Beyond the visuals of art and design is the culture that was able to create it. From the knowledge and history of a local heritage, minorities and their people continue to uphold a commemoration of systems, traditions, and beliefs by turning them into distinct designs and styles passed from generation to generation. Yet, without context about these creations, the act of disrespecting their culture can easily end up as one’s cross to bear.
According to Cambridge Dictionary, cultural appropriation is the adoption of the elements of a culture that is not one’s own. Meanwhile, in a 2017 interview with CNN Philippines, Marlon Martin, chief of the Save the Ifugao Terraces Movement and founder of the Ifugao Heritage School, further expounded on it by simply defining it as claiming and disrespecting a culture different from one’s own, while being unaware of its it ethnic and historical context.
The Philippines is composed of numerous tribes and different religions, such as the Ifugao tribes, who boost their economy by making clothes, blankets, and other textile products using the patterns they create from weaving. For practicing muslims, hijabs are essential to Islam while Kalinga tattoos are badges of honor given to those who have fought and protected their people. With these items being out in plain sight, the mistake of using them for personal use is just around the corner; one could be casually wearing clothing from the Mt. Province meant for the dead, textiles which Cordillerans use for rituals and festivities could accidentally be regarded as table covers by consumers, while some teenagers could be sporting an ethnic tattoo with symbols they don’t even understand. Unfortunately, these trademarks of a minority culture are also victims of cultural appropriation.
Fashion in the wrong
From outfits to hairstyles, fashion and merchandising always craves something unique; the usual denim jacket looks better with a few ethnic patterns, a hairstyle seems more stylish with a makeshift hijab, and a tattoo with an ethnic design certainly adds a ‘cool’ factor.
Despite the cultural background of the minorities’ traditional pieces, there has been a recurrence of these items being used for commercial gain. During their 2012 fashion show, women’s lifestyle company Victoria’s Secret received backlash for having their models take the runway while sporting Native American props with lingerie, while Marc Jacobs’ Spring 2017 Ready-to-Wear collection was called out for designing models’ hair with dreadlocks, a trademark of African-American culture that was used as a symbol for the Rastafari religion.
What one chooses to wear is an expression of their identity; be it through smart casual attires or maximalist outfits, fashion shows a meaningful trademark of one’s personality. The same goes for minorities who have their own garments that express a significant meaning to their cultural identity. The glaring difference is that these minorities have a history of being victims of social injustices, poverty, or microaggression, and have used their clothes and accessories to emphasize their unity and strength in the face of the hardships they have gone through.
The controversy of cultural appropriation was recently magnified in April 2018 when an article published by print and digital newspaper Philippine Star on local fashion brand Filip+Inna’s summer collection featured a model wearing a bikini partnered with a traditional blouse from the Tagakaolo tribe of the Municipality of Malungon in Sarangani. This received negative reactions from the locals who regard the tribe as one of the municipality’s founders and as a result, Mayor Tessa Constantino posted her sentiments about the matter on Facebook.
“We are very proud of our ethnic origins as a people and we value our cultural heritage that in all the undertakings of our local government, we see to it that our tribes are not offended and neglected,” Constantino stated. The blouse was from the Tagakaolo Tribal Museum and was used by the fashion brand without consulting the locals. It was merely marketed as a fashion statement, disregarding its ethnic significance to the Tagakaolo tribe and locals of Malungon.
Wearing indigenous attires as a fashion statement or a mere decoration is the same as pretending to be part of a race or culture completely unaffiliated with one’s own. One should not simply sport ethnic tattoos and already act like they themselves have gone to the wars the natives have gone through. It’s similar to stealing from their beliefs and traditions, and disregarding their given purposes. By using a people’s culture without succinct knowledge beforehand, it creates a pseudo-understanding a person has about the said culture, which forges an idea that these items can be used for one’s own personal gain while also belittling the history and ethnic identity of the minority groups.
With all these common ethnic faux paus, is the current fashion scene suggesting that culture can be sacrificed for its sake? Short answer is no; and it’s time to do something about it.
Change by learning
Some may say cultural appropriation can easily be excused as drawing inspiration from these Filipino artefacts. However, there’s a fine line between the two, separated by upholding traditional heritage. When the usage of these artefacts is to preserve art and history, the culture is promoted and the minority’s legacy lives on. Through educational purposes, like school festivities or dedicated museums, Filipinos can learn to respect the traditional customs and, consequently, act on supporting it.
Buying their products for the culture’s promotion, and not for aesthetic purposes, helps their people thrive by having their products appreciated by the public with its intended function. By collaborating with the locals through development projects, this can further enhance and spread awareness to their craft.
What seems to be mere prints on a carpet or abstract shapes on a bag are threaded by a rigorous and meticulous process made specifically by that culture. From the blood, sweat, and tears that originated these culture’s products, there’s no doubt how the simple act of respect and caution is well-deserved. Studying about the various cultures and understanding the hard work behind each cultural piece is one easy step to avoid cultural appropriation that leads to a more well-informed and just society.
Filipinos, as an international minority, still have the tendency to disrespect their own national minorities, groups, and tribes who exemplify and contribute to the Filipino legacy, by reducing their artefacts to commercial trends. However, once properly researched, anyone can be the bridge between the traditional and the modern, and reinvigorate the art of indigenous cultures for what they are truly meant to be—a symbol of the people’s identity.
This article was originally published in The Benildean Vol. 4 No. 2: Preservation.
