Cultural Appropriation | Teen Ink

Cultural Appropriation

February 5, 2015
By Mockingjay_54 GOLD, Mount Laurel, New Jersey
Mockingjay_54 GOLD, Mount Laurel, New Jersey
12 articles 0 photos 17 comments

Before i begin my statement, let me explain cultural appropriation for those of you who don't understand its meaning. Cultural appropriation is the ignorant theft of another ethnic group/races culture. Ignorant theft means wearing different religious of cultural clothes or markings for a trend, when the aspect is sacred or significant to that culture. My culture, my heritage, who I am is not yours to wear and exploit because you think its cute or trendy. listening to rap, saying the n word, speaking in AAVE, and dressing in "urban"(when we all know its just code for black) clothing does not make you black. Using our culture as some kind of trendy fashion and then hiding behind your whiteness when members of our race are unjustifiably murdered does not make you black. It makes you a cultural apropriator. Wearing bindi or henna when you have no idea of the religious or cultural meaning does not make you a hippie. It does not "open your third eye". It makes you a cultural apropriator. Wearing a Native American headdress when you have no idea of the significance of its meaning is not edgy or trendy. Wearing a Native American headdress when most of their race was wiped out by settlers who thought they were "savages" does not make you cool. It makes you a cultural apropriator. Wearing a hijab or a turban while muslims/hijabis are called racist names and in danger of being attacked all the time does not make you "ethnic" or trendy. It makes you a cultural appropriator. Some may try to argue that cultural appropriation doesn't exist, but those of you that doe are probably the ones whao have apropriated someone's culture. It may mean nothing to you which is why you try to deny its existance, but it is offensive and represents the struggles that our ancestors faced to even have the right to express their culture without being harassed, murdered, and oppressed by white people. Think about it.


The author's comments:

If you want to learn more about cultural appropriation, you can obviously dig deeper into the topic. I feel so strongly about this, especially with my own African-American culture being appropriated. It is of course wrong to appropriate any culture that is not your own.


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This article has 4 comments.


on Feb. 22 2015 at 6:13 pm
Mockingjay_54 GOLD, Mount Laurel, New Jersey
12 articles 0 photos 17 comments
I was prepared for some ignorant commentary so I wasn't really sure. But you're completely right.

on Feb. 21 2015 at 6:09 pm
JesusandHisLawyers SILVER, Austin, Texas
7 articles 0 photos 99 comments

Favorite Quote:
"who the fuck has a favorite personal quote what does that even mean" - me, just now.

Not sarcasm, not sure what made you think it was. The trend of white people taking things from POC (usually black and latino) culture and making it trendy is genuinely disgusting and kind of horrendously racist, since when white people do it, it's cool and edgy and when black people do it, it's thuggish and ghetto and what not. smh

on Feb. 21 2015 at 4:32 pm
Mockingjay_54 GOLD, Mount Laurel, New Jersey
12 articles 0 photos 17 comments
I'm usually good at this kind of thing, but I really can't tell if this is sarcasm or not.

on Feb. 19 2015 at 10:07 pm
JesusandHisLawyers SILVER, Austin, Texas
7 articles 0 photos 99 comments

Favorite Quote:
"who the fuck has a favorite personal quote what does that even mean" - me, just now.

And to those of you who I'm sure will say this: culture is not about sharing. Culture has never been about sharing. Keep your grubby little paws off of other people's (more interesting) culture and stop trying to make it white-people-cool.