3 Positions Page

The line of inquiry driving my research is the following question:

Is cultural appropriation of Black, Indigenous, and people of color always harmful?

Historically-disenfranchised people regard cultural appropriation as a form of harm through negative financial impact and inappropriate representation of cultural elements.

The aforementioned position will resonate with social justice activists and people of color who disagree with designers experimenting with cultural designs in their fashion collections.

For more information, see:

Matthes, Erich Hatala. “Cultural Appropriation Without Cultural Essentialism?” Social Theory

and Practice, vol. 42, no. 2, Florida State University Department of Philosophy, 2016, pp. 343–66, http://www.jstor.org/stable/24871347. ***

Pham, Minh-Ha T. “Racial Plagiarism and Fashion.” QED: A Journal in GLBTQ Worldmaking,

vol. 4, no. 3, Michigan State University Press, 2017, pp. 67–80, https://doi.org/10.14321/qed.4.3.0067. ***

Proponents of cultural appropriation (or cultural appreciation) argue that it is integral to the advancement of intercultural appreciation and thought-provoking art.

This position will appeal to fashion designers who utilize culture to reinvent the boundaries of fashion, and mega brands who sell traditional clothing to their consumer bases. And members of the BIPOC community who view cultural appropriation as a form of cultural appreciation.

For more information, see:

Ahmed, Osman. “Why Fashion Needs Cultural Appropriation.” The Business of Fashion, The

Business of Fashion, 1 June 2017, https://www.businessoffashion.com/opinions/news-analysis/why-fashion-needs-cultural-appropriation/.

Dodgson, Lindsay. “People of Color Explain the Difference between Cultural Appropriation and

Appreciation.” Insider, Insider Inc., 5 Sept. 2020, https://www.insider.com/difference-between-cultural-appropriation-and-appreciation-2020-9.

Wang, Connie. “Finding the Beauty in Cultural Appropriation.” The New York Times, The New

York Times, 20 Apr. 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/20/opinion/cultural-appropriation-coachella.html.

Many individuals acknowledge the painful legacy of cultural appropriation on minority communities; however, modern-day fashion designers can mitigate further harm.

A white woman wears an Indigenous headdress as a costume.

“Native, American Woman Costume, Model, Costume, Indian, Disguise, Person, Feather, Only Women, One w.” Pxfuel, https://www.pxfuel.com/en/free-photo-eudpf.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1LqF03UUdc

Click to access Connie Wang's "Why Japanese Women are Dressing like Cholas."

Wang, Connie. "Why Japanese Women Are Dressing Like Cholas." Youtube, uploaded by Refinery29, 16 Mar. 2019, https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=u1LqF03UUdc

This position will generate support from designers who are willing to collaborate with people of color to create culturally-sensitive collections. Some BIPOC individuals will agree with this perspective in the hope of reclaiming their culture.

For more information, see:

Maiorescu-Murphy, Roxana D. “‘We Are the Land:" an Analysis of Cultural Appropriation and

Moral Outrage in Response to Christian Dior's Sauvage Scandal.” Public Relations Review, vol. 47, no. 4, 2021. ***

Vézina, Brigitte. “Curbing Cultural Appropriation in the Fashion Industry.” Centre for

International Governance Innovation, Centre for International Governance Innovation, 3 Apr. 2019, https://www.cigionline.org/publications/curbing-cultural-appropriation-fashion-industry/. ***