Priscilla Yusuf
Appropriation is when you turn something into a costume, “like wearing a qipao with chopsticks in your hair,” says Chinese American designer Kim Shui, who incorporates qipao-style collars into her own pieces but has seen other designers plagiarize the style, as well as larger brands.
People who appropriate culture might use art, attire, customs, ideas, language, and makeup from other communities.
For example, a designer might have models wear cornrows, Moody-Ramirez once said that, “People have been wearing cornrows and dreadlocks for years.”
Cultural appropriation in fashion occurs when elements of one culture are adopted by another without proper understanding, respect, or acknowledgment.
While cultural exchange and influence are intrinsic to artistic expression, the line between appreciation and appropriation can be thin and easily crossed.
The rising phenomenon of cultural appropriation in fashion revolves around fashion enthusiasts handpicking and choosing to wear eye-catching traditional accessories and attire from cultures they do not personally identify with or claim as their own.
While cultural appropriation harms marginalized communities by perpetuating stereotypes or modifying their culture, cultural appreciation, on the other hand, seeks to empower and uplift these communities by recognizing their contributions.
When you dress as “ghetto fab,” as a “redneck,” or as an “illegal alien,” you’re mocking the racial and socioeconomic inequalities in our society and appropriating what you think is minority culture for your one night of fun.”