Cultural appropriation is the end result of a phenomenon that goes beyond fashion. It has much deeper cultural roots, with historical and social aspects. And, in a way, it is inevitable. Benedetta Morsiani, a researcher at Brunel University London, explains it to us
by Massimiliano Viti
The problem of cultural appropriation does not only concern fashion brands that draw inspiration (or perhaps copy) from a product that is part of the cultural identity of an often minority population. It is the end result of a phenomenon that has much deeper cultural roots, with historical and social aspects. Here’s why.
The problem of cultural appropriation
‘The concept of cultural appropriation generally describes the act by which the specific characteristics of a particular culture (e.g. symbols, artefacts, genres, rituals or technologies) are used by members of another culture. In a postmodern, postcolonial and globalised world, with cultures in constant contact with each other, cultural appropriation is an inevitable process. The real problem is that this process often involves the assimilation, exploitation, survival and resistance of socially marginalised cultures in relation to more dominant cultures. This also occurs within the Western fashion industry, which has often drawn on and taken advantage of non-Western or minority cultures.”
A fluid boundary
This definition of cultural appropriation comes from Benedetta Morsiani, Leverhulme Research Fellow at the Department of Social and Political Sciences at Brunel University London. Morsiani believes that the boundary between ‘cultural appreciation’ and ‘cultural appropriation’ is fluid, especially in fashion contexts, which are often politically sensitive. “It is difficult, and perhaps impossible, to define it precisely, or to establish who has the authority to do so. However, I firmly believe that it is minority groups themselves who should have the main say in determining what is appropriate to say or do in relation to their own cultures. What is clearly inappropriate are images that perpetuate derogatory or stereotypical representations of non-Western minorities. The real problem with such representations is the trivialisation of the history of denigration and exploitation suffered by these groups.
Exploiting cultural specificities
Western luxury brands are almost always accused of cultural appropriation. This is because they are ‘effectively the main exploiters of certain cultural specificities, such as symbols and materials, originally belonging to non-Western cultures’. This raises several issues. The ethical issue is that the fashion world very often does not bother to openly acknowledge the origin of these cultural specificities. The symbolic and cultural representation issue.
Clothing and styles historically considered defamatory when worn by certain individuals, such as hoodies and dreadlocks on an individual of African descent, often take on laudatory meanings when worn on the catwalk by white models. Finally, there is the economic factor of exploitation, as luxury fashion often fails to reinvest its high profits for the benefit of the diverse societies that have been its source of inspiration. “All this,” Morsiani explains, “is nothing more than a new form of cultural and economic hegemony of the West over populations with a non-Western cultural heritage.”
Unaware, up to a point
The researcher is sceptical that fashion brands are totally unaware of the problems of cultural appropriation. She is more inclined to think that there is an awareness, but since it does not generate profit, the discussion is not taken seriously. “Although cases of cultural appropriation continue to exist, I believe that the fashion industry is now inevitably forced to re-evaluate its economic, cultural and moral responsibility.”
Culture becomes a relational phenomenon
Morsiani does not agree with the term ‘cultural appreciation’. She would replace it with the word ‘transculturation’, which challenges the very idea of culture as a static entity. Transculturation presupposes that culture can be constituted through acts of appropriation originating from and directed towards multiple cultures, with hybridisation as its essential characteristic‘.
In this way, culture becomes a relational phenomenon, a continuous and evolutionary process of absorption and transformation. “The only possible way to overcome the debate on cultural appropriation,” concludes Morsiani, “is for fashion to become aware of what transculturation means. Therefore, it is essential that fashion declares the origin of its creative borrowing with the utmost transparency. Then, it must conduct in-depth research into the symbolism and political and cultural baggage of each garment and image produced. Finally, it must reinvest at least part of its profits in the populations that have been its source of inspiration.”