A CULTURAL APPROPRIATOR, ME???

I read about the teenager accused of cultural appropriation because she wore a Chinese dress to her prom. Oh for crying out loud!!! If cultural appropriation was a crime I'd be lined up against a wall, blindfolded and shot by a firing squad! I'm the worst offender out there! I'd probably be slapped with a with misappropriation label!

I saw a photo of the young woman online. She should be proud of how beautiful she looked in the dress! She did nothing wrong and owes no one an apology or even an explanation. She was much kinder to her critics than I would have been!

My flagrant compulsion as an appropriator began at a tender age. I was around age 4 when my family took me to visit a Seminole village. There, at my insistence, they purchased a turquoise & brown Indian dress with tribal markings. I've always loved pretty dresses! This one became my favorite! And coming from an Indian village made it that more special.

Today, I purchase many clothes from black women's catalogues. I love the styles! Plus they're made for women who are built like me with a protruding bosom & behind. Also they lack that frump-a-dump look found in most catalogues for women of a certain age. And I've always been attracted to colorful and interesting clothing.

Cultural appropriation/misappropriation means turning the clothing into a costume and making fun of the culture. Now I love costumes and I've worn many! I dressed as Norma Desmond when I attended the complementary lunch sponsored by the retirement home. And I wore black from head-to-toe at the one sponsored by a funeral home. -- These were tame compared to some of the get-ups I created doing commercials I wrote and performed live at business networking events.

However I've never derided anyone's cultural heritage. I consider myself a citizen of the world first and an American second.

Yes, I've worn Mexican attire at a Cinco de Mayo festivals, but no giant sombrero. Others did, however it was all in the spirit of celebration. And I once wore Rhine maiden duds for Oktoberfest. Look at all the people who wear funny green hats on St. Patrick's Day!  I've never done that, but someday I might!  During holiday merrymaking and festivals different rules apply.

And I would have no issue if someone from China dressed up in a ten gallon hat, chaps, boots & spurs from the rip roaring days of the old west! Or if anyone from another culture came dressed as a pilgrim for Thanksgiving, why would I even care! Geez, many people from exotic cultures wear North American styles!

After returning from Thailand in 2016 I started wearing the colorful harem pants I bought. (Lots of non-Asians wear them, there.) One day I happened to be wearing a pair with my turban when I went to fetch my mail. A neighbor's redneck lawn man passed by in his truck, he gave me a really dirty look. I glared defiantly back at him.

I could just imagine him telling my neighbors down at the cul de sac "Did you know there's a Mooslum woman living just up the street!?" And I can imagine them replying, "Oh you must be referring to that liberal lesbian who voted for Obama." -- For the record, I am neither liberal nor a lesbian, but I DID vote for Obama, TWICE! I had campaign signs on my lawn.

A year before Thailand, I met a friend at the mall for lunch. I was wearing exotic palazzo pants, a long sleeve fringe top, & giant earrings. I mentioned that I'd read it was the height of fashion in Dubai. "Are you going to Dubai?" she inquired. I shook my head and laughed.

Little did I know that a year later I would actually be in Dubai!!! I had to change planes there on my way to Bangkok. While at the airport, I found it fascinating to people watch. I saw styles from all over the planet! What struck me was how drab and boring North Americans looked by comparison. Jeans and T-shirt have almost become a uniform. Well NOT mine!

OK, I've worn jeans for heavy duty work around the house and on vacations while traipsing thru jungles, riding elephants, or climbing pyramids, but only then.

While in Ecuador, I noticed the native women wore long black shirts with lacy or embroidered white tops. They looked lovely and quite elegant. I asked a guide and later one of the women in the market if anyone would be offended if I started dressing that way. (At the time, I was considering moving there.) I was assured not and given the green light.

After returning from Ecuador, I put together an outfit like the ones I had admired. I've worn it many times and will again. And this is true of every outfit in my vast collection of culturally appropriated attire! I wear them all with pride!

Remember, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.