Cultural Appropriation and Its Affects On Other Cultures.

Artists, or anyone for that matter, who appropriate styles should acknowledge the sources from which they appropriate from; by expressing oneself through appropriation a person also has the chance to speak out on topics such as racism and stereotypes, which can be denied the opportunity to members of some cultures.3

In the documentary film “If Only I Were an Indian” gives a Cree couple and a Ojibway woman from Manitoba the chance to see how a group of Czechs and Slovaks “get in touch with the North American aboriginal way of life and (how they) live it”.  At the beginning of the film not only was I in shock at how these people were conducting themselves but the sight of “150 pale pasty Eastern Europeans---clad only in thongs, whooping and dancing around in a pastoral valley---is amusing to say the least.  But director John Paskievich’s sensitive handling of the situation turns it from a joke to a deeply touching tribute to aboriginal culture”.4  The Cree people and Ojibway woman take on similar feelings of shock till they are given a tour and are impressed and touched at how real the setting appears.  At first glance a person might feel that these Europeans were conducting themselves in an inappropriate manner.  Yet, in a series of up-close interviews they tell their audience “how Russian communism left them lacking any sense of community, able to trust no one but their immediate family”.4  As the film progresses I am able to feel more at ease with the clothing they wear; focusing more on their attitudes and less on the nakedness and that of their actions.  Europe has a history of how the image of aboriginal people are portrayed; through Karl Mays’ novel of “a cowboy hero who is helped by aboriginal people” and “works of late nineteenth- and early twentieth –century naturalist Earnest Thompson Seton”.4  Seton encouraged the ways of aboriginal people, their love for the land and nature.  As the Czechs demonstrate an aboriginal dance, one of the elders comments on the “sloppy and a-rhythmic” to it.  Instead of laughing or scolding for such imperfection of the dance, the elder makes the excellent point that, “it must be hard to learn traditional dances from a book… you need a teacher.  That’s not something these people have access to”.4  This statement speaks true about how most people learn about other cultures, that it is always better to have someone from the particular culture of interest in order to understand it fully, clearly, and without misconceptions or stereotypes.  The male elder from the visiting group reveals “ the film’s greatest irony—that the Europeans who once crossed the ocean to conquer a culture, now see that same culture as their only salvation”.4

A majority of stereotypes that people have about Native Americans “are rooted in the typical childhood”; in the game kids play called “Cowboys and Indians”.  American movies have also contributed to these stereotypes, by wrongly depicting rituals and ceremonies it promotes this belief that people think Natives are “barbarians and savages”.  “Movies aimed to amuse, not to edify: they used Indians for their entertainment value, chiefly as villains”.  Generally, the Hollywood movies portrayed Indians as attacking wagons, scalping cowboys and soldiers, slaughtering settlers and creating mayhem.  “ Little thought was given to historical or cultural accuracy”.6  White actors were also given the roles of Native people, when Native actors were given the chance to perform they had to conform to the stereotype of the Hollywood Indian.  “Costumes and dances were seldomly authentic and the Native actors spoke a form of drunken English consisting mainly of ‘How’ and ‘ugh’”.6   This type of appropriation is unacceptable, without proper consultation and understanding of the First Nation’s culture it allows non-native Canadians to form incorrect impressions of Native people.  Hollywood and network television are making attempts to expand the imagery of Aboriginal people in CBS series such as “Northern Exposure”, “Dances With Wolves”, “Legends of the Falls” and “Maverick”.  Yet, even as we feel that we are becoming a culture that is aware of stereotypes, racism, and appropriation, there are still money hungry corporations that care little about these issues or appropriation by introducing characters like Disney’s “Pocahontas”.  “ This is still a white fantasy, a point emphasized in another rendering of the tale, a 1995 television movie/ video release, “Pocahontas: The Legend”.  The issue of the representation of Native Americans has been around for centuries: our white culture has “known them, gazed on them, and objectified them, appropriating their sexual and personal identities for its own purposes”, also equally dehumanizing them.7

“Without an understanding of the role of power and its history in the context of colonialism and imperialism in determining what constitutes cultural appropriation, one is left with what can easily be another tool of fascist cultural exclusivity.”  The people who are speaking out strongly against these actions of exploitive white artists are the minority groups.  Legislation that is seeking to end cultural appropriation would appear to come from the group of individuals like people of colour and First Nations decent; but rather it is white beauracrats who are creating policies and “in many ways are merely replicating old racist and divisive models of government through an appropriation and misinterpretation of progressive political ideology.”8  If this continues in this direction it will allow only Natives to write about Natives and White Europeans to write only about White Europeans but what of my own personal experiences in working with Natives up north in Red Lake, Ontario.  Do my experiences amount to nothing simply because I am not native?   “I make a distinction between exploitive readings of my experience and readings that emerge out of dialogue and harvest interaction founded on common humanity.”8

Much of what children learn about Natives is set with the imagery in “games and pastimes, from story books and school books, to summer camp and more recently comic books, television and movies”.6  The previous points that I have written about movies state how minority cultures are being appropriated and further more school books rarely, if any, actually tell the true story of cultures like the First Nation peoples of Canada.  “ Few children in Canada had any direct knowledge of Native people, who were pretty much confined to their reserves at the margins of society… while kids were exposed to images of the Indian created by various white writers and educators”.6  As not all images were negative they were not all positive either and represented “the concerns and prejudices of White adult society instead of actual Native Canadians.”6  This is when cultural appropriation needs to be seriously addressed, stealing a culture to take for one’s own use and distort it from it’s authentic and original form for profit is wrong.  I am not stating that artists should not learn from other cultures and be influenced to create but when a piece of that culture is deliberately changed to suit only their needs and personal profit can harm that culture’s image and should be considered wrong.  This is better said by Kwame Dawes, “…these works (folk songs, tales, and written collections) are flawed by the heavy-handed application of western values, prejudices and belief systems to the interpretation of the folk ways of non-white people.  This, coupled with the exploited absence of accountability to the people being written about, and the lack of respect for their values, has generated work that is at best poor and unreliable quality and at worst simply offensive and totally destructive.”8  This may now discourage artists to take on certain projects because they may be heavily scrutinized should the pieces show a negative image or stereotype of non0white cultures.  While Canada searches for its identity to understand and build upon itself, Native Canadian Nations are especially well positioned to bring about change in Canadian policy for them and they are taking action.8  It is the disrespect for other cultures that has driven many Native and non-white people to press forth with cultural appropriation.  What Canadian First Nation’s are fighting for is the “chance to be able to determine how (their) stories are going to be told, and a chance to ensure that (their) values and culture are respected by those who seek to describe them.”8   Many Native stories and teachings are passed down to generations orally; this is an example of when the true image of the culture shown can be ensured and determine the outcome by elders so that the true culture is revealed and cultural appropriation does not become a problem.  At one time if you wanted to learn about Aboriginal people you would learn from people like missionaries, anthropologists and adventurers, books that were not even written by Aboriginal people. So, you see you can still learn about other cultures even when the information may be true but it can never be as good when it comes from the original source itself.

There is a basic instinct for people to learn from one another, this is a fact of human condition.  “This kind of interaction and sharing of culture whether it be exploitive or that of mutual respect and sharing, is something that is arguably inherent to the human behaviour”.  To say that one should not learn from or borrow from another culture is to deny being human, “interaction is inevitable, influences must occur”.8  Kwane Dawes states that it is our responsibility to define what cultural appropriation means to each of us.  We must be cautious with those who have cynical and twisted irony, “choose to appropriate even the very weapons of our liberation.”8  This is the very challenge that First Nations face, if cultures do not acknowledge each other then each will be left to “wage wars in isolation (and) we will all lose”.8

Our Canadian society is one of a complex cultural make-up, with this comes all sorts of wonderful spiritual enrichments within the country.  However, “New Agers” are a current complaint of Native Americans as these people adopt aspects of their religion without understanding the true beliefs behind some practices.  “There is much to learn from cultures of different Native American Nations, each of which has its own distinct ways and beliefs.  But there is a difference between learning about a tradition, and learning the tradition.”  When taking on a part of another culture’s religion as your own is one thing, but to distort it with another religion can be called “spiritual irresponsibility”.  It is better to understand how Native religion survived a federal ban, which was lifted in 1978, than to disrespect it, as it becomes your current weekend hobby or interest.  A few hours spent learning about ceremonial dances and sweat lodges through books or paying to see one performed does not give a person the right to then claim to be able to perform one themselves.  Mary Bird wrote that “it’s a disease and it’s catching… you don’t have to participate, just observe, and learn.  Don’t try to jump into everything.  We’ve shed blood, sweat, and tears over religion for generations”.9  This new craze with Indian spirituality may appear to be for respect, the broadening of people’s minds to other cultures.  When in fact, these “New Agers” are profiting by selling books, records, sweat lodges and peace pipes that describe, “How you too can be Indian”.  When in truth, “spiritual leaders reach the people because it is their responsibility to pass what they have learned from their elders to the younger generation” and do not charge for these services.9  There is now a law in the U.S for example, Public Law 101-644 of the 1990 Indian Arts and Crafts Act, that states: “it is unlawful to offer or display for sale or sell any good, with or without government trademark, in a manner that falsely suggests it is Indian produced, an Indian product, or the product of a particular Indian or Indian tribe or Indian arts and crafts organization, resident within the United States”.  These particular people who invest their money in such products I believe want to become only part Indian.  In being able to pick and choose what part of the culture the person likes they will generally leave out struggles of the Native people like treaty rights, an end to substance abuse, or sterilization abuse.   “They do not want to do anything that would tarnish their romanticized notions of what it means to become an Indian”.9  If these “New Agers” truly heard the Natives cries they would realize their appropriations simply for their consumerist needs.  “Consequently, they do not understand Indian people or (their) struggles for survival, and thus they can have no genuine understanding of Indian spiritual practices.”9  The most outrageous was a show on HBO that hosted a man who proclaims he to be a Cherokee sex therapist and who teaches couples how to have sex “the Cherokee way”.  As the man has each couple stand outside in a field naked, taking a look at the genitals of each individual tells them what kind of “animal” they are.  It is not only crazy that people pay money for this but Natives would not go around naked having sex in fields with other couples around them.  “There is desire to own all the accoutrements of (Native) people, but no patience to learn their wisdom”.5

Little did I know until recently that there is something called a “wannabe”, “Twinkies”, apart from the exploiters.  Apparently a “wannabe” may be an admirer of the Native culture but goes beyond that as he thinks he knows all there is to be about being “Indian”.  White-washed books, romanticized images, and television, is where these people gain their so-called knowledge.  These people know little of the reality of Natives and choose to live their lives “within the boundaries of distorted images, fictionalized ‘wisdom’ and circumstances of days gone by”.  These types of “wannabe’s” tend to buy such things as Indian blankets that are made in Korea, or have plastic little headdresses that dangle from heir rear view mirror of their car and may not know that movies like “Dances With Wolves” is not a history lesson.   “Twinkies” go far beyond the “wannabe’s” as they dive into saying that they have Native background simply for the profit gain.  They usually portray themselves as Shamans, spiritual teachers, healers, or leaders but know this, that true Native spiritual leaders would not charge you money for sweat lodges or other spiritual rituals.  “Each one must learn for himself the highest wisdom.  It cannot be taught in words.”-Smowhala

Apart from Hollywood movies, art, religion, and literature that can and has make a large impact on the Native image, so too has sports.  The recent debate in sports involves professional baseball, football, hockey teams and their inappropriate mascots or logos.  Arguments from certain individuals claim that Native people should be “honoured” to have such teams with the names, Cleveland Indians, The Atlanta Braves, The Washington Redskins, or even The Edmonton Eskimos.  I hardly think that these names are appropriate, especially in this day and age, but people do not seem to understand the insult and the disrespect this gives Natives.   In order for others to comprehend where I was coming from I would point out that people would not accept the name New York Niggers, so why then is the name “Redskins” acceptable?  These inappropriate names are not only in professional sports but high school mascots as well.  “Redskin” refers to the colour of Indian’s skin, and this is common to most people’s knowledge but what they do not know is that it is referring to the colour of a dead Indian that was being sold by white people.  “No group has the right to usurp these sacred symbols, (or use names in which) to imitate their use without real understand”.11  Luckily more educators around the U.S and Canada are changing their mascots names, there still remains 1,750 of a total 3,000 that have yet to drop these inappropriate names.

Companies are also learning to adapt to changing times, Crayola set an example by changing it’s crayon from “Indian Red” to “Poppy Red”.  There are still other examples of cultural appropriation such as GM’s car named the “Pontiac”.  This car was named so after Pontiac a well known Indian Chief.  Though there was no insult intended in the image the company still” appropriated an actual historical character and turned him into a commercial icon of the industrial age, A figure who once led an unprecedented resistance against White civilization is now a symbol of that civilization”.6  These are just a few of the examples in which Indian images are used to represent what non-Natives have come to think about Indians, and that they are now appropriated by non-Natives as meaningful symbols of their own culture.6

There is nothing wrong with learning about another culture or adopting different aspects as long as it is done with the correct understanding and respect the culture deserves.  Making blanket statements about cultural appropriation should be avoided as I have pointed out numerous different forms.  “Cultural Appropriation is sometimes to be condemned” but at the same time you cannot restrict people to simply live only their own culture.  “Cultural Appropriation is inevitable, but superficial possession of a culture’s image, without understanding its significance, can be insulting and ridiculous”.1  One cannot help but be influenced by other cultures but as I have said before without permission or proper representation Cultural Appropriation might as well be referred to as stealing.

When we can turn our minds to Cultural Appropriation and deal with the issue we will start to see changes for the better.  “When Cultural Appropriation is counteracted by the qualities of respect, sensitivity and equal opportunity, the result is work that is wonderfully developed and filled with richness of cultural interaction.”8  Cultural appropriation can be avoided but there are differences between stealing, borrowing, and given permission to take.  It is only natural to be intrigued and interested in another culture, but understand that just as you do not want your image to be misrepresented or your values to be held in disregard neither does any other culture.

Works Cited

Bahk, Sarom. “Steamed Rice”. Simon Fraeser University’s Independent Student Newspaper. 27 January, 2003: Vol.113.

Bird, Elizabeth S. “Dressing in Feathers: The Construction of the Indian in American Popular Culture”. Westview Press; Boulder, Colorado, 1996.

Dawes, Kwame. “Re-Appropriating Cultural Appropriation”. Fuse Magazine.Summer 1993, Vol.16. No. 5&6:7-15.

Deichmann, Julie. “The Cultural Debate”. .

Fixico, Donald L. “ The Urban Indian Experience in America”. University of New Mexico Press; New Mexico, 2000.

Francis, Daniel. “The Imaginary Indian: The Image of the Indian in Canadian Culture”. Arsenal Pulp Press; Vancouver, B.C., 1992.

Fung, Richard. “Working Through Cultural Appropriation”. Fuse Magazine.Summer 1993, Vol.16. No. 5&6:16-24.

“If Only I Were An Indian” .

Jean, Terrri. “Cultural Theft: When Honoring and Borrowing One’s Cultural Identity Turns into Thievery”. .

Meyer, Carter Jones and Diana Royer. “Selling the Indian: Commercializing& Appropriating American Indian Cultures”. University of Arizona Press; Arizona, 2001.

McNutt, Debra, Judy Reinke, and Zoltan Grossman. “Exploitation of Native Spirituality”. .

Podbrecnik, Kathrin. “American Movies Can Help Perpetuate European Stereotypes”. Sho-Ban News. 29 August 2002 .

        

Root, Debra. “Cannibal Culture: Art, Appropriation, and the Commodification of Difference”. Westview Press; Boulder, Colorado, 1996.

Thorton, Martin and Roy Todd, “Aboriginal People and Other Canadians: Shaping New Relationships”. University of Ottowa Press; Ottowa, Ontario, 2001.

Valaskakis, Gail Guthrie. “ Dance Me Inside: Pow Wow and Being Indian” . Fuse Magazine.Summer 1993, Vol.16. No. 5&6:39-50.

        

Walkem, Ardith. “ Stories and Voices”. Fuse Magazine.Summer 1993, Vol.16. No. 5&6:31-34.

Young, James O. “The Ethics of Cultural Appropriation”.  Dalhousie Review. Vol.80, No.3 (2000): 301-316.

        

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