How can it be that the traditional Mongolian dress I wore to my doctoral graduation ceremony is considered cultural appreciation but if a random person wears it to a festival and then shares photos of it on social media to draw attention to themselves, that’s cultural appropriation?
How often do you think you cross the line between the two? To find out, make a cuppa, sit back, and read on.
WHAT IS CULTURAL APPROPRIATION
Cultural appropriation is when I take an aspect of another culture – be it art, spiritual practices, or traditional dress – and use it for material gain or popularity. Cultural appropriation happens when a shop sells so-called traditional items that are made in a local factory, continents away from the culture they are trying to imitate. It also happens when I fill my living room walls with African masks without understanding and respecting their original meaning, without having any connection to them, simply because they look cool when I invite friends over. Have you heard of the so-called secret societies or rites of passage? If not, you’d better refrain from decorating your walls with these masks.
Cultural appropriation, however, most often occurs when an economically dominant or privileged group adopts an aspect of a marginalised or oppressed culture in an exploitative and stereotypical way. We witness this in major industries such as fashion, film, music, and food, and it’s present in spirituality, language, and celebrations.
Fashion
The fashion industry loves to draw inspiration from other cultures while ignoring not only historical context and cultural sensitivity but also non-white models. Think of Maasai beadwork or kimono-style robes without acknowledging their origin, and wearing Native American headdresses at festivals without understanding their sacred significance.
Film
Jambo, a Swahili greeting, and Swahili language in general is used more often than it should be in films, regardless of the part of Africa where the scene takes place. Even as a child, I noticed that something was wrong in these films. On such a vast continent, there must be several languages spoken. What is happening is that filmmakers are homogenising African cultures, erasing their complexity and diversity for the sake of white filmgoers, who find it easier to see a dehumanised continent, and thus its problems lose their relevance. There are serious problems with authenticity and representation throughout the film industry.
Music
Music and dance connect, we often say and it’s true, but it’s important to recognise and credit the cultures that created them. The commercialisation of hula dancing by non-Polynesians in a non-authentic way is cultural appropriation, as is the use of elements of African and Indian dance by contemporary ballet companies without acknowledging their origins.
Food
The word ‘superfood’ has become a marketing term in many parts of the world to attract health-conscious consumers, but not many people know how the exploitation of the regions where these ingredients are grown affects communities. Increased consumption of quinoa, açai, avocado, teff, and others has resulted in land use change, loss of traditional varieties, water depletion, and increased economic hardship in many communities as local people’s access to once cheap and traditional grains, fruits, vegetables, and spices has been reduced.
Spirituality
Buddhism has become a mainstream philosophy, and everyone seems to know what it covers. Instagram is flooded with quotes from the Buddha, although hardly anyone can and does verify their authenticity. Hindu deities are used as home décor without knowing their religious role and significance. Yoga studios popping up everywhere and anywhere, and anyone can become a yoga teacher by completing a course of a few hundred hours without any prior experience, knowledge, or respect for yoga traditions. As long as the poses look good on Instagram, it’s called yoga.
Language
But it’s so zen, isn’t it?
Celebrations
Holi, the Indian festival of colours turned into a ’color run’ in many parts of the world without most of us realising that we should be celebrating the eternal and divine love of the deities Radha and Krishna, and the victory of good over evil. In the Netherlands, it was only in 2020 that the so-called Black Pete celebrations ended, thanks to widespread protests and debates, arguing that the character was an insult to black people, although many consider it a harmless holiday tradition until today and say that the opponents have no sense of humour.
WHAT IS CULTURAL APPRECIATION
Cultural appreciation means that I value another culture and my intention is to broaden my perspective. It means that I want to understand my place and that of others in the world. It means that I want to explore various ways of thinking to be able to connect with friends, colleagues, and strangers, without being motivated by personal interest or material gain.
I spent most of my adult life studying the cultures of Asia and Africa, and I most likely crossed the line between cultural appreciation and cultural appropriation more than once. Unknowingly, without malice, probably out of sheer enthusiasm, but I did. When we step beyond our familiar environment, a learning process begins and mistakes are inevitable, but they only become a problem if we do not acknowledge and learn from them and continue to disrespect the new territory.
Let me get personal
If I let you into the most hidden corner of my apartment, the first thing you’d see is an incredibly comfortable armchair covered with a Moroccan rug, which I salvaged from a nearby antique shop for a bargain. Its earth colours are soothing and perfectly match with my grandmother’s old cabinet and the wooden door of a small built-in wardrobe, reminiscent of the entrance to a centuries-old dwelling. The curtains are African wax prints, and the cushions are decorated with the patterns of kente clothes, a Ghanaian textile popular throughout West Africa. Above the drawers is a Malinke mask, a gift from Conakry. As the younger half of identical twins, its meaning is particularly interesting to me because it relates to the beliefs that surround twins in some West African societies.
My living room would take you to another world, a world to which I have dedicated many years, Asia. Framed drawings of various yoga poses lead to a section on the main wall where a print of Palden Lhamo, a tantric Buddhist goddess, rescued from a house clearance in North London, is surrounded by images of two Buddha statues.
Opposite these golden sculptures is the print of a giraffe blowing a pink chewing gum, which I brought with me from London’s South Bank, and which I see as reflecting the playful nature of Buddhist teachings. Further on the wall, there are drawings with Mongolian calligraphy, with words that are important to me. Next to these frames, there is a larger built-in wardrobe with brass handles from Narantuul market in Ulaanbaatar. These handles represent Jamsran, a pre-Buddhist Mongolian deity, the god of war, but don’t think of tanks and mass murders. Jamsran is a defender of the dharma or Buddhist teachings. From its open mouth hang khadags, which in Buddhist countries are used not only in temples and ritual sites but also to express appreciation and respect for someone. Gifts from friends, colleagues, and teachers.
Above the sofa is a painting from a Mongolian artist I first met in Ulaanbaatar. The painting depicts a couple looking at and embracing each other with love. The antlers on the head of the female figure refer to the origin of the Mongols, the union of a blue-grey wolf and a roe deer. The painting was inspired shortly after the artist arrived in Budapest and saw a couple kissing and embracing in the street as if no one was around, an unusual sight in Mongolia.
Does it all sound overwhelming? It’s a peaceful and uncluttered assembly, and I like to think of my place as a microcosm of the life I want to experience in my wider environment. A world where we exist in harmony, learning from and strengthening each other.
Beyond my studies and my appreciation of all that the continent has given to the world, I have no ties to Africa. I’m not a Buddhist practitioner either but years of studying Buddhism, its art, and the related traditions, the wisdom they impart has inevitably influenced me. Each of these objects is filled with memories and their messages have become part of my reality. I don’t benefit from them in any other way than that they bring peace into my space, and, interestingly, calm the few people too I invite into my world.
IS THERE A GREY ZONE AT ALL?
I don’t see a grey area between cultural appropriation and cultural appreciation, but without knowing the motives of the person, it’s not always easy to decide what is what. Context and motivation change everything.
Usually, if a white person wears dreadlocks, it is seen as cultural appropriation. My friend, however, a white woman who had worn dreadlocks for over a decade, was accepted and respected for them in the community of which she was a part, where anyone would have had more rights to that hairstyle than she did. She knew the culture behind it and was never once accused of disrespect.
When I was invited to my doctoral graduation ceremony, the official invitation letter set some conditions. One was a dress code that asked participants to wear what the university deemed appropriate for the occasion: dark skirts and white blouses for women, suits for men. After not even considering the nonsensical dress code, I showed up in a traditional, light purple Mongolian dress, tailor-made for me in Ulaanbaatar a few years earlier. I felt that, as an adult, I could decide what suited the occasion and I wanted to express my appreciation for the culture that had given me so much beyond my PhD. All the Mongolians who saw my dress were proud and grateful that I brought a piece of their world on stage. Wearing it on the street, however, would not feel comfortable, and I sometimes feel uncomfortable when I see white women walking around in full African attire because I don’t know what’s behind the scenes.
RULE OF THUMB
It is cultural appropriation when:
- It commercializes or profits from a culture without benefiting its people.
- It reduces a deep tradition to a shallow trend.
- It disrespects or distorts the meaning behind cultural practices.
Make sure that the culture is honoured and that the exchange is mutual, with neither party taking advantage of the other. Be intentional about the new world you are entering, avoid using elements of it that you do not yet understand. Engage respectfully with the culture, don’t just adopt what seems cool.
Most importantly, don’t try to be who you are not. However much you may feel immersed in a culture that you came into contact with later in life, it is unlikely that you can ever fully represent it, and that’s perfectly fine.
If you ever have doubts, ask the representatives of the culture in question and listen to what they have to say about your participation in their world.