The Myth of Cultural Appropriation

The Myth of Cultural Appropriation is becoming more prevalent in our modern society. People seem to be getting up in arms over people from one ethnicity or culture, taking from another culture, almost as if it is cultural theft or plagiarism.

However, everyone who is talking about cultural appropriation in this sense is clearly ignorant of history…

The Rabbit Hole of Cultural Appropriation Is Not One We Should Start Down

I have seen people become enraged at a white person wearing dreadlocks, saying that it is the theft of elements of African Culture — which isn’t exactly clear. Dreadlocks have been document in ancient India, Greece, and Egypt. All of these people are, generally speaking, white.

With the exception of the Dravidian ethnic group in India, the people of India are Indo-European. They come from the same people as do the Germans, Irish, and Norwegians, and the ruling class of India has, for the last 3000 years or so, been the most direct bloodlines tracing back to these common Indo-European roots. To put this into context, the North Indian ethnicity is more related to German Nazi’s than to the Dravidians in south India. They are, in essence, white.

While Egypt is on the African Continent, Ancient Egyptian culture is Near Eastern culture, and again, the ancient Egyptians were not black Africans. They were related culturally and ethnically to the Jews and Indo-Europeans.

With that being said, dreadlocks can also be traced directly to Africa. But modern dreadlocks trace their origin to Rastafarianism in Jamaica, which might very well be more closely connected to India, rather than Africa.

A little more to the point, if you want to make an issue of cultural appropriation, then non-whites are not allowed to use computers, since computers were invented by white people. No more hip-hop beats for anyone, unfortunately. Jazz? Well, this was an incredible fusion of multiple styles of music. Unfortunately, it traces some of its roots to classical music of Europe so, unfortunately — Miles Davis, Nina Simone, Dizzy, Louis, and Duke — all of the legends engaged in cultural appropriation.

Too bad. I guess you are cancelled now?

The point is that…

The Idea of Cultural Appropriation As A Negative Is Stupid

It doesn’t matter how you look at it, the whole idea of cultural appropriation is stupid. At least when it is viewed in a negative light.

After the first cities were built in Sumer, Egypt, and Greece 5000 years ago, when they developed writing systems, and created the first Empires, this knowledge led to the civilizing of the world. It was from these roots that the greatest civilizations of the ancient world emerged, and laid the foundations for all that would come in Europe.

If the knowledge of farming had not passed from one people to the next, over ever greater regions, then we would all still be hunting and gathering. “Nope, I can’t use that better, cooler, or more interesting way of doing things (as it appears to me) because it is theirs” is an idiotic way of thinking.

All great innovation and development occurred precisely by this mechanism. Cars were invented in America, which were, in many ways, perfected by the Germans, Italians, and Japanese. The first tanks were built by the British, and the first airplanes by the Americans, both of which were perfected by the Germans.

Classical music of Europe was the height of music for its time, from the perspective of technical ability (while I imagine that barroom folk was what the majority loved and listened to). Yet when infused with African percussive and rhythmic influences, with black man’s blues, and folk, it became Jazz. All of which combined again to produce Rock and Roll, which continued to develop, eventually resulting in Hip Hop and everything we love today.

The issue is that evolution, creative development, and innovation does not work in strait lines. It is the strange, eclectic, broad, and specific blends of ideas, skills, and systems that creates new things. Without the unique blend of music in the past, we wouldn’t have the modern music we love today.

Without the sciences of Egypt and Babylon, the science of Classical Greece wouldn’t exist. Which wouldn’t have found its way to India, or through the Islamic World, back to Europe, which means that Modern Science wouldn’t have been developed in Europe.

It is almost like each culture carries a torch for a little bit, and passes that fire to its neighbours before it dies, so that they can preserve it. And, in the fullness of time, it always seems to make its way back, and in this way, the world evolves and develops as a whole. Waves of innovation crashing and receding, but carving out new landscapes as it does so.

Embrace Culture, Appropriate and Innovate At Will

Ironically, the idea of Cultural Appropriation is unintentionally a strange form of racism — at least in practice, even if it wasn’t intended that way ideologically. It is basically saying that all ethnicities and cultures should stay in their own lane, and keep to themselves, and only do (wear, think, practice) what their own people invented.

This is a very weird form of ideological xenophobia. One that I simply don’t understand. One which — far more importantly to me — is a barrier to progress, innovation, and integration.

First, to use something from another culture is a sign of respect. When a musician hears something from another genre of music, from world music, or from another cultures interpretation of a genre, and chooses to use it themselves, that is a sign of respect.

With their actions they are saying that they like an appreciate what that other culture did. If you want to wear more ethnic clothing, that is a sign of appreciation. If you study another religion, again, that is respect and appreciation.

The only people who appear to care, are the ones involved. From my experience, they also tend to know the least about the cultures involved anyways, which I suspect is part of the root problem to begin with.