#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.

[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) 

[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.

[maelys-with-the-torn-cieling]

Bro being native American sounds like it SUCKS

Imagine if your culture's biggest, most recognizable religious figure got represented like THIS

(This lady called Quetzalcoatl, yknow, like the Mayan or Aztec dragon Ion remember which sorry)

Like imagine if some anime out there made Jesus into a hot anime girl with GIGANTIC ASS TIDDIES

Im not even christian but Id be so PISSED

HOW DO YALL NATIVE AMERICANS DEAL WITH *THIS* ON THE REGULAR AND NOT.......... GET VIOLENT

Between this and *those* Halloween costumes Im startin to think yall got a lot goin on

[ishq4jhumkas]

Why is cultural appropriation more significant in the West?

( feel free to correct me if I missed any points or if I am saying anything inaccurate ! )

If a non-Indian woman were to walk the streets of India with a saree on, locals wouldn't bat an eye, or they would even congratulate you for appreciating their culture. But do that in the Midwest where I live, and people would scream cultural appropriation. Why is that so?

For one, Indians across the diaspora find their culture tied to the aspects of it which we can physically see, like skin color, clothes, etc. But natives live in an ethnically homogenous country where culture is tied to beliefs and moral values (individualism vs the collective, respecting elders, etc.). In America, our appearance makes us different from other ethnic groups while in India, wearing traditional clothing is the norm, at least in the places I've visited myself. Because culture is not inherently tied to clothing, Indians are generally more accepting of foreigners wearing traditional clothing.

Another contributing factor is orientalist media in the West that utilizes Indian culture (as in garments, makeup), as a costume rather than treating it with respect. The history of such instances influence us, the diaspora, to see cultural appropriation in a negative light.

This post wasn't meant to attack the diaspora for their views on cultural appropriation, just to provide context. I, too, have sighed at foreigners donning the lehenga without knowing the proper context of where it came from. Again, please correct me if I was unintentionally insensitive or inaccurate !

[canisbeanz]

Question: My Jayfeather design has a Eurasian Jay feather stabbed through his ear like an earring, is that okay or should I remove it/ put it somewhere else? It doesn't stick out of his silhouette because it falls over onto his face, it's meant to look a bit like a long hairstyle without actually using his fur because I think human hairstyles on cats look really creepy. (I haven't drawn him in a while so he's not on this blog but I can do a doodle of him if an example would be helpful)

I should have known if I brought up wc I’d have to talk about. But it includes of a lot of issues with feral/furry designs that use feathers in hair. I don’t necessarily know why the conversation only started and stayed in the wc fandom when horse/wolf/lion feral fandoms are still doing the same thing.

Now having feathers in the design isn’t a racial attack first thing off because there’s a lot of context around what feather’s are used, the shape, and where they are placed. If the look is anything like "rave Coachella looking tribal fantasy feathers and beads" it’s probably insensitive. I’m not to sure why it has to be feathers, I honestly think the wc fandom are holding themselves back when it comes to forwarding designs in a unique way. Tail feathers are also left out in this conversation as well, one or two feathers or feathers in the shape of a birds tail are fine but bunched together feathers are leaning to close to how we have our horses wear feathers. This is in the context of the design already looking like a "medicine cat" already its bad. it’s like those yt girls wear feather head bands but animal addition.

I’ve talked about this before but silhouettes are so important, like Native American stereotypes are on the global scale you cannot escape this silhouette you just have to avoid it. There’s no "but it’s in so many other cultures" no it’s not it’s totally unique to our people that’s why people flock to it because it’s so "mysterious, sacred" whatever their weird twisted up reason is. There’s so many unique ways to break this silhouette you just gotta be more creative. And I feel like instead of being more creative and coming up with totally different ideas it’s just easier to lean on these visual native stereotypes to get across "wild mythical nature fantasy"

I could get into the horse fandom and the weird situations they’re doing over there but that’s another crazy thing. I should say because someone will ask, ostrich feathers on like show horses or knights or puss in boots style is fine not the same thing (breaking the silhouette) they’re not related.

And it comes down to understanding what you are drawing and where this imagery comes from, I’m not gonna get my feelings hurt because of your design but I’ll question why are you drawing stuff like that. You cant remove that cultural/stereotypical imagery, and if you don’t care about it then you don’t care about the history or how it looks on your character and art.

I made it this far on the internet but if you want to be conscious about these things good on yea it doesn’t take much☺️👍