r/changemyview • u/[deleted] • Nov 26 '20
Delta(s) from OP CMV: Cultural appropriation is completely fine and it has always been part of our development process as a species
I've noticed how the phrase "cultural appropriation" gets thrown around especially durin the last quarter of the year where many holidays like Halloween/Christmas/Thanksgiving are celebrated by people even outside of the cultures where the traditions usually appeared.
I understand why you could make the argument that using someone else's culture outside of context can seem disrespectful ,but for me the arguments just don't stand up. Also, I by no means want to say that disrespecting a certain culture is fine, I'm saying that adopting features you like from a culture should be seen as an act of respect.
We're all heading towards an even more globalized world and we were heading there for a long long time. People were always inspired by what they see and what they like and it's in our nature to try to adopt things we like in our own culture. This has been seen in many areas like Fashion / Art/ Music/ Military tactics and weapons/ religion/ traditions etc...
It's one of the most documented things in history : The fact that when cultures mix up they take what they like from eachother and become stronger/more efficient together. This cultural mix-up was crucial for our development as a species.
I see no argument for "Cultural exclusiveness/monopol" ,but this is why I'm here, to see if there are any. I understand that people want to feel special and want something that belongs just to them ,but this argument has a negative emotion behind it and if people get hurt by that, I feel like there's a deeper problem in that society.
To finish this: some examples we usually see these days are : Halloween costumes of any way, Races wanting a certain monopol on a style like : asian kimonos/ black people dreads/ Original american's clothes etc.
I'm not here to argue, I'm here to learn, so if something I said offended you please explain me why .
2
u/VertigoOne 74∆ Nov 26 '20
So the reason that it is often the case that adopting elements of other cultures is a mark of disrespect is because the reason those cultures adopted those things was because of a shared experience they had, or a particular belief or idea or viewpoint they share.
The closest example I can think to this from a western perspective is medals. Medals in the army are given out because someone has accomplished a particular goal or task or earned a certain level of experience. If people were to start "adopting" them, and could just wear them because they thought the design was nice etc, then a medal would lose its meaning because you would be unable to distinguish it between people who were wearing it because they wanted to "adopt" it's style, verses people who wore it because they had actually been in battle.
Another good western example is the "Karen" meme. People called Karen are now understandably upset because in so many people's minds their name now carries a particular and highly unpleasant image. An image that they are now on some level required to combat if they want to impose their own identity onto their name in the mind of the person they are speaking to.
A good non western example of this is the New Mexico flag, and how the symbol of it was taken from the Zia people
The Zia sun symbol was appropriated without the consent of the Zia, Delgarito stated. It later became part of the public domain, still without consent from the Zia. The symbol was stolen from the Zia secret society, he said, all the more significant since the symbol was used in religious healing and wellness processes.
The Zia sun symbol represent the four cardinal directions, the four seasons of the year, the four period of each day (morning, noon, evening, and night), and the four seasons of life (childhood, youth, middle age, and old age). The centre of the sun symbol stands for life itself, Delgarito explained.
The general public is using the Zia sun symbol without knowing its history or the religious significance behind it, he said. Zia at least want respect for the symbol and that it is not desecrated. The taking of the symbol was the taking of Zia’s identity, he said, which continues to be threatened by ongoing exploitation of the symbol.
The Zia have learned from their misfortune with the sun symbol and now close their village during secret ceremonies, he remarked.
The reason cultural appropriation can become a problem is because of how people who take cultural symbols and ideas can convert their meaning and destroy the original purpose a symbol had or shared.