A Closer Look at Cultural Appropriation on Halloween
This blog post was written by VCU intern Razmila Razaak and graphic designs were done by VCU work study student Kylie Love Gatchalian.
The season of trick or treating and horror movies is upon us. Halloween is a wonderous time where you get to become someone you're not for a night, but we have to make sure that the costumes we choose to wear don't appropriate sacred cultures. In a nutshell, cultural appropriation is the use of another individual's culture - whether it is using their style, clothing, or dialect. Often, when it comes to cultural appropriation, ethnic groups get blamed for being sensitive or told that these attempts to dress up in traditional wear are not supposed to be interpreted as appropriation but rather as appreciation. Yet, when you make traditional wear into costumes, you are not celebrating — you are making histories into myths and turning cultures into popular media trends.
Time and time again, there is always the general Native American costume of the woman or man wearing a headdress, moccasins, feathers, and braids. This notion of dressing up as a Native American is offensive considering Indigenous Americans' mass genocide and recognizing that Native Americans continue to encounter discrimination on an exceptionally high level.
“Being Native means to be in constant danger: consider Native women being murdered and going missing in Canada and the United States; Indigenous peoples of Central America being imprisoned at the U.S.-Mexico border as a result of the Trump administrations “zero tolerance” policy; Natives persecuted in the migrant caravan coming from Central America, or the Mapuche people being brutally repressed by the Piñera administration of Chile in South America.- Valerie Reynoso: Teen Vogue.”
So what's wrong with this?
Choosing to dress up as an Indigenous woman/man minimizes their culture, history, and heritage as nothing more than just a fun headdress that you can put on and take off when it is convenient. For many, these are not only costumes. For Indigenous communities, this history is not removable. They carry pride in their culture, heritage, and history - even when they bring long histories of trauma and discrimination. The fact of the matter is they don't have the option of leaving it at home when it becomes inconvenient - it is inherently a part of them.
“It goes deeper than what you’re dressed like,” she said. “When you really look at it and you really study these tropes and stereotypes and what they mean and how they affect us as Native people, you know they’re all rooted in a historically violent past. - Josephine Tarrant: NPR ”
Let’s get real here.
As children, we were exposed to old Disney movies and were in awe. However, these same Disney movies that contain racist stereotypes/appropriations are prevailing on Halloween.
“The real Pocahontas — whose real name was Amonute or Matoaka, as Pocahontas was her nickname — was 17 years old when she was kidnapped by English colonizers and forced to assimilate into English culture and Christianity. She was also a translator and ambassador for her tribe, the Pamunkey Nation of Virginia, prior to her capture. This history contradicts the colonial, Disney representation of Pocahontas as the hyper-sexualized, adult Native woman who aided the English colonizers from the “savagery” of her own people.- Valerie Reynoso: Teen Vogue.”
Such discriminatory remarks often depreciate Indigenous culture. We weren't necessarily aware of the stereotypical marks on the Indigenous community. Yet, as adults, we are responsible for detaching from the cultural prejudice that we were once exposed to as kids.
What can you do instead?
Conversations need to be had on why such behavior is offensive and discussing steps to understand better. America is a diverse country due to the various cultures that we all are a part of; however, one has to be careful not to oppress another culture due to lack of knowledge. It is essential to do your research before as marginalized communities often cannot voice their opinions. Education and empathy is the way to correct such behaviors without creating a hostile environment.
“If you say you can’t wear this, you’re shutting down the opportunity for conversation, versus if you say shouldn’t, you can expand on why and link it to a plethora of history, said Rajhon White: Washington Post”
We invite you to celebrate Indigenous cultures, and there are a lot of other ways to appreciate a culture that’s not your own than by dressing up as them for Halloween. Challenge yourself to think outside of the box and get creative for figuring out better ways to do that. Imitation is more offensive than flattering, and when you know better, you do better. If you're curious about learning more about Indigenous cultures, consider supporting organizations designed to nurture indigenous communities in your city.
