Ditch Cultural Appropriation

So I can't get Miley Cyrus' "We Can't Stop" out of my head and it's pissing me off. I only heard the song two freaking times. 1. After I read an article about her and her appropriation of African American culture. 2. On the radio in the car with my friend while we discussed how wack she was for making that video.

A lot of people don't understand why "playing (insert race here)" is wrong. So let me tell you. I'll speak on this particularly through the African American experience, but any other oppressed race could fit the mold here.

What is pure BS about cultural appropriation is this:

Let's get some background on the issue first. It all starts when the dominant race, oppresses another through racism, prejudice, and discrimination. It exercises these powers through the systems in which the dominant race controls: education, the justice system, corporate business, housing, etc. As a result the oppressed race falls victim to poverty, high crime and violence, poor education, poor housing, poor living conditions and/or poor health. Out of these conditions the oppressed race creates a culture which caters to these conditions or is a direct result of these conditions.

For example, a large proportion of blacks are in the prison system. Sagging pants came from prison culture and was then transferred into black culture. Or in African American communities where poverty is a reality, the markers of material goods become very important to an individuals social status, self worth and self esteem. They separate and differentiate between the haves and the have-nots. Therefore individuals will purport their financial status with an abundance of jewelry, gold teeth, expensive clothing and shoes, expensive cars, rims, etc.

Note that these cultural practices are all rooted in the oppression of the race without power. They were birth from the dominant race's oppression of the other. When these practices are in the hands of the oppressed culture they are deemed a part of subculture or counter culture. They are deemed unconventional and inappropriate.

When the dominant culture appropriates these cultural practices several injuries occur:

1. The oppressed race is exploited further when its' culture is repackaged and redistributed by the dominant (with the dominant's face) and sold for profit. (Hello Miley.)

2. The harsh realities that birth these practices are marginalized under the dominant's fascination with the "subculture," they refuse to look at the whole picture. They don't acknowledge the poverty or crime, but they celebrate the obsession with material wealth. They don't acknowledge the violence but they perform gang culture through clothing and hand signs.

3. The oppressed race is further insulted when the dominant appropriates their culture, because then and only then, is their culture deemed appropriate, acceptable or valuable. Under ownership of the oppressed, their culture and nuances carry no weight or significance UNTIL the dominant race plays out that subculture. They parade around in the masks of the oppressed, get their laughs, make their point, get their money freely and without reprimand. Meanwhile the oppressed are vilified, harassed and even killed because of the same cultural practices. Cultural practices that are unique and true to the oppressed.

4. The dominant race continues the cycle of injustice through their privilege, by putting on and taking off the masks of the oppressed race as they see fit. This privilege allows them a type of mobility and freedom that the oppressed will never know. By asserting this privilege, the oppressed are constantly reminded that they lack, that they are not good enough, that they only have one world in which they are allowed to navigate. They are reminded that they are still in bondage.


This list is by no means exhaustive, but I hope it gives some insight on the serious issues with cultural appropriation.

We live in a world where Trayvon Martin can get killed for looking suspicious wearing a hoodie in his own neighborhood, and vilified for throwing up his middle finger in pictures or smoking weed

All the while Miley Cryus can talk about popping molly's, wear skull caps and grills, and twerk in front of millions and be celebrated, but more importantly make a profit.

Some people die because it, others live off of it.