tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8304928500646903522.post1554029815925755715..comments2024-03-28T18:32:05.933-04:00Comments on bensozia: Kenan Malik: Cultural Appropriation is the New BlasphemyJohnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01037215533094998996noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8304928500646903522.post-574971022354215872017-06-14T11:20:21.168-04:002017-06-14T11:20:21.168-04:00It's always going to be a messy, complicated t...It's always going to be a messy, complicated topic, but there's a few simple things that everyone engaged in it should always do - be respectful, act in good faith, and err on the side of caution.<br /><br />When Disney made <i>Moana</i>, they took the time and made the effort to do all of the above. Obviously they couldn't perfectly please everyone, but they went out of their way to do lots of research, to consult with a broad spectrum of people within the culture they were appropriating, and to create a film which overwhelmingly was well received across both cultures for its reasonably accurate, largely non-contentious, generally positive and uplifting depiction of Polynesian myth and tradition.<br /><br />Now, of course, the degree to which you have to make such an effort differs on a case by case basis. Not all cultures are on equal footing, and it's much easier to borrow from those cultures which have been historically ascendant, rather than those cultures that have been marginalized or even outright oppressed.<br /><br />If I want to write a story about werewolves terrorizing the streets of London, I don't have to be very careful about it. I could set my story in an ostensible "London" that in reality more closely resembles New York City, and I could decide to write my werewolves as space aliens, and yet very few people would be offended by those inaccuracies. Why? Because neither werewolves nor London is a marginalized, misunderstood piece of culture. They're extremely well represented, and consequently no one is going to confuse my inaccurate versions for the real things. And it also helps a lot that I'm writing from within the shared culture group of English descended societies.<br /><br />But if I want to write a story based in the beliefs and culture of Australian aborigines, who have been historically been poorly represented, I suddenly need to be a lot more careful. These are a people who have been exploited and misrepresented by unscrupulous individuals from my culture group for centuries. They and their culture are not broadly familiar, or well understood. If I represent them inaccurately, people have no basis of comparison to allow them to differentiate by inaccurate version from the real thing, and I can create all sorts of misconceptions and false stereotypes, which actively hurt the aborigines.<br /><br />Perhaps even worse, I'm robbing them of agency. Instead of being allowed to represent themselves and their own culture, they're suddenly being represented by me and my work's inaccurate depiction of their culture. Would you accept some random person you don't know and didn't choose to speak in your name and on your behalf? Especially if the way in which they represent you is one you disagree with - or worse, one which you find wildly offensive? Of course not.<br /><br />When we appropriate culture, we are speaking on someone else's behalf. Hence the focus on seeking "permission" to do so. Hence the focus on speaking truthfully, and in a way that reflects positively on the people being spoken about. You wouldn't want someone stealing your voice and using it to put words in your mouth that you don't agree with - so always be very careful to never yourself do that to others.G. Verlorennoreply@blogger.com