Cultural Appropriation
This photo is of Katy Perry, a white American pop artist, in her 2013 Geisha-inspired AMAs outfit (TODAY 2013). Katy Perry stole the clothing style from another culture for performance and commercial purposes only.
Kim Kardashian (pictured above) is one family member of the Kardashian/Jenner empire who have made millions off of "blackfishing" fans. The term "blackfishing" is a form of cultural appropriation when non-black people darken their skin color (also known as blackface), wear African hair styles of ethnic braids or dreadlocks, and wear clothing popularized by black people to appear black for fashion and style purposes (Lang 2021).
What is Cultural Appropriation?
In Simon Harrison's article, titled "Cultural Boundaries," Cultural Appropriation is defined as "ways in which the cultural knowledge, traditions and identities of minority peoples can [appear] to be exploited by outsiders" (1999:11). One external group steals the cultural practices from another group and presents it as their own.
On page 11, Harrison discusses that the cultures of indigenous and marginalized groups are common victims of "commercial exploitation" by colonizing groups. Dominate groups seek to steal unique cultural aspects, such as "graphic arts, music, and pharmacological knowledge" (Harrison 1999:11), from minority groups to obtain a profit off of their livelihoods. In conclusion, cultural appropriation occurs when a dominating group uses elements from another culture, without permission, for their own economic or social advantage.
Three Types of Cultural Appropriation
In the article titled "Profound Offense and Cultural Appropriation," James Young explains that there are three types of cultural appropriation within "aesthetics": Content, Object, and Subject (2005:136). A large portion of cultural appropriation is found within the arts because artists and designers are constantly searching for inspirations. Young makes an important point that whether or not the piece is witnessed by the culture appropriated or not, it is still considered cultural appropriation (2005:135). Additionally, whether a member of the appropriated group is offended or not, the act is still considered cultural appropriation. However, Young reminds readers that many factors between various cultures are intertwined and connected and that this overlapping must be taken into account when analyzing outside group motives (2005:136).
Content
Content Appropriation is where one group uses the cultural resources or ideas from the marginalized groups in the production of their own goods (Young 2005:136). One example that Young shares on page 136 is when white dancers, singers and musicians perform jazz, a genre of music created by black people.
Subject
Subject Appropriation is where nonmembers of a culture make the subjects (the people in the culture) and characteristics from the targeted group the focal point of their work (Young 2005:136). For example, an outsider makes a film about indigenous individuals and societies with only profit and praise in mind as their end goal.
Object
Object Appropriation is where physical items are taken from a cultural group by outsiders (Young 2005:136). Young also states on page 136 that the most popular example of object appropriation occurs when museums and private collectors steal historical objects from minorities around the world to display for their own satisfaction.
Counter Anthropological Concepts
The opposite of cultural appropriation is cultural appreciation. In his article, Grant Loveless defines cultural appreciation as the desire to learn about another culture "in an effort to broaden their perspective and connect with others cross-culturally" (Loveless 2020). An example of cultural appreciation is when one purchases an ethnic piece of jewelry to enjoy from an indigenous artist rather than at a fast fashion chain store for appearance value only.
The reverse of cultural appropriation is cultural pollution. Cultural pollution occurs when an outside group forces one culture to eliminate their practices and adopt the practices the outside group uses (Harrison 1999:10). One example of cultural pollution is when colonizers invade another group and force them to adopt their religious practices. The colonizers are contaminating their culture through mandatory religion adoption.
The U.S. and Appropriation of Indigenous Cultures
Since the beginning of the United State's history, settlers overstepped the "cultural boundaries" (Harrison 1999:10) of the indigenous people who inhabited the land prior to European arrival. In an article titled, "Reclaiming Native Stories: An Essay on Cultural Appropriation and Cultural Rights," the author, Rebecca Tsosie, states that colonizers "repeatedly enacted rites of conquest" to gain power over the indigenous people (Tsosie 2002:300). Tsosie also writes that the outsiders gained this power "through confiscation of tribal lands and resources, and appropriation of Native cultures and identities" (2002:300). The natives were left with nothing and forced to assimilate to the white people's rules. In return, the white people stole elements from their culture to enhance the enjoyment of white people's school experience, home decor, eating habits, medicine, clothing, and more without giving credit or compensation to the non-consensual contributions of the indigenous peoples.
Photo retrieved from a New York Times Poll (The New York Times 2016). Many U.S. sports teams and schools use indigenous tribes as their mascot. This example is from the former Washington Redskins, now known as the Washington Football Team.
This photo shows a white woman wearing an indigenous head dress. She is appropriating native culture for her own aesthetic purposes at the Coachella music festival (Deer 2017).
Tsosie writes that activists strongly oppose the appropriation of indigenous cultures because "culture is so important to the continued survival of Native peoples" (Tsosie 2002:300). As we know from the history of the U.S., many native people did not survive the settlement of Europeans. Cultural Appropriation and theft was a large factor in the unfortunate effects of indigenous extinction throughout North American land.
Many indigenous people desire to protect their cultures from outsiders to ensure the continuation of their tribes. On page 310, Tsosie writes that natives demand the right to prevent non-indigenous people from practicing their culture and to prevent them from interjecting with their "intellectual property." The legal system has failed to do much about protecting indigenous people from cultural appropriation (2002:310).
Halloween Costumes and Cultural Appropriation
The illustration to the right was included in a Texas Woman's University's newspaper article (Gomez 2020).
According to Sonja Haller's 2019 USA Today article, titled "A Parents' Guide to Cultural Appropriation: an Expert Breaks Down Kids' Halloween Costumes," parents need to be cautious when choosing their child's Halloween costumes because it is easy to assume that costumes advertised for children are "safe" and non-offensive. The ideas from Haller's article about children's costumes also applies to adult costumes as well. Additionally, Haller includes in her article that just because a costume is from a Disney or other children's movie, it is not necessarily appropriate or not offensive (2019).
Haller suggests for parents to avoid cultural appropriation in their child's Halloween costumes by not purchasing costumes that have:
"Culturally significant tattoos
Sombreros, ponchos, mustaches or anything that depicts a Mexican stereotype
Native American feathers or anything depicting Native Americans
A bindi or things depicting Indians
Box braids, dreadlocks, Fulani braids, also known as cornrows
Hijabs"
This list was found in the USA Today article. (Haller 2019)
Spirit Halloween Examples from 2021 that are Cultural Appropriation
The commercialization of sacred cultural attire and materials continue to be produced to the present day. The majority of these costumes are listed under names that would not appear to be cultural appropriation upon first glance. After further investigation of Halloween costumes, the amount of culturally offensive costumes are endless, even in 2021. Under each photo is the name of the costume that is listed on the website (Spirit Halloween 2021).
"Adult Sexy Nun Costume"
"Coconut Bra Luau Costume"
"Adult Beef Taco Costume"
"Adult Hippie Shirt Costume"
"Voodoo Witch Doctor Costume"
"Kids Day Of The Dead Costume"
"Kids Gypsy Fortune Teller Costume"
"Adult El Hombre Calavera Costume"
"Adult Jasmine Costume"
"Kids Fearless Ninja Costume"
"Adult Pharaoh Costume"
"Adult Venus Goddess Costume"
Learn More
Resolution from the American Psychological Association to eliminate the use of "American Indian Mascots" -
American Psychological Association. 2005. "APA Resolution Recommending the Immediate Retirement of American Indian Mascots, Symbols, Images, and Personalities by Schools, Colleges, Universities, Athletic Teams, and Organizations." Retrieved September 30, 2021 (https://www.apa.org/about/policy/mascots.pdf).
Cultural Appropriation in Theater and Broadway Podcast -
TALKBACK. "It’s Not my Story It’s Yours: Appropriation vs. Appreciation." Broadway Podcast Network. Retrieved September 30, 2021 (https://broadwaypodcastnetwork.com/talkback/1-its-not-my-story-its-yours-appropriation-vs-appreciation/).
Indigenous Wellness Guide to Cultural Appropriation -
Native Governance Center. 2020. "Cultural Appropriation and Wellness Guide." Retrieved September 30, 2021 (https://nativegov.org/cultural-appropriation-and-wellness-guide/).
Documentary about cultural appropriation in the U.S. -
Clift, Robert. 2010. "Blacking Up." California Newsreel. Kanopy. Retrieved September 30, 2021 (https://bradley.kanopy.com/video/blacking).
New York Times Article on music that has been historically stolen from black people -
Morris, Wesley. 2019. "Why is Everyone Always Stealing Black Music? " The New York Times. Retrieved September 30, 2021 (https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/08/14/magazine/music-black-culture-appropriation.html).
A PBS guide to cultural appropriation (pdf) -
PBS. 2018. "What I Hear When You Say: Cultural Appropriation." Retrieved September 30, 2021 (https://bento.cdn.pbs.org/hostedbento-prod/filer_public/whatihear/9-Cultural_Approp-Viewing_Guide.pdf).
Video that discusses the difference between cultural appropriation and cultural appreciation
Vice Asia. 2020. What’s the difference between appropriation and appreciation? YouTube. Retrieved September 30, 2021 (https://youtu.be/I1JCWc7s6FY.)
Works Cited
Deer, Jessica. 2017. "Cue the Eye Rolls - This is a Piece About Cultural Appropriation." CBC news. Retrieved September 30, 2021 (https://www.cbc.ca/news/opinion/cultural-appropriation-1.4119849).
Gomez, Sabrina. 2020. "Indigenous Culture is not a Costume." Texas Woman's University's Official Newspaper - The Lasso. Retrieved September 30, 2021 (https://www.twulasso.com/indigenous-culture-is-not-a-costume/).
Haller, Sonja. 2019. "A Parents' Guide to Cultural Appropriation: An Expert Breaks Down Kids' Halloween Costumes." USA Today. Retrieved September 30, 2021 (https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/parenting/2019/10/18/cultural-appropriation-kids-halloween-costumes-parents-guide/3990124002/).
Harrison, Simon. 1999. "Cultural Boundaries." Anthropology Today, 15(5), pp. 10–13. Retrieved from JSTOR on September 30, 2021. https://doi.org/10.2307/2678369.
Lang, Cady. 2021. "The Kardashians' Legacy of Blackfishing and Appropriation." Time. Retrieved September 30, 2021 (https://time.com/6072750/kardashians-blackfishing-appropriation/).
Loveless, Grant. 2020. "Cultural Appreciation vs. Cultural Appropriation: Why it Matters." Austin Community College. Retrieved September 30, 2021 (http://sites.austincc.edu/accent/cultural-appreciation-vs-cultural-appropriation-why-it-matters/).
Spirit Halloween. 2021. Retrieved from on September 30, 2021 (https://www.spirithalloween.com/).
TODAY. 2013. "Katy Perry's Geisha-Inspired AMAs Performance Stirs Controversy." Retrieved September 30, 2021 (https://www.today.com/style/katy-perrys-geisha-inspired-amas-performance-stirs-controversy-2D11650791).
The New York Times. 2016. "Washington Redskins: Offensive? and Who Decides?" The New York Times. Retrieved September 30, 2021 (https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/05/20/sports/football/redskins-callout.html).
Tsosie, Rebecca. 2002. "Reclaiming Native Stories: An Essay on Cultural Appropriation and Cultural Rights." Arizona State Law Journal, 34, pp. 299–358. Retrieved from SSRN on September 30, 2021 (https://ssrn.com/abstract=1401522).
Young, James O. 2005. "Profound Offense and Cultural Appropriation." The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism, 63(2), pp. 135–146. Retrieved from JSTOR on September 30, 2021 (http://www.jstor.org/stable/3700467).