceptable to be insensitive to a culture, because they classify the appropriation as them appreciating the culture. Cultural appropriation shows only the stereotypical view of culture and has no regards to the actual culture. Many look at the cultures as inspiration for ideas, but that does not mean to steal the ideas completely. Cultural appropriation is not only insensitive, but also racist. Blackface, for example, was used to portray an African American by painting the face of an non-black actor black. The NFL team Redskins uses an offensive and racist word to label their team; their mascot is a “Native American” wearing headdress. First and foremost, not all Native American cultures wear headdresses, these depictions of Native culture show natives as all the same. Minorities have faced appropriation for decades, but why did this problem only recently come about?

In 2011, students enrolled at Ohio University encouraged not only their fellow students, but all people to refrain from offensive Halloween costumes through the “We’re a culture, not a costume” campaign. This poster-ad campaign showed students of a wide range of ethnicities and cultures holding photos of people in stereotypical and offensive Halloween costumes with the caption “This is not who I am, and this is not okay.” Williams, a student that helped in creating the campaign said, “The best way to get rid of stereotypes and racism is to have a discussion and raise awareness…” When people dress in offensive costumes that include stereotypical sombreros, afros, or blackface they are essentially integrating broad and diverse cultures with seemingly humorous

A new year is soon approaching and we as a society have made so much advancement, where even simple tasks such as walking is made simple by hoverboards. Despite all this; however, we are still lacking in some areas and have yet much to improve on. One is cultural misappropriation, it is so prevalent in our society and most don’t even know and see it as something wrong or that they are even doing it. Cultural misappropriation is essentially a misrepresentation and misrepresentation of another's culture that isn’t your own. And this is wrong because it negatively affects and offends the culture being taken advantage of. And we are flooded with cultural misappropriation in our everyday lives from brands and companies to even celebrities.

There are many examples of cultural appropriation today, such as henna tattoos, bindi’s, sports team names, and even clothes. These cultures or traditions have become a fad for people, especially in America. People who are within the culture tend to get offended when their culture is made into a fad. There are many arguments in newspapers, blogs, and articles that are against cultural appropriation. I, myself have come upon many posts on Tumblr.com that have to do with Cultural appropriation. Huffingtompost.com also has multiple articles on the subject.

The term appropriationism reflects the overproduction of reproductions by copying, imitating, repeating, quoting, and adapting pre-existing names, concepts and forms. Often this becomes unavoidable when multiple cultures come together, cultural appropriation can include using other cultures traditions, fashion, symbols, language, and cultural images without permission. For example - a well-known appropriation artist Richard Prince, altered and incorporated a number of Carious photographs into a series of paintings and collages titled Canal Zone, which Prince exhibited in 2008 at New Yorks Gagosian

Halloween can be a child’s favorite holiday. They can dress up as anything they want. A princess, a Pirate, or even an Indian. However, no culture should be a Halloween costume. This means no Chief, no Indian, no geisha, and the list continues. Typically, people mean appropriation as a tribute to that costume. However, these costumes draw attention to all of the negative stereotypes, and does not accurately reflect the

Cultural appropriation has been affecting Native American cultural. People try to take control of what isn’t theirs. Whether its intellectual or physical

Cultural appropriation has become more popular topic with the growing diverse U.S population. It is a controversial topic that has been exposed in both negative and arbitral ways by many activists, celebrities and social groups. Since many different nationalities and ethnicities making up the U.S. population, its not uncommon for cultural appropriation to most often across racial lines. Some may fill that we all use and enjoy different aspects of other’s culture all the time. What’s wrong with that? Some may also consider they using the culture’s elements is some form of admiration. but does admiration of another’s culture justify cultural appropriation? That question has yet to be fully answered completely. To truly understand if any of the questions are taking cultural appropriation to far, we must understand what cultural appropriation is.

Cultural Appropriation is, as defined by dictionary.cambridge.org, “the act of taking or using things from a culture that is not your own, especially without showing that you understand or respect this culture”. In today’s society cultural appropriation is very prevalent by ignorant people as costumes with no regard or respect for the culture itself. These costumes, songs, portrayals in TV shows and others may seem fun and harmless to people uninvolved, but to the people whose culture it is could be very hurtful, especially when they showcase negative stereotypes. Not taking time to think about how you are portraying a culture, especially in the case of Native Americans can be very insulting given the fact we destroyed their culture already, and now we are essentially making fun of it, or using it for a profit while neglecting the culture itself.

Introduction: I wanted to write about a topic that I am very passionate about. Everyone who is somewhat close to me knows how much on a daily basis I talk about cultural appropriation and my views and belief on it. I felt like this was the perfect opportunity to do so. In this essay, I explore the cons of cultural appropriation, as well as explain the parallels of cultural appropriation vs. appreciation. I also included a scene of memory that is a bit personal, but I'm proud in doing so because it is important that people come to know battles that you've struggled with because they may have struggled with those problems too and in return find closure in what you've wrote. As a writer, I plan to grow a bit more by exploring different topics like these and not being afraid to share my opinions on controversial topics such as this.

America has been labeled as a “melting pot” because people from all over the world migrate here and with them they bring their own culture. After some time, these cultures began to blend and influence others, but some may see this as a bad thing. “The term cultural appropriation is typically used to describe cultural borrowing that is in some way inappropriate, unauthorized, or undesirable.” (Arewa) Recently there has been much controversy over this topic. Should white people be able to wear dreads or box braids and listen to Whitney Houston? Should black people dye their hair blonde and listen to reggaeton? Who is to say that people from different cultures cannot share and adopt elements from others? The word appropriation means to take something for one’s own use, usually without permission. If we want to experience something from a culture besides our own are we supposed to ask, and if so who? You see there is no way to regulate who is representing which culture because culture is not something that you can just give and take, it is adopted. Individuals taking offense towards cultural appropriation is wrong because certain things cannot belong to one culture, cultures should be shared and adopted, and while many people believe taking and using another’s culture is seen as racist or wrong, it is not because submersing in a culture is educational and expanding.