“The most disrespected person in America is the black woman. The most unprotected person in America is the black woman. The most neglected person in America is the black woman.” – Malcolm X
Malcolm X wasn’t lying when he stated these facts. Black women have always been at the bottom of the barrell in the eyes of America. To be black and a woman in America, as beautiful as it is, can and does also come with a lot of downsides – like constantly being belittled for how you look and your skin color only to see someone get lip injections, butt surgery and a tan. As much as we love celebrities, myself included, we need to hold them accountable for cultural appropriations, specifically as it relates to style.
This article from byrdie explains that braids can be tracked back 3500 BC and originated in Africa– plus there’s more about the history, so it’s a good read. Kylie Jenner, Kim Kardashian, Katie Perry and, recently, Bhad Bhabie have all had braids or cornrows at some point. Demi Lovato and Justin Bieber have had dreadlocks. I think that the issue lies in the fact that black women have always been told that braids and locks are unprofessional at work, so non-black people wearing braids and locks seems to be a double standard. Less than a week ago, one of my sorority sisters was watching a video, and I peeped over to see what was on. It was an explanation of how braids were used by people during the slave trade to hide food so that they would have something to eat later, as food was scarce for the average slave. In addition to it being a double standard, it’s about the history of the hairstyle and what it represents.
We all remember when Miley Cyrus had her phase of exploiting hip-hop culture, from songs like Do My Thang to We Can’t Stop, from twerking, wearing her grills and then some. Then, she went on to diss hip-hop and went back to some of her old ways and this article on The Whisp has more to say about it. There’s a trend of non-black people wanting to appropriate bits and pieces of black culture when it’s popular or convenient for them, but then putting it down or not acknowledging it or black people when unjust situations occur.
Black culture isn’t the only culture appropriated by celebs. There have been several instances of appropriating Indian, Asian and other cultures.
The point is that people can’t speak negatively about other cultures and dislike them only to turn around and decide that they want to use certain aspects of said culture for music videos and likes. It’s downright offensive and ignorant.
The next time that you think about testing the waters by trying things from another culture, think twice and ask “am I appropriating?”