Reader response on cultural appopriation

The past two days, I wrote 2 blog posts about this "cultural appropriation" nonsense.
 http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2014/03/cultural-appopriation-and-cultural.html
http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2014/03/cultural-appopriation-and-cultural_19.html


Now, I got an email from a blog reader. It was in response to what I said about Randa Jarrar, the Arab-American women who wrote 2 articles stating she  "can't stand white belly dancers".  Jarrar claims it's bad that "white people" to participate in "non-white" cultural things because "whites oppress and steal cultures" and that it's OK for "non-whites" to participate in "white" cultural things because "white oppress and steal cultures"


It is classic!

There doesn't seem to be a place to leave comments on your blog, so I'm sending one here.  Your part about belly dancing being appropriated by the Arabs from other cultures got me thinking, didn't the Arabs appropriate the Old Testament (and much of the base content used in Islam) from Christianity and Judaism?  

Also, the Arabs occupied Spain and Portugal for 700 or so years, and I think invaded Sicily at some point as well, so even if whats her names point about Europeans not being able to use the cultural traits of those other Europeans colonized was valid, which it isn't, the same point could be made that Europeans of Spanish, Portuguese and Sicilian descent have the same relationship to Arabs as Jarrar says Arabs have to Europeans.  Also, although not the dominant group per se, the Arabs were also significant in the Ottoman Empire which controlled Greece and several other Eastern European countries for several hundred years. For that matter, Arabs were practicing slavery in Africa centuries before the Europeans discovered the Americas!

Thank you!


The problem with all these "cultural appropriation" whiners is that they say "learn your history", but it is them that need to learn history!

These "cultural appropriation" whiners think history is just about evil white Europeans picking on peaceful non-white peoples.

History is a lot more complicated than that! 


All over the world, tribes were conquering, killing (even to the point of genocide) and enslaving rival tribes.

What do you think the Aztecs, Zulus, Arabs, Turks, Incas, and a whole bunch of other tribes were doing before the Europeans came to their territory? 

They were raping and pillaging and enslaving and all the other bad stuff! Off course, many of those cultures also built great civilizations and contributed to education, art and a whole bunch of other good stuff! No culture is totally perfect nor totally evil!


The only thing got the Europeans to conquer the most was they were the first to make really advanced ships (to bring mass # of troops, settlers, etc to far, far, far away) and to use firearms and explosives so effectively. Also, they were able to run into isolated populations (ie Native Americans, Pacific Islanders) that haven't had the chance to gain immunity to diseases.

And it wasn't even all European populations, it was just a few European countries (ie France, Britain, Spain, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium and Germany) that did so!

Meanwhile, other European nations (ie Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ukraine, Belarus) spent most of the last few centuries being being conquered by nearby European powers.

But OMG if someone of Latvian, Irish or Ukrainian descent decided to do something "non-white" like belly dance, have corn-rows or wear a kimono. Because chumps like Randa Jarrar and Brittney Cooper says  "history says white people are all oppressors who conquer, oppress and steal cultures"? Fool, you learn your history!

By the way, the only great powers in this world is USA (mostly white, but has a half-African descendant as president, plus has a growing non-white population), Russia (white-run nation gaining their power back), and China.  

Iran is a regional power scaring people, but is nowhere near taking over the world. It is mostly a threat to nearby nations, just so happen that one of them was a refuge for Holocaust survivors!  

India is a rising power, but they don't really care about expanding its military power to outside lands. They're more concerned about Pakistan being taken over by fanatics.

Other than Russia, the rest of Europe has no real military power. It's mostly nations free-loading off US might!  European empires are over! All they got left are a few territories that don't even have enough natural resources to prosper in the modern world! And even then, some of those territories have their own sovereignty movement (ie. French-run Tahiti) which can make it likely that the Europeans will continue to retreat even more!

Sheesh, even North Korea (the poor half of Korea) is a much bigger threat than all these European empires of the past.  Nobody is scared of Netherlands or Portugal anymore! But people fear a North Korean attack!

So Randa Jarrar and Brittney Cooper need to learn their history and learn the present! Europeans were only conquering far away lands for just a few centuries (compared to multiple millenniums, most of which, the Europeans were far behind Middle East and East Asia in advancement, power and prestige) and are basically retreating to their own shell (with Russia as the only exception).

And even in the US, white power has declined. Randa Jarrar and Brittney Cooper can point out some stories of hate crimes, but most crime is where the predator and victim are the same race. I discussed that issue at http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2013/07/the-fear-of-other.html.

At this point, white belly dancers and white rappers just want to have fun. Just like how Aloe Blacc and Darius Rucker just want to have fun in mostly Euro-American music genres.

Let's all enjoy each other's culture's.

As Rodney King said "Can't we all just get along?"

Cultural appopriation and cultural integration (part2)

Yesterday, I had a blog post about "cultural appropriation" which is a code word for "how dare those white folks use cultural practices from non-white cultures"
http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2014/03/cultural-appopriation-and-cultural.html


Well, lo and behold, Randa Jarrar the same racist punk who didn't like "white belly dancers" is back at it again.
http://www.salon.com/2014/03/18/i_still_cant_stand_white_belly_dancers/

Here is her sorry excuse for "logic"

“So black women can’t be ballerinas?” If black women were part of a dominant culture that had colonized Europe starting at the Italian renaissance, and later colonized France and Russia, and if, after all that, black ballerinas danced in bikini tops, then yes, this argument would work. But it doesn’t.
“I’m Egyptian and I love white belly dancers!” Good for you. Come live in America for 23 years, have people throw lit cigarettes at you and make fun of your mother’s accent and sneer at your muhajjaba aunt and try to deport your brother, see a white woman be applauded in a bar while dancing to “Walk Like an Egyptian” in a “Nefertiti hat,” and if, after that, you still feel the same way, cool, write your own opinion piece about it.
“You’re an idiot! America is a melting pot!” Yes, America pretends to be a melting pot, but this means everyone has to adhere to a cultural norm, and in the process, minorities are negated and further made invisible.
“It’s appreciation, not appropriation!” No. Please read this for more about appreciation vs. appropriation.
“But Korean tacos! Mixing cultures is delicious!” Again, if the person making and serving those tacos is from a dominant culture that, for centuries, colonized Korea and Mexico, and then served those tacos to you in a conical Asian hat and a mariachi outfit, with a bikini top underneath, then, yeah, this argument would work. Again, it doesn’t.
”You’re a racist!” Please, save us both time, watch this, and learn how that’s not possible.
“You’re appropriating white culture by using a computer right now!” I can’t even honor this level of idiocy and entitlement with a response.

In other words, Randa Jarrar is saying "how dare you ask me to be consistent. How dare you ask me to stop using double standards?"


Randa Jarrar is a racist punk who stereotypes all European-Americans, as if they are all the same. She thinks that just because a few "white" kids who teased during childhood, she assumes all "white people" are out to humiliate "her people".

This so goes against Martin Luther King's plea to judge people based not on the color of their skin, but by the content of their character!

But to Randa Jarrar, all Europeans are out to conquer and oppress, nevermind that countries like Lativa, Lithuania, Estonia, Ukraine, Belarus, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Switzerland, Slovenia and Ireland HAVE NEVER CONQUERED A SINGLE NON-WHITE LAND!

But if any of their descendants do anything non-European, Randa Jarrar will accuse them of "cultural appropriation" all because a bunch of British, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch and Germans were conquering large land masses before our generation were even born?

That's as stupid as saying "the Koreans bombed Pearl Harbor". That's as stupid as Floyd Mayweather telling Manny Pacquaio to "make sushi". 

Meanwhile, the Arabs (Randa Jarrar's people), the Aztecs, the Zulus, and so many other ethnic tribes have been conquering and oppressing other tribes for years until the Europeans did the same exact thing to them! 

But all that reality gets ignored in this politically correct world, in which "white people" are made to feel unearned guilt in participating in "non-white" activities.

Nevermind that Macklemore won an award in a genre that borrowed HEAVILY from Kraftwerk (a German EDM pioneering group that inspired Grandmaster Flash, Afrika Bambaata, and Dr. Dre...........ask them if you dont believe me) 

Randa Jarrar calls any arguments against her "whitesplaining" (even though in my case, my German last name came from my mom, and my dad is not only from Mexico, but is a dark brown native Mexican!)


Just like I mentioned in a previous blog post..................... just like how NFL star Richard Sherman feels that calling him a "thug" is just another way of calling him the N-word.................................

................................words like  "cultural appropriation" and "whitesplaining" is just another way to call someone a "f------ haole" or a "white cracker m-----f-----"

Again, this goes against the spirit of Martin Luther King's dream of having people judged NOT on the color of the skin, but by the content of their character!

Sadly, towards the end of King's life, he was seen as an "Uncle Tom" by militant activists because of  his nonviolent tactics, and his refusal to hate European-Americans!  Nevermind that his ways saved our country from a bloody race war!

But people like Randa Jarrar, Brittney Cooper, Veronica Bayetti Flores and other scumbags don't want a post-racial society, they want racial conflict!

They pick easy targets like "white belly dancers", Macklemore, Miley Cyrus, Lorde .........all of whom would never be defended by the white nationalists nor the Fox News crowd. 

They are afraid to pick fights with someone like Eminem who is great at the art of the  insults, and has D-12,  Dr Dre and 50 Cent to back him up! 

But their bullying ways will come back to haunt them!  

However, just dont take my word for it.

Here are some classic comments to Randa Jarrar's latest piece of trash.

 

lincolncat

Notice how she ignores all the reasonable arguments against her first piece and responds only to the ridiculous, irrational reactions.  Arabs have also enslaved and colonized and appropriated, as people point out.  Some white women who 'belly dance' study the culture and music and don't confuse gauzy pants and blue eye shadow with genuine Middle Eastern dance attire.  But never mind.  Jarrar is determined to be the victim while all white belly dancers are the oblivious cultural  appropriators.  So let her.

Khawer

A few questions. Do you see a difference between appropriation and cultural exchange? The latter has been happening for as long as us humans have had cultures to exchanged.

Also, some context would be nice. Belly Dancing is originally an art form of the Dom people. The Dom people are "gyspys" related to the Roma people in Europe. Both are originally South Asian.

Any qualms about Arabs "appropriating" a cultural tradition that is not theirs? Or is that cultural exchange?

What about the Arab appropriation of the Indian numeral system? I can't tell you how many times I've heard Arabs boast of inventing the zero. Well no, you didn't. You borrowed it from the Indians. Which is normal, and its how knowledge works. But would you consider that appropriation?

 Quite seriously, there are more important things to worry about for us people of color than white women wearing Saris and Bindis and performing Belly Dance.

You've given plenty of examples of actually racist behavior in this essay too. And I'm 100% in agreement with your analysis that PoC participating in the dominant white culture is not the same as appropriation. I just don't agree that Belly Dancing or wearing Saris is appropriation. If it is, so was Belly Dancing when it was adopted by Arabs from the Dom people.

Randy Hauser

@Khawer  That was one of the responses from the original article that she neglected to respond to.  The author is, in effect, a troll.

camthought

Dear Mrs. Jarrar,

I only have one complaint to the responses you've included in your defense of your previous article. I am dismayed by the way you refused to consider the notion that you are being racist.

You liked to a video on "reverse racism" which is a BS term in itself, something I feel you and I could agree on. Racism is racism, it doesn't change the fact if it is a white man hating a black man for the color of his skin, or a black woman hating a hispanic woman for the color of her skin, or arabic peoples hating jewish peoples, or Ukrainians hating Russians. If you look at another human being and you say, "how dare you do that, you're not the same race as me" you are indeed being racist.

There's no "reverse" to the matter, it is racism. And the fact that you took criticism of your own racism, and said that it is not possible because- I assume since you didn't personally address the issue- you have darker skin then the people you are attacking, proves that the crux of your argument hinges on the notion that race defines culture.

You, several times in this article, explain why you can't stand a certain race doing a cultural dance, due to the fact that individuals of that race have, in turn, treated you cruelly due to your ancestry. This is textbook stereotyping of race, and the fact that you couldn't brave addressing this notion in a rational way taints your entire argument with the racial divisiveness that your title promises.

I am not addressing an issue of privilege. I am not addressing the appropriation of cultures. I am addressing the most fundamental definition of racism. You judge other's in a way that you have yourself been judged, by the color of their skin and the history of your ancestors. I am sorry if you refuse to see the fact, but you are a racist.

AMEN to all that!

Just don't expect the Randa Jarrars or the Brittney Coopers of the world to respond with real logic.  Just more abuse of sarcasms, race cards and double standards!

Some say "don't feed the trolls"  I say "feed the trolls with a taste of their own medicine"  The more people who do that, the less people who want to start trolling!

Cultural appopriation and cultural integration

 There are some minority activists who think it's racist for whites to be into non-white things! (get a dictionary!)  

They call the act of Euro-descendants doing non-European things "cultural appropriation"! They act as if that's a bad thing!


I already discussed black supremacist punk Brittney Cooper in two blog post, with her getting all pissy just because Miley Cyrus, Robin Thicke and Macklemore got some recognition in the R&B/ hip-hop genre!
http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2014/02/music-and-cultural-segregationists.html
http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2013/11/how-saloncom-lost-its-way.html

I also mentioned Veronica Bayetti Flores calling Lode "racist" for (gasp) using a few hip-hop phrases in a song.
http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2013/12/oh-lorde.html


But it doesn't stop there.


Salon also had an article by some Arab-American woman who doesn't like European-American women doing belly dancing!
http://www.salon.com/2014/03/04/why_i_cant_stand_white_belly_dancers/



And now I saw this article being posted on facebook.

 http://everydayfeminism.com/2013/09/cultural-exchange-and-cultural-appropriation/

Many a white person sporting dreadlocks or a bindi online has taken cultural appropriation to mean the policing of what white people can or can’t wear and enjoy.

Having considered their fashion choices a form of personal expression, some may feel unfairly targeted for simply dressing and acting in a way that feels comfortable for them.

The same can be said for those who find criticisms of the Harlem Shake meme and whatever it is Miley Cyrus did last month to be an obnoxious form of hipsterdom – just because something has origins in black culture, they say, doesn’t mean white artists can’t emulate and enjoy it.
And then there are people who believe that everything is cultural appropriation – from the passing around of gun powder to the worldwide popularity of tea.

They’re tired of certain forms of cultural appropriation – like models in Native American headdresses – being labeled as problematic while many of us are gorging on Chipotle burritos, doing yoga, and popping sushi into our mouths with chopsticks.

They have a point.

and this

People of all cultures wear business suits and collared shirts to survive. But when one is of the dominant culture, adopting the clothing, food, or slang of other cultures has nothing to do with survival.

So as free as people should be to wear whatever hair and clothing they enjoy, using someone else’s cultural symbols to satisfy a personal need for self-expression is an exercise in privilege.

and this

People shirk “ethnic” clothes in corporate culture, but wear bastardized versions of them on Halloween.

There is no exchange, understanding, or respect in such cases – only taking.

and this

Don’t overstay your welcome. Don’t pretend to be a part of the household. Don’t make yourself out to be an honored guest whom the householders should be grateful to entertain and educate for hours on end.

(this was in response to some "white" guy in a Nigerian ceremony.


 --------


Well, I'm going to jump in and posted this response to that article (and my response already appeared on facebook).

 This article claims" Regardless, this is not an article asking you to over-analyze everything you do and wrack yourself with guilt." but the rest of the article is telling people to do just that!

I'm tired of this whining about "cultural appropriation"!

People adapt each other's cultural habits and if you got a problem with that, you are racist scum!

After all, this is a world where a man of African and Asian ancestry excell at a Scottish game.

This is a world where 2 African-American sisters from Compton excell at a French game!

This is a world where South Koreans win break-dance competitions and a South Korean had the top rap song of 2012!

This is a world in which the Maoris have a major role in a sport invented by the British!

This is a world in which an African-American won a Grammy in the country music award.

This is a world in which a Native Hawaiian is one of the top players in the Canadian Football League! (that's my UH classmate from my undergrad years--- Chad Owens)

This is a world in which a man of African and Samoan ancestry is one of the biggest action movie stars in the world.

And this is a world in which the language I'm using (English) use words from Latin, German, Greek, Hebrew and a whole bunch of other world languages.

Anyone who got a problem with that is racist scum!

WORLDWIDE CULTURAL INTEGRATION FOREVER!

I also posted this

 Remember when Richard Sherman said calling him a "thug" is like using the N-word?

Well, the words "cultural appropriation" is just another way to say "you f------- haole" or "you white cracker m------f---------".

Look, anyone who has a problem with Macklemore winning an award in the rap genre is racist scum!

Anyone who has a problem with Katy Perry wearing a kimono, you are a racist scum!

And dont give me this "privilege" crap, since almost none of you experience being the only part-Latino kid in a Hawaii classroom with mostly Asians and Pacific Islanders, (I did) so damn effing right I know what it's like to be a minority! (by the way, most of my friends are Asians and Pacific Islanders, I am NOT from East LA, I am NOT from Spanish Harlem, I am NOT from Latin America)

But this whining about "cultural appropriation" needs to stop. If Tiger Woods is allowed to excell at a Scottish game, and Serena/Venus Williams are allowed to excell at a French game, but you're damn effing right that European-Americans shall be allowed to dress in non-European clothes and partake in hip-hop music (which by the way was influenced by German EDM innovators Kraftwerk ........ just ask Afrika Bambaatta, Grandmaster Flash and Dr Dre if you dont believe me!")

WORLDWIDE CULTURAL INTEGRATION FOREVER!

I'll also say this - I may have an ancestry mix of Latin American (Mexican, Puerto Rican) and European (German, Spanish, Portuguese).........................but you know what? I REFUSE TO BE LIMITED TO THOSE CULTURES!

My favorite foods are mostly Asian!

My favorite music (hip-hop)  is mostly African-American!

My college's football team is mostly Polynesian! 

Anyone got a problem with any of that? SCREW YOU! 

I refuse to be defined solely as a member of a race or ethnic group!

I demand to be seen as an individual human being!  

I demand to be judged on the content of my character, not on the color of my skin! 

And eff anyone who whines about "cultural appropriation"

It's time more of us have guts to say these things!