Singer Katy Perry, the other night at the American Music Awards, dressed as a Japanese Geisha to perform one of her songs. Immediately following the performance, the social network "Twitter" lit up with criticisms of Perry - everything from being a racist to committing "cultural appropriation."
Just so we're clear - let's look at the definition of "cultural appropriation." "Cultural appropriation is the adoption of some specific elements of one culture by a different cultural group."
Hmmm. So that would take in a lot of different people and groups in the world. People impersonate other cultures all the time. White people act and talk like black people - depending on where they grow up. Some black people act and talk like white people. I know for a fact that Asian people imitate and impersonate non-Asians when performing. English karaoke is very popular in some Asian cultures. Is that cultural appropriation or is it different because it's not an American citizen doing it.
And what about interracial marriage? If one spouse adopts the culture of the other - is that cultural appropriation? Or is there an exception for someone so "enlightened"?
Let's look at actors. Johnny Depp played Tonto in the recent Lone Ranger movie. Meryl Streep has portrayed a Jewish holocaust survivor and even Maggie Thatcher in movies. Ed Ames, for those of you who remember, played Mingo, a Native American, on Daniel Boone. David Carradine played a Buddhist monk in a TV series. And the Wayans brothers played white women in a movie. I never once heard anyone accuse any of them of racism. But each and every one of these is an example of "cultural appropriation", right? Wait... what? They were performing? Well gee... what was Katy Perry doing?
What I would like to know is - when did any culture gain the right to exclusivity? When did any culture gain the authority to decide who and who cannot "adopt some specific elements" of that culture? Where is the law or the rule that says that? Who made the rule? And is it OK for some and not for others? As my examples show - there are numerous instances all the time of people borrowing things from other cultures.
The liberal left wants everyone and everything to be inclusive in this country - except what they decide shouldn't be inclusive. If they decide something is not to their liking the attack with a vengeance - calling people racist or hater or a host of other names. They like to pretend that they and they alone have the right to decide what's right and wrong, what's acceptable and unacceptable - all the while preaching about tolerance. It would be laughable if it wasn't so serious.
Katy Perry performed in the garb of a culture she personally likes. It wasn't racist. It wasn't cultural appropriation. It was her performing in a costume of a culture that means something to her. And liberal haters have decided to attack her for it.
I'm not a Katy Perry fan. I don't even know a single song she sings. But I felt compelled to defend her on this one because left-wing political correctness often gets to the level of absurd. And that's the case here.
Oh - and speaking of liberal intolerance - given the controversy over the name of the Washington Redskins football team I thought this was particularly amusing. I can liberal heads exploding all over the country....!
I'm not a Katy Perry fan. I don't even know a single song she sings. But I felt compelled to defend her on this one because left-wing political correctness often gets to the level of absurd. And that's the case here.
Oh - and speaking of liberal intolerance - given the controversy over the name of the Washington Redskins football team I thought this was particularly amusing. I can liberal heads exploding all over the country....!
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