Culture is what constructs a society’s way of life regarding religion, arts, cuisine, language, social behavior, and other characteristics within their geographical boundaries. A way that we can all distinguish different cultures easily is through their distinctive dishes. People could easily identify our Puerto Rican culture with our mofongo, frituras, arroz con habichuelas and biztec encebollado, etc. Another matter that distinguishes cultures is through music, like what reggae is for Jamaicans, arab music for Arabs, merengue for Dominicans, and reggaetón for Puerto Ricans (our guilty pleasure). To anything that we may perceive to be part of a culture, it could also be very ambiguous. It could imply many things and may easily offend any minority group whose culture is being misinterpreted or taken wrongfully. Another way of seeing this issue would be that a person does not necessarily mean any harm because they might be appreciating the culture that they are listening, wearing, indulging. These are some consequences that draw the line between Culture Appropriation and Culture Appreciation.
A thin line exists between these two concepts, but it is still important to recognize them. So, what is Culture Appropriation, Culture Appreciation, and what should we be aware of?
Culture Appropriation results in the act of members of a dominate culture take or borrow things from another culture belonging to a minority group without their concern nor completely understanding its genuine value and originality. Like getting a Henna on Non-Middle Eastern events, eating churros with nutella at a pizza place, or wearing bindis for an ocassion to “look cute”.
For instance, any store that we may find on tourist friendly sites may contain some items that are significant to us as well as other objects that have nothing to do with our way of life. On a personal note, I experienced a time where I visited a store at El Viejo San Juan and the store was selling ponchos, whose purpose is to provide warmth for cold weather, whereas we are located on an island that our closest thing to snow is some fruity flavored piraguas or shaved ice. An example of this is the way big companies design clothes with a hint of another culture’s wardrobe and claim to call it “authentic”.
Other examples have come a crossed with Culture Appropriation tying problematic musical performances such as Miley twerking on her concerts and music videos, Katy Perry performing as a geisha at the American Music Awards in 2013, Lana del Rey on her Ride video wearing a Native American headdress, and other artists accused of culturally approriating minorities.
Culture Appreciation is learning about the other culture in a respectful and courteous manner. We culturally appreciate when we educate ourselves before practicing or acquiring anything, and through the knowledge of the people of the culture itself.
Illustration by Mohhamed Fayaz
It is difficult for us today to recognize whether one is appropriating or appreciating, especially in modern society. Sometimes we commit appropriation due to ignorance or simple “aesthetics”, but we must keep in mind that if we’d like to share references we must learn more abroad to have no intent in offending anyone in our global community. More appreciation, less appropriation!