#cultural apropriation

[whereserpentswalk]

Wendigos and Golems are two very different creatures, but pop culture gave them the same treatment of taking them away from their cultural origins and stripping them of their interesting themes so that they could be big monsters for heroes to fight. Probably because both of the original stories are from a context of oppression the storytellers faced from European Christans.

While I don't have the cultural background to tell you how to use the Wendigo, I am from the culture that invented the Golem. And I will tell you that I don't personally take offense to people using Golems in fantasy, but I'd much rather people actually understand the context that they came from, and what happened in the original story, rather than just making it a robot with magic. At the very least make it divine magic instead of arcane.

[problematic-alters-unsilenced]

cw cultural appropriation? descriptions of trauma (including CSEM, stalking, psychosis/mental health)

Not sure if it counts for this blog but three of our main protectors are siblings all of which are a creature from local native mythos, we're bodily white (well, we're technically metis (mixed white+indigenous) but we're just at the cutoff so just white ig) and we always get flack when we talk about any of those alters' source.

the reason they all split was because of a traumatic event where our mother was psychotic and we went through "shared psychosis" (never diagnosed, but we were psychotic while she was, had similar delusions, etc) about the creature(s) stalking us and our mother, about one posessing us (which was very likely just one of our alter's attempting to talk to us, she attempted to tell our mother to take us somewhere safer and get help) and about basically being chased out of the area. The event was traumatic in many other ways (specifically our mother selling nudes of us (at the time 14) for gas money) and anyways it all culminated in them all three splitting.

the issue arises when we tell people their origin without any context, they say we're culturally appropriating, but none of the alters want to "change their source" specifically because the trauma endured litwrally made them trauma holders in a specific way that only makes sense to our brain if they stay the same. we try to use language that's respectful (hence us not naming the thing in question, and frequently just saying they're shapeshifters rather than the whole truth) and its so fucking annoying that its one of our top reasons for wishing we weren't a system

that sucks.. we are white ourself so we cant talk for POC people but i feel like.. we really need to remember alters cant control their source, and they cant control why they were made.

[chequerootlurks]

Please take a moment to read this link!

I played World of Darkness games since the early years.

I played Werewolf: The Apocalypse since first edition.

As time progresses, certain elements and themes involving indigenous peoples’ cultures as “theme” and “setting” become increasingly problematic.

I think it is important, and it addresses questions and discomfort I’ve had about cultural appropriation in the legacy World of Darkness setting.

I will step aside, and let Creator Sambrano have the floor. They are far better qualified than me to discuss this further.

[princeboysal]

Dune fans are genuinely the most annoying people ever. I was going to watch the movie until I discovered just how white washed and cultural appropriation the whole movie is. Based on Middle Eastern and North African culture but won't hire any Middle Eastern or North African people in the main cast. It's orientalism its basically just wearing marginalzed and racialized cultures as a costume. Many Middle Eastern and North African people have criticized dune for this. And instead of accepting this they keep trying to gaslight people who point this out. Like No one is saying you are terrible person for liking dune or you can't like it yet you are acting like children instead of accepting valid criticism.

I wish people could be like the twilight fandom when it comes to enjoying work while still accepting valid criticism

[thegirlwhohid]

The Ukrainian brand of silk scarves OLIZ and the fundraising platform UNITED24 released a charity collection dedicated to works of art that were stolen or destroyed by Russia.

This collection includes prints with works of Polina Raiko (her house museum in occupied Oleshki was destroyed after russians blew up the Kahkovka dam), Arkhip Kuindzhi (the Mariupol museum was looted by russians and destroyed with an aerial bomb; the fate of his works is unknown), mosaics from Saint Michael cathedral (the mosaics were moved to Moscow while the cathedral was demolished by soviets in 1938) and paintings from the Kherson museum (almost all the exhibit were stolen by russians).

You can take a look, read more about each piece, and purchase shawls and scarves here: https://u24.gov.ua/stolenart

[occvltswim]

"Condemnation without investigation is the height of ignorance." — ALBERT EINSTEIN

[nanowired-lover]

god im having an hyperspecific question about cultural apropriations and hairstyles and I. can't find shit. Every sources i found looked like it was written by white people and Idk really what to look for

[wisdomfish]

An appropriate understanding of the inconceivable greatness of God, and the infinite distance we stand from him, should fill the soul with a holy and awe-filled fear of him.

John Owen

[tomthefanboy]

There should be a website that tracks clothing items and accessories to let white people know what items are of religious/cultural importance and what is just the traditional fashion for different parts of the world.

And every page of the site has a flashing banner at the top reminding readers that it is never okay to change their skin-tone for a costume.

[kelpieice]

This is Afrocentric. It shows deep insecurities as well if you start taking history from other ethnic/ racial groups.

[scrabble-scribbles]

This might sound hella bad but don’t care

Do other people actually forget what things mean just because of what the internet says??

Like I just saw a post of someone saying they “sometimes lose track of what cultural appropriation actually is”. No shade whatsoever to op, I’m just.

The meaning of a term doesn’t change because dumbass 13 year olds don’t understand it. Like with queerbaiting. So many little kids wanna scream everything is queerbaiting, from unlabeled characters to unlabeled actors (Real Fuckin Ppl™️!!) playing queer characters. But never once have I ever been confused about what queerbaiting actually is.

like, no matter how many times i would see people angry about an unlabled actor playing a gay guy, ABSOLUTELY INSISTING that THIS RIGHT HERE is queerbaiting, I always know they're wrong. because thats not what it is!!!!! Queerbaiting is a baiting tactic WRITTEN INTO CHARACTERS. Regardless of the REAL PEOPLE PLAYING THEM, a queer actor can play a queerbaiting character on a show full of queerbaiting. But the actor's REAL LIFE is NOT PART OF THAT.

with the cultural appropriation thing: no one SHOULD be thinking that eating mexican food or speaking Italian is a form of cultural appropriation because thats fucking dumb. You cant culturally appropriate a language or food. and that isnt something that changes.

the definition of cultural appropriation is the same no matter WHAT you talk about, no matter WHEN you do. (im adding this because certain things can change, ie, a formerly closed practice being opened, formerly closed languages/practices that have been opened either by consent of the culture itself of because of other reasons. I do not have any experience or information on formerly closed/open practices changing, this is just to put it into a timeless perspective)

All-in-all, I just do not understand how you can "lose track" of what queerbaiting or cultural appropriation actually is. I dont think thats an accurate statement either. if you can "lose track" of what something actually means, you never knew what it meant in the first place.

part of tis could also just be the morals/rules i was raised with. my parents DRILLED into my head that you need consent for EVERYTHING, you need to find the original source for ANYTHING you hear, no matter how stupid or pointless it may seem. Tbf they did do this because my little autistic ass would have been too confused about the nuances of this, but i think it explains why im so confused about this? Queerbaiting is the same no matter how much of a stink randomuser34443256 causes about an unlabeled actor playing a gay guy? Cultural appropriation means the same thing no matter how much italiankid234560 whines that eating spaghetti is "stealing italian culture"?

if you get confused about the meaning of something, or lose track of what the term means because of how WRONG the people around you are, its not just a matter of losing it. you just never knew what it actually meant in the first place

[mangopodcast]

I'm 1/6 French, therefore I'm an expert in French history and a spokesperson for the French, even though I've never been to France and I don't speak French.



Now you understand?

[virtual-paola]

How to Appropriate Culture Through Music?

Cultural appropriation is the adoption, borrowing, or imitation of aspects of a marginalised/minority culture—such as clothing, music, symbols, or traditional practices—without acknowledging or respecting their cultural significance. In this post, I'll focus specifically on musical appropriation. It frequently takes place within a system of (white) privilege, when dominant cultures profit from the cultural traits of marginalised populations without having to deal with the historical or social difficulties connected with them. 

Examples are;

using traditional or native musical components without permission, acknowledgment, or knowledge of their cultural value.

using culturally unique musical genres for commercial benefit without acknowledging or giving credit for the original artists.

using culturally significant aesthetics, dress, or symbols for marketing purposes without acknowledging or appreciating their cultural meaning.

gaining financial gain from the appeal of a particular genre or aesthetic without actively promoting or supporting artists from that culture.

TLDR; Issues develop when aspects within music are removed from their cultural context and misused/trivialised, frequently without recognising or giving respect to the culture. This can strengthen inequality in power, propagate prejudices, and result in the erasure or inaccurate portrayal of the disadvantaged culture.

**It is important to note that I believe that cultural interchange, admiration, and respectful interaction with other cultures are separate from cultural appropriation. Cultural appropriation is a complicated subject, and opinions on what counts as appropriation might differ. It is crucial to approach issues about cultural appropriation with discretion, respect, and an open mind to other viewpoints.

- Posted by Paola (06/11/23 @ 9:56pm EST) 

[judas-isariot]

The only cultural appropriation white people has experience is "Emily in Paris" and I can say, I am angy at this show.

[bodymodificationnation]

I only just realised that when I queued the Sak Yank tattoos I didn’t disclose that you need a Buddhist monks permission in order to get the tattoo or the blessings will do the opposite and give you bad karma. I also never added disclosures for the TTā Moko, Kakiniit, etc.

I just assumed people would know not to get a different cultures traditional tattoo unless they’re from that culture. But after seeing it blow up all over Tiktok with a white girl getting (sacred) Sak Yank just for fun, I can see that I was wrong.

I have 784 posts queued that I don’t want to go through but in the future I’ll try to remember adding a disclosure when posting other cultures tattoos in the future. I apologise.

Apparently common sense isn’t common.

[teachanarchy]

Watch "How Celebrities Are Causing A Black Market For White Sage" on YouTube