page_title: Cultural appropriation
section_title: Celebrity controversies
hierarchical_section_title: Cultural appropriation / Celebrity controversies
caption_attribution_description: English: Rachel Dolezal speaking at Spokane civil rights rally, May 2015, one month before she was exposed as being white rather than African American
context_page_description: Cultural appropriation, at times also phrased cultural misappropriation, is the adoption of an element or elements of one culture or identity by members of another culture or identity. This can be controversial when members of a dominant culture appropriate from disadvantaged minority cultures.
  According to critics of the practice, cultural appropriation differs from acculturation, assimilation, or equal cultural exchange in that this appropriation is a form of colonialism. When cultural elements are copied from a minority culture by members of a dominant culture, these elements are used outside of their original cultural context—sometimes even against the expressly stated wishes of members of the originating culture.
  Cultural appropriation is considered harmful by various groups and individuals, including Indigenous people working for cultural preservation, those who advocate for collective intellectual property rights of the originating, minority cultures, and those who have lived or are living under colonial rule.
context_section_description: In 2003, Prince Harry of the British royal family used Indigenous Australian art motifs in a painting for a school project. One Aboriginal group labelled it "misappropriation of our culture", saying that to Aboriginal people, the motifs have symbolic meanings "indicative of our spiritualism", whereas when non-Aborigines use the motifs they are simply "painting a pretty picture".
  In the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2012, former Victoria's Secret model Karlie Kloss donned a Native American-style feathered headdress with leather bra and panties and high-heeled moccasins. This was said to be an example of cultural appropriation because the fashion show is showcasing the company's lingerie and image as a global fashion giant. The outfit was supposed to represent November, and thus "Thanksgiving", in the "Calendar Girls" segment. The outfit met with backlash and criticism as an appropriation of Native American culture and tradition. Victoria's Secret pulled it from the broadcast and apologized for its use. Kloss also commented on the decision by tweeting "I am deeply sorry if what I wore during the VS Show offended anyone. I support VS's decision to remove the outfit from the broadcast."
  Avril Lavigne was cited by some as appropriating Japanese culture in her song "Hello Kitty". The song and music video depict Asian women dressed up in matching outfits and Lavigne eating Asian food while dressed in a pink tutu. Lavigne responded by stating "I love Japanese culture and I spend half of my time in Japan. I flew to Tokyo to shoot this video ... specifically for my Japanese fans, with my Japanese label, Japanese choreographers and a Japanese director in Japan." Feedback for Lavigne's song was favorable in Japan, but "[the] people who are blaming the artist for racism [were] non-Japanese."
  When Selena Gomez wore a bindi during a performance, there was debate on her reasoning behind wearing the culture specific piece. Some viewed this as "casting her vote for Team India" but it was also viewed as misuse of the symbol as Gomez was seen as not supporting or relating the bindi to its origin of Hinduism, but furthering her own self-expression. In 2014, Pharrell Williams posed in a Native American war bonnet on the cover of Elle UK magazine, after much controversy and media surrounding the photo Williams apologized.
  Actress Amandla Stenberg made a school-related video called "Don't Cash Crop on My Cornrows" about the use of black hairstyles and black culture by non-black people, accusing Katy Perry and Iggy Azalea of using "black culture as a way of being edgy and gaining attention". Stenberg later criticized Kylie Jenner for allegedly embracing African-American aesthetic values without addressing the issues that affect the community. The African-American hip hop artist Azealia Banks has also criticized Iggy Azalea "for failing to comment on 'black issues' despite capitalising on the appropriation of African American culture in her music." Banks has called Azalea a "wigger" and there have been "accusations of racism against Azalea" focused on her alleged "insensitivity to the complexities of race relations and cultural appropriation."
  Activist Rachel Dolezal made headlines in 2015 when it was discovered that she was not African-American, as she had claimed. She is an American former civil rights activist known for being exposed as Caucasian while falsely claiming to be a black woman. Dolezal was president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) chapter in Spokane, Washington, from February 7, 2014 until June 15, 2015 when she resigned amid suspicion she had lied about nine alleged hate crimes against her.  She received further public scrutiny when her white parents publicly stated that Dolezal was a white woman passing as black.
  In 2017, in an interview with Billboard regarding her new image, Miley Cyrus criticized what she considered to be overly vulgar aspects of hip hop culture while expressing her admiration for the song "Humble" by Kendrick Lamar. This was met with backlash from people who felt Cyr
caption: Rachel Dolezal
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