Quote:
Originally Posted by kane
Some people are, for certain.
Take, for example, people who scream about cultural appropriation. If a white person does their hair in cornrows some people think it is cultural appropriation and it is bad. This country is supposed to be a melting pot of ideas and beliefs. If a person of another race or culture thinks something from your race/culture is cool enough that they want to experinece it too, you should be flattered, not offended.
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J
Sadly, I've heard people say that someone "wants to be black" if white and hair is in cornrows. In my teens I had a curly perm (stop laughing) and I heard that it was a "faux fro".
Cornrows are identified and associated with black people. White guys who wear their pants below the hips are "acting black". That is so fucked up to think that way.
I remember in junior high a white girl had multiple ear piercings. An old teacher commented, "are you trying to look like those people in Africa?" Girl asked what she meant and she said, "you look like a colored slave" and I asked my mother what she meant.
It meant mom went to school and asked the principal if prejudice and racism were part of the curriculum. It meant I was transferred to another classroom, away from that teacher. She was retiring at the end of school year so they let her stay.
She commented on my being Jewish as "I've never taught one of them." I hadn't told my parents but finally did so. She wasn't invited to my Bas Mitzvah like other teachers and told me it was good "coz I don't like Jew food." I got angry and said "cacamun" which is Yiddish for "I shit on you." I wouldn't tell her what it meant and she suspended me. Uh, my father went to school the next day and I was unsuspended really quickly. Principal said I had to apologize and I refused unless she did first. My father surprisingly said I should not apologize for responding as I did because the teacher deserved so much more. Mom convinced me to apologize for swearing and to say "I'm sorry you're so prejudiced." Let's just say things were tense between the folks for a few days!
My folks dealt with prejudice and didn't want me near that woman. I never forgot that teacher, due to her racism & prejudice.
Anyway, no culture owns a hairstyle or clothing item. It is, however, disrespectful to copy a style that represents traditional culture and pain. If your relatives wore their hair in cornrows while slaves in cotton fields, to keep cooler, it's honoring them. If you're trying to look cool and fit in, it's disrespectful. I know that's beyond most people's thinking when they copy, but the underlying originality should matter.