Another issue with cultural appropriation in fashion is similar to the problem with natural Black hair styles. Middle Eastern and Muslim men are often profiled by their head- and neckwear.2 This racial and cultural profiling can result in detention, questioning, searches, seizure of property, and denial of entry into the United States. Meanwhile, white men write travel blogs about how great the keffiyeh or shemagh is.3 They post pictures of these scarves tied turban style or wrapped around their necks— the same ways that may have gotten a Middle Eastern and/or Muslim man detained. That’s how cultural appropriation works hand in hand with white dominance, racism, and prejudice.
Once again, appreciating a culture differs from appropriating it. White girls wearing cornrows while on vacation in the Caribbean is appropriation, but learning a traditional hula dance from Indigenous peoples in Hawai’i is not. Donning an “Indian Chief” headdress is cultural appropriation, but having your hair braided and face painted to participate in a Native American celebration you’ve been invited to by a member of the community is not. Wearing a Middle Eastern keffiyeh because it goes with your outfit is cultural appropriation, but donning a hijab to go into the market while on a trip to Dubai is not.
Respecting a culture may require you to dive into its fashions, but this is done with the intent to participate in the culture without insulting it. You can wear some of the fashions to show your appreciation in certain situations, but it’s important to stay away from the things with religious significance or those things that comprise the identity or heritage of another culture’s people. Items with deep cultural, social, and religious connections are off limits because their use by outsiders will only insult, distort, or erase that importance.
What other fashion items may have a cultural importance and should be left to the people of that culture?
Religion should be off limits to something like cultural appropriation, but it isn’t. Religious practices have been stolen by American and Western cultures for quite some time. Practices like vision quests and yoga were used originally to connect with a culture’s deity or spiritualism, but since have become trends for Americans with disposable income. This type of religious cultural appropriation damages another culture by not only stealing, but by also putting down its beliefs, erasing their importance, and turning the ritual into another beauty treatment. For example, vision quests once were used to guide a teen boy into adulthood. Now they are used to help rich women “find themselves” at expensive retreats. The people who once practiced the religion are barred from participating if they wanted to because of the huge price tags these fads often carry.
A classic case of this type of cultural appropriation is yoga.1 In America, yoga is an exercise that involves stretching, breathing, and twisting the body in a calm environment. There are variations like “hot yoga” practiced in a 90-degree Fahrenheit room. Yoga in America is often practiced in upscale studios with mostly white women attending with expensive mats, outfits, and gear.
In India, yoga is a Hindu religious practice that is open to everyone. There is usually no charge. Yoga is used in conjunction with prayer, meditation, and religious study to keep oneself centered and happy, among other things. In India, no special gear or studio is needed. Yoga is practiced outdoors, at home, and in temples, but always with open air moving through the space.
Yoga in India is practiced by all, in the open, with no restrictions. Western yoga is often a status activity that can be practiced in expensive spaces with accessories that people in the origin culture could never afford.
Western yoga is a whitewashed version of a sacred religious practice, taking place inside, with music, and even with extreme heating on during the summer. It strips away the religious and spiritual significance and any other connection to Hindu culture to turn a tidy profit. South Asian women who would like to participate in their culture in America might not be able to afford to attend these classes, or when they do, they experience racism or microaggressions during the class.
The spa and relaxation trend has appropriated many religious practices to bring Americans with extra money something new to spend it on. Native American rituals that utilize a sweat lodge and vision quest are used along with other special rituals and practices to help a person find spiritual clarity or achieve spiritual growth. Mainstream American culture took those practices and turned them into spa sessions that are stripped of their spiritual connections and the traditions of the people they originate from. One “sweat lodge” in Chicago likens itself to a sauna that allows for groups to get together and relax in an intimate setting.2 These sessions are very expensive, which exclude many people as well as those who still use the original rituals today.
The actual sweat lodge experience is not as glamorous or sanitized as the Westernized co-opted version. There’s dirt, vegetation, smells (from the animal skins), and more.
Culturally appropriated versions of the sweat lodge and vision quest have done a lot of work to erase the idea of the original version. Few people participating in the appropriated steam treatments probably know that many North American tribes still practice the sweat lodge rituals3 and that vision quests are meant to be a rite of passage for boys around age 11 or 12.4 White men sitting in a luxury sauna and women meditating to find their purpose in the world are the image that has pushed aside the tradition, making way for a whitewashed version that is more attractive. The idea of a vision quest is thus changed to be a ritual, practiced by any Native tribe, anyone in that tribe, as a means of selfreflection. Notice how far this version is from the true vision quest and sweat lodge practices?
What about the practices that have an origin in several religions? Can something be culturally appropriated if it comes from more than one place? To settle this, let’s look at the practice of meditation. It is an activity that incorporates breathing, stretching, and focusing on an idea, object, or goal. The issue with meditation is not access, but the use of a sacred practice in a secular manner, oftentimes for profit. The damage here is the cultural appropriation minimizes the importance of the ritual and its significance for the people who believe in it. It’s like throwing a Bible on the floor. To Christians, this is an act of disrespect to their religion and means you don’t value their beliefs. Appropriating meditation from the various religions that use it is like the appropriators tossed it on the floor.
