Anyone who knows local transportation planner, Shundria Brewer, knows she loves fashion, so when asked about the difference between appreciating fashion and appropriating it, she says she’s passionate about it.
“It’s cool to do black things, but it’s not cool to be black,” Brewer said. “Everyone wants to wear black clothes and listen to black music, but no one wants the hardships that come with being black.”
At this point you may be asking: “What is the difference between fashion appreciation and appropriation?”
“There’s a fine line between the two. The difference is being respectful and respectful of the culture when you’re wearing the garment,” says fashion psychologist Dawn Cullen. “Fashion appropriation occurs when you don’t have a historical perspective on the garment and you make some behavioral mistakes when you’re wearing the garment.”
Some of the trends these women created have been adopted into popular culture but not attributed to the black communities that started them, such as urban and streetwear.
“If you wore this in corporate America, you would be seen as incompetent, inept and unprofessional, but in other cultures you could wear the same outfit and they might call it ‘Silicon Valley chic,'” Karen says.
Other trends pioneered by black people and adopted into popular culture include hairstyles such as Bantu knots and cornrows.
“Remember when Khloe Kardashian had these hairstyles called Bantu knots? They were called mini buns back then. She was celebrated as the trendsetter for this hairstyle that has been popular in the black community since the 1800s. Black women have been wearing it since the 1700s,” Brewer said. “And then women ask, ‘Why can’t I have cornrows?’ It’s not that you can’t, it’s just that do you know what cornrows represent? Did you know that cornrows were used as a map for slaves to reach freedom?”
Orla Frink, a Bakersfield-based chef and “fashion artist,” said one way locals show their appreciation for Black fashion is by supporting Black businesses in and around town.
“As you know, Dapper Dan is the king of urban streetwear. [He is] “I’m a creative who remixes fashion,” Frink says, “and I think that in urban culture, black culture, African-American culture needs to be recognized and appreciated. When you wear their stuff, say who you are.”
Karen noted that the current social climate is moving society towards gratitude rather than exclusivity.
