Furthermore, considering the instability of culture and the historical events that reinforce this idea, the seemingly inevitable act of cultural appropriation can be constructive to society. What many do not realize is that appropriation allows people to learn more about another culture: “When we attack people for stepping outside their own cultural experiences, we hinder our ability to develop empathy and cross-cultural understanding” (Cathy, 2015). Cultural adoption brings new changes and possibilities to a group (Cathy, 2015), resulting in the evolution or creation of a community.
Since the beginning of globalization, it is likely that elements of a culture were selected and taken by another. As people immigrate and influence a group with aspects of another, the community becomes diverse (Abdul-Jabbar, 2015). For example, while Japan has embraced cultures from China and Korea in the past (Cathy, 2015), today, Japanese culture also consists of Western culture, such as Christmas. Like many societies today, Japan is influenced by a blend of foreign influences (Cathy, 2015). Since the nature of a culture is to continuously develop through the process of adoption,”[… cultural appropriation is inescapable [… ]” (Rogers, 2006).
When communities interact, aspects of a culture are bound to be absorbed into another. Sharing or exposing these elements to various communities and their social institutions will create a limited right to that concept. Indeed, the act of cultural adoption is the driving factor of a culture’s progression and perhaps the creation of social equality as well. Accepting an oppressed culture may be the way to end racism (Abdul-Jabbar, 2015). Cultural appropriation would then be in the form of cultural exchange, which as mentioned, is the ideal situation.
In reality, societies and their cultures are governed by the many discriminatory values that affect the usage and effects of cultural adoption. Thus, accepting an aspect of a culture into society can be a process of creating social equality or reinforcing the power imbalance in the community (Robertson, 2015). For instance, in society, cultural exploitation can be seen in the form of commodification: the transformation of a substance into what can be used as a commodity in the market. This process allows all commodities to be assigned a value.
When the dominant culture attempts to take an aspect of another culture to sell and buy, they are degrading the culture as it is a substance that should not be given a value (Rogers, 2006). This is the destruction of tradition, as stated by Kulchyski: “The commodification of a cultural text does not leave the text unaffected, but rather profoundly alters it and the meaning it produces” (1997). The dominant culture is only capable of cultural exploitation because of the power imbalance that exists in the community. Otherwise, there would be more respect for the other culture.
Hence, “[a]cts of appropriation and their implications are not determined by the intent or awareness of those engaged in such acts but are instead shaped by, and in turn shape, the social, economic, and political context in which they occur” (Rogers, 2006). In short, the destructive behaviors of appropriation relies on the level of power imbalance that shapes the act. Consequently, when an element of a culture is introduced to a different community with good intentions, destructive cultural appropriation can still occur if discriminatory values exist among the people who are to react to the element.
These situations are caused by the prejudicial concepts embedded in the social institutions of the society in which the cultures exist. These institutions drive, maintain and justify the power imbalance between the cultures (Robertson, 2015). Abdul-Jabbar suggests that racism, fixed in the social structure, adds to the economic factor that causes the differences between the two cultures (Abdul-Jabbar, 2015). For instance, Sam Phillips, who recorded Elvis Presley, had once made a controversial comment and was accused of being racist: “If| could find a white man who had the Negro feel, I would make a billion dollars” (Abdul-Jabbar, 2015).
At first glance, Phillips seems to be discriminating, favoring the dominant culture over the other. However, instead of “a blueprint for robbery” (AbdulJabbar, 2015), Phillips seems genuinely annoyed at the validity of his comment. In truth, Phillips recorded with many black artists before Elvis but did not receive reactions from the public. This reveals that Phillips was not racist, but instead, the public was reflecting views of inequality (Abdul-Jabbar, 2015). Due to the strong power imbalance entrenched in society, cultural appropriation was forced in order for an aspect of a culture to be appreciated and respected.
With that said, “appreciating an individual item from a culture doesn’t translate into accepting the whole people” (Abdul-Jabbar, 2015). Despite the good intentions behind the introduction of a culture, first rejection and, eventually, appropriation will occur due to the high level of power imbalance hidden in the social institutions of a society. Though power imbalance seems to be deeply rooted in modern day society and throughout history, forms of inequality, such as sexism, have not always existed.
In the past, the role of both men and women were respected and were considered to have equivalent significance to the family’s survival (Coeur, T. D. , Rawes, C. , & Warecki, P. , 2012). However, the shift in importance of money and its accumulation caused power imbalance in many aspects of society. According to Antonio Gramsci, these social injustices all consist of a dominant group that is capable of controlling the population (Coeur, T. D. , Rawes, C. , & Warecki, P. , 2012). Their power is obtained by convincing the other groups to agree with their values, making these ideas the social norms.
While it is claimed that this influence is for the benefit of society, it is actually for the gain of the dominant group only as by doing so the dominant group is able to maintain its power. This concept is what Gramsci considers as the theory of cultural hegemony. To explain this idea, Coeur, Rawes, and Warecki used consumerism as an example (2012). The ruling group in this case are the producers who attempt to increase their profits by persuading potential consumers to buy their product. The values of society are distorted to benefit the dominant group (Coeur, T. D. , Rawes, C. , & Warecki, P. , 2012).
As others are exploited, the issue of power imbalance not only becomes its unfairness, but also its capability of manipulating people to perceive these ideas not simply as ideas but as the unquestioned way how people live. Through propaganda, the messages presented by the dominant group(s) constantly reinforce the beliefs that they want the members of society to have, causing these messages to no longer appear as an interpretation but the only way of life. While cultural appropriation can be beneficial to exchanging communities, cultural hegemony and social inequality manipulate the act of appropriation and cause its negative effects.
It is often employed by groups that seek to dominate a population (such as the usage of residential schools in Canada after colonization), causing damaging results on the affected community. Likewise, in a society with an already existing sense of inequality, cultural appropriation is used to further reinforce social injustices. It also reveals the unjust views embedded in society, as seen in the public’s responses to a black artist versus a white artist performing black culture music like Elvis Presley.
In conclusion, the dangers of cultural appropriation is not due to the act itself, but because of the influence power imbalance can have on it. Overall, as society continues to change, cultures follow the same path as they are dynamic in nature as well. To adopt and establish new concepts is also very humane and has contributed to the progress of society in the past and present (Yo, 2015). Nonetheless, as appropriation can harm cultures if they are disrespected, these acts can become outlets for discriminatory behaviors.
Considering the tension around racial concerns, the uproar against cultural appropriation is understandable (Yo, 015). However, it needs to be made clear the definition itself does not imply negative intentions. Rather, the cause of its wrongdoings is the deeply rooted discriminatory views and habits of segregation still embedded in society. Cultural appropriation is one of the issues that exist differently in society today than in past, but is still affected by the imbalances of power between groups. Adoption of another can be wrong and harmful, however, it is not the act itself that needs to be abandoned, but the unfair values in the social structures of society.
