Posted: 18 October 2021 at 7:46am | IP Logged | 4
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It's a complex and nuanced topic. Critics will take the weakest examples or the misapplication of the term to discount the whole idea.
I think asking whether this or that is an example of cultural appropriation is a colossal waste of time. The question that needs to be asked is whether you are respecting a culture you are borrowing elements from and whether the culture you are borrowing from is respected in general. (Also how much of the borrowing of a culture is a byproduct of colonization, but that a whole other discussion.)
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Though I understand that the origin is to call out and prevent exploitation, it's being used very widely to include simple exchanges of cultural traits. Example: Western people doing Yoga. Surely the practice, if it's good for people, should be available to practice for all mankind? This is how humanity has evolved. |
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Here's an example. White people doing yoga is not an issue. But what does it mean when a trendy white-owned yoga studio sells merchandixe with "Namaste" on it to yoga students who don't fully understand the meaning of the term and the instructor actively avoids any mentions of the Eastern spirituality origins of yoga in order to be "inclusive" (i.e. not offend white Christians)? How should Hindus feel about white Americans profiting off the trappings of their culture while Indian-Americans are still made to feel like foreigners in their own country and being mocked with "Apu" growing up?
There's more than a simple exchange of cultural traits here.
Let's look at Elvis. Elvis acknowledged at the black artists that influenced his music, and he arguably made it possible for more people to be accepting of "black music". But what does it mean that he became a millionaire off of music inspired by black artists, while those same artists were struggling and subjected to segregation and discrimination?
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A college girl being lambasted for attending a prom in a kimono |
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College girls generally don't attend prom. If you are referring to the story of the high school girl from Utah who wore a Chinese qipao to prom, I think it's less important to handwring about whether it's right or wrong to wear the dress or not and more important to understand why some Asian-Americans would be so angry about it.
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Non-gay actors playing gay characters Non-trans actors playing trans characters |
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I don't think these are really part of the same discussion. I will say that while I don't think only gay actors can play gay characters, there can be a lot of nuance that straight actors might miss when playing a gay character, so they should make an effort to cast LGB actors to play LGB roles. But requiring it would require a LGB actor to out themselves just to play a LGB role, which wouldn't be right.
As far as trans characters, there are limited opportunities to play trans roles, and it seems wrong to pass over trans actors for cis actors. But even more of an issue, having a cis man play a trans woman reinforces the idea that a trans woman is a "man pretending to be a woman" And the same goes for a cis woman playing a trans man.
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