Making your wedding distinctive and using an off-beat approach is perfectly understandable, especially if you’re breaking away from your family’s traditions. Finding yourself drawn to practices from other cultures is also natural, but it’s important to carefully consider whether they belong in your own nuptials or not. Understanding the concept of cultural appropriation should help guide you as you plan. Moreover, it should steer you in recognizing when the respectful borrowing of other groups’ customs is sound for your own nuptials.
What Is Cultural Appropriation?
There is a significant amount of dissent about the exact nature of cultural appropriation, and where a line can be drawn between it and paying homage to another culture with the reverential borrowing of traditions. Professor Olufunmilayo Arewa from the University of California at Irvine explained it more in detail in a Huffington Post article. Arewa revealed how the history of colonialism has given rise to the concept, with the theft and co-opting of everything from African artwork to African cultural symbols. She acknowledged the existence of cultural fluidity, adding that boundaries between many cultures are shifting to include other elements, but cautions against outright exploitation.
In a 2015 Time Magazine piece, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar offered another explanation of the term while turning to American history and contemporary public figures for examples. Some white celebrities such as Kendall Jenner, Justin Timberlake and Miley Cyrus have sported African-based hairstyles like cornrows or dreadlocks. Even so, they do not suffer from the same negative, racism-motivated effects from wearing these fashions as black people have. Meanwhile, such cultural artifacts are presented in the media and repackaged as “new,” “trendy” or “exotic” when they may have a significant meaning endemic to the groups from which they came.
Even people belonging to cultures from which traditions have been borrowed disagree. The bindi is a great example of this. It was originally used to represent the sixth chakra or the “third eye” wherein lies the seat of hidden wisdom according to Hindu traditions. Some wearers today are neither Hindu nor are they members of the Indian diaspora. Celebrities such as Selena Gomez and Madonna have come under fire for this, but some Hindus such as writer Pravina Rudra claim that the bindi has such wider appeal that non-Indian wearers are not appropriative.
Is Mindful Borrowing Possible?
Depending on who you ask, you may or may not be able to derive some traditions for your own nuptials. Writer Najva Sol offers useful advice in her article on A Practical Wedding, pointing out how customs and artifacts are inextricably tied to their cultures of origin and may have a sacred value. While some white Americans may protest that they have no culture, Sol points to often overlooked deeper meanings of European traditions, suggesting that further research may help engaged couples imbue their own weddings with a richer experience. On the other hand, Offbeat Bride suggests that some borrowing can be done carefully while honoring the intended meaning and purpose of the practice in question. Furthermore, Offbeat Bride recommends seeking out the advice of someone familiar with the tradition that you wish to borrow, as he or she may be able to instruct you in how to incorporate it while steering clear of appropriation.
Your wedding is a unique reflection of your shared love as well as your individual ideas and dreams. If you seek to include practices from outside your original heritages, it’s vital to consider how you can do so without disrespectfully appropriating them. While there are sometimes no simple answers when it comes to the difference between appreciation and appropriation, a deferential approach along with cautious research may help you steer clear of causing offense.
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