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"My culture is not your goddamn prom dress?"

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Reply 40
Original post by ellacxoo
I real cannot with these wypipo anymoree

Just stay inside your little privileged bubble


Okay I'll waste my time and address your arguments. I'm interested to see your perspective, and I hope you understand the value of seeing other people's perspectives as well. We want to know. Opinions, regardless of if your right to them, can still be objectively right or wrong . If it transpires that we're completely wrong, great, but it really doesn't look to be that way. Whilst it may be temptingly easy to say "it's the fault of privileged whites", that's being hasty, judgemental and to me, borderline racist. You're using that more as an escape than anything.
Remember: your opinions are not you - opinions are things you should carry in a box with you and should be easily replaced when there are better ones.

Original post by ellacxoo
when you look closer you begin to see that white people take these cultural elements and are praised for them while black people are criticized and judged for them

This is what you're basing it on. That and you say it's "using" the culture. You are basing your view on the fact that people aren't allowed to wear whatever they want - specifically, that black people would be criticised and judged for wearing what they wanted to. But now you are criticising and judging people for wearing what they want. That's the problem here that I'm seeing. I don't judge people on what country the patterns on their clothing originate from. You do.

Finally, my question about my T-shirt is a serious one. Do you think I am racist?
(edited 5 years ago)
Original post by ellacxoo
@Wilfred Little I have literally no idea what you’re saying.


Educate yourself! Google it!
Oh no dear, it happens. Maybe you haven’t experienced it personally. Did you just say “white culture” ??? 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

You’re laughable.
Reply 43
Original post by ellacxoo
I found this explanation, and it pretty much sums up, what I’ve been trying to say... I really don’t understand why you guys can’t understand this, but maybe your privilege gets in the way.

“Cultural Appropriation is when a dominant culture (white people for example) take something from an minority culture (lets say black people) and adopt it into their culture, maybe at first this seems like white people appreciating black people’s culture but when you look closer you begin to see that white people take these cultural elements and are praised for them while black people are criticized and judged for them. This happens with hair a lot and a great example is cornrows, Amandla Stenberg is a young black actress who posted a video talking about the issues of white people wearing cornrows and other culturally significant hairstyles. And MTV’s series “Decoded” also did a segment on cultural appropriation that talks about the lines between appreciating cultures and appropriating them.
What it all comes down to is that people who have privilege often cannot understand why taking another cultures elements is a problem because they have never been judged for them. It is important to remember that racism and prejudice are still raging in our world and to use someone else’s culture and not understand the significance of it is almost to deny the problems we have today.”


Your whole premise for this logic is based o. Blacks being mocked for doing something while whites doing it and being praised and glorified as if they had invented that cultural aspec. THIS SIMPLY DOES NOT HAPPEN. PERIOD. Your whole premise is based on something that is a lie. Oh someone spoke about this... That means it's true... I spoke against it(a person)... So that means it's not true.. laughable is what you are. Go to sleep monster.
Oh it simply does happen
To me this isn't an instance of cultural appropriation, the girl was simply showing her appreciation with the dress. It would have been cultural appropriation if she had taken something sacred and paraded it around as fashion (e.g. Native American headbands for ceremonies)
Original post by Sinnoh
image-c0d51fe9-a7f8-46af-8464-0d11be57b3ab2251086720546471806-compressed.jpg.jpeg
Am I a racist then if I, a white person, wear this t-shirt?


I am not sure if it is racist, but it certainly is a crime to wear that T-shirt in public.
Reply 47
Original post by ellacxoo
Oh it simply does happen



You're so stupid it hurts... And "white culture" was I. Reference to your stupid logic, are you this dense.... And do you think there isn't such thing as white culture? Jesus f*... Have you ever been to Europe? The "mexican" "trages" they use were ALL BEING DONE BY THE SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE LONG BEFORE THEY DID IT. You can't be serious... You mean dancing around in traditional clothing with rehearsed choreography? The Portuguese did that before Spain invaded what is now Mexico and transplanted that to them. Stop trying too hard. And it does not happen. Don't make statements you can't prove.
You lost bum, cry us a river. What a destruction...
Reply 48
Original post by ellacxoo
Oh it simply does happen


I think it doesn't happen because I've never heard of it happening. Do you know of a case where it did?
I think embracing and respecting other cultures is great. I don't see how cultural segregation is a good thing.
It’s happened to literally half my family/friendship group, and a lot of people I know. I really feel like you need to stop speaking. And what’s with the profanity?? Is that the only way you can get your uneducated point across? I’M DONE ARGUING WITH YOU, YOU’RE ANNOYING.

You probably the same white people/non black poc that’ll scream “All Lives Matter.” I’m done with you.
"Poc" :biggrin:

Look at me and how woke I am!
Reply 52
Original post by ellacxoo
It’s happened to literally half my family/friendship group, and a lot of people I know. I really feel like you need to stop speaking. And what’s with the profanity?? Is that the only way you can get your uneducated point across? I’M DONE ARGUING WITH YOU, YOU’RE ANNOYING.

You probably the same white people/non black poc that’ll scream “All Lives Matter.” I’m done with you.


I didn't swear. I just want you to be specific with what exactly happens. Are they harassed in the street or what?
If someone is a racist and then goes and wears clothes that would be worn by the people they mock, then yes that's being a hypocrite and they shouldn't. But I'm not a racist. Nor was the girl wearing the Chinese dress.
What's uncle tom for a Chinese girl?
Original post by ellacxoo
I don’t know the video you’re referencing, but cultural appropriation isn’t something to be flattered by. It’s blatant manipulation of a somebody else’s lifestyle/culture to use as a trend, and the main problem with it is the fact that the minorities who originate from the said culture are often criticised and scrutinised for the very same thing that is being stolen.

And example of this is box braids on black people.


Modern Chinese people don't wear the traditional attire and we have no more ownership of this "culture" than any other ethnic group does. Not to mention "Chinese" culture is as incredibly diverse as "Indian" culture is - so can a Cantonese person "appropriate" culture from Beijing? How about Shanghainese people "appropriating" currently Chinese Tibetan culture?

The issue of "cultural appropriation" is almost uniquely a western issue, I can tell you from my experience not only as an ethnic minority, but also as someone who has worked with people from around 70 nationalities, as someone who has visited 60 nations, and as someone who has lived on 4 different continents.

For example, the Chinese and Mexican people who are outraged over cultural appropriation are the ones who live in the United States of America or a similar western country. In greater China, a foreigner wearing a traditional Chinese attire would attract much positive attention, and in Mexico, a foreigner wearing anything remotely Mexican is not simply seen as a compliment, but an obligation during the festivities.

Similarly, in Jordan, you will see everyone trying to get foreigners to wear the keffiah, and in Egypt, streets of Egyptians gave me a thumb-up for doning a thawb.

And you always see heads of state and government wearing the traditional attire of the host country of most international summits and events. It's actually seen as a sign of respect.

It's the same thing as say, wearing a Native American headdress reserved specifically for a chef or a reverend warrior - that'd be akin to wearing a very realisitc replica of Her Majesty's imperial crown as a fashion statement. Still should be legal and something free for people to do, but as inappropriate as wearing a doctor's gown pretending to be an actual physician.
OP you need to calm down.

You didn't own /create your culture.

If you did, you'd have copyrighted it. So just calm down and let others do their thing.
Original post by Sinnoh
image-c0d51fe9-a7f8-46af-8464-0d11be57b3ab2251086720546471806-compressed.jpg.jpeg
Am I a racist then if I, a white person, wear this t-shirt?


This is very offensively ugly.
Original post by ellacxoo
I found this explanation, and it pretty much sums up, what I’ve been trying to say... I really don’t understand why you guys can’t understand this, but maybe your privilege gets in the way.

“Cultural Appropriation is when a dominant culture (white people for example) take something from an minority culture (lets say black people) and adopt it into their culture, maybe at first this seems like white people appreciating black people’s culture but when you look closer you begin to see that white people take these cultural elements and are praised for them while black people are criticized and judged for them. This happens with hair a lot and a great example is cornrows, Amandla Stenberg is a young black actress who posted a video talking about the issues of white people wearing cornrows and other culturally significant hairstyles. And MTV’s series “Decoded” also did a segment on cultural appropriation that talks about the lines between appreciating cultures and appropriating them.
What it all comes down to is that people who have privilege often cannot understand why taking another cultures elements is a problem because they have never been judged for them. It is important to remember that racism and prejudice are still raging in our world and to use someone else’s culture and not understand the significance of it is almost to deny the problems we have today.”


The problem is definitly a racism problem. The emergent result of a bunch of poeple making free choices is resulting oppresion on racial grounds. A white person can get away with wearing and doing stuff to their body a none white would find harder to do without receiving stick for it. The solution to this though is letting poeple do what they want with thier bodies no? As apposed to inventing intelectual property for entire cultures. The problem is that society is not a level playing field for poeple to choose how they engage with cultures.

Also culture kind of just is stealing ideas and using them yourself in some way. You can bet the cultures being appropritaed got thier culture from some dodgy practises in history.
(edited 5 years ago)
Original post by ellacxoo
I don’t know the video you’re referencing, but cultural appropriation isn’t something to be flattered by. It’s blatant manipulation of a somebody else’s lifestyle/culture to use as a trend, and the main problem with it is the fact that the minorities who originate from the said culture are often criticised and scrutinised for the very same thing that is being stolen.

And example of this is box braids on black people.


So should British people be offended if an Indian or a Chinese person wears a Saville Row suit to a business meeting? Suits are a very British thing, or English to be precise.

Is it OK for Chinese people to adopt Western fashions, but not the other way around?

Does this extend for example to Japanese people being offended if we do karaoke, a Japanese invention, or does a tradition have to be a certain number of years old before it becomes taboo to copy?

What about Judo, can we do that or is that cultural appropriation? And if it is, then can we steal back football?
Reply 59
There is a difference between appreciating someone's culture and being respectful towards it and people who have no idea or respect towards that culture who give others a bad name.

I often use chopsticks to eat E. Asian food because it's really the best way to eat that food. If I know how to eat with them properly and I am not sticking them up my nose in the process so how is this (for example) cultural appropriation?

Also I think there is a difference between how the E. Asians in Asia and E. Asians in the West see the whole issue with the American woman who wore the qipao dress.

[video="youtube;nXZKgk01G-A"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXZKgk01G-A[/video]

I don't agree with the whole video but it does show a different side to things.
(edited 5 years ago)

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