(screen shot from the new N.E.R.D. and Nelly Furtado video)
Welcome to a new Friday feature, where I round-up all the awesome tips I get in my inbox, but don’t have a chance to write full posts about.
Consider it a work-in-progress (I still need a name for it–ideas? let me know!). If anything in here strikes your fancy, and you’d like me to write more about it, post in the comments. Tips with highest number of “votes” will get a full write up!
- Actress Erin Cummings has an image of her dressed in a headdress as her Twitter background, and when contacted about it, said the CBS producers liked it and approved it.
- Check out all these really creepy Indian dolls. I mean really creepy.
- The Little Marc Jacobs Store in Manhattan uses a Tipi in its window display
- Taylor Lautner, aka Jacob Black in the Twilight movies, comes to the shocking realization that Natives are just like everyone else! They hang out! They play basketball! Shocking!!
- Holier than Now talks about a new turban/headwrap trend and relates it to hipster headdresses.
- N.E.R.D. and Nelly Furtado’s new video “Hot and Fun” has a bazillion headdresses and Native appropriations
- Broadway Bares (an annual fundraiser featuring broadway actors and dancers performing stripteases) featured an “Indian” baring all.
- Cage the Elephant has a new-ish music video featuring a headdress-clad dude for their song “In One Ear”, and even an online contest to “win the headdress”.
- Band “The Canon Logic” utilizes warpaint and a headdress in their new album art and advertising.
- Zimbio has an image of Izia (a model) and fashion designer Jean-Charles de Castelbajac at the launch of the new clothing line in Paris, France. Izia is wearing a full warbonnet and feathered dress.
- Shrinky Dinks (yes they’re still around) is selling a “Wild West Party Pack“–i.e. Cowboys and Indians. Interestingly, the Indians have a range of skin tones, and are shown doing the “modern” activities, but also are all wearing feathers and doing stereotypical activities as well (peace pipes, tom toms, canoeing, etc)
- Bossip shares a “Wild West” inspired photo shoot for the release of Playstation 3, which consists of a barely clothed model in a headdress (probs NSFW). What does that have to do with Playstation?
- My friend Katie at Whiskey Tango Foxtrot put together a catch-all post on cultural appropriation in fashion. Great stuff.
I have more, but I thought this was a good start! Keep the tips coming, and thanks to everyone who contributed.
(Thanks Lici, Peggy, Sarah, Tanis, Liz, Katie, Laurie, Christina, Kannon, Denise, Ben, Mom, Mar, and Lauren)
Comments
Oh, by “tips” I thought you meant people weighing in telling you how you’re “doing it wrong”. Actual sentence I read on a feminist blog last night: “You can try to change people and improve the world, but stop being angry.”
Thanks for sharing, I will look at these!
I watched the N*E*R*D video with Nelly Furtado- I’d like to coin a new phrase to describe this new fashion trend combining the Flintstones, mountain men, Indians, hippies, and homeless people:
“primitive chic”
think it will catch on?
Wow, just watched the Nelly Furtado video. I’m disappointed, as the lyrics to her song “Powerless” made me think she was aware of the problematic nature of cultural appropriation:
Paint my face in your magazines
Make it look whiter than it seems
Paint me over with your dreams
Shove away my ethnicity
Burn every notion that I may have a flame inside to fight
And say just what is on my mind
Without offending your might
[…]
I saw her face outside today
Weatherworn, looking all the rage
They took her passion and her gaze and made a poster
Now it’s moccasins we sport
We take the culture and contort
Perhaps only to distort what we are hiding
She wrote that song years ago, mind you. It’s a shame to see her essentially doing that very thing now.
Cultural appropriation needs to stop.
It’s Holier than Now but many thanks for the link and, of course, for planting the seed for that post with your insights on the hipster headdress
xo
Thanks everyone!
@Kelly, I get plenty of those too…but consider them un-blog worthy (most of the time). I love that quote too!
@Stephen, I googled your new term, apparently the home/garden world has been using it to describe like “Little House on the Prairie” decor, but I think your use is much more appropriate. ha.
@Maddy, thanks for the lyrics, I hadn’t ever heard that song of hers. I think that may be post-worthy on its own.
@Anishinaabekwe, as always, I agree. It has become so commonplace and normalized, yet no less hurtful and harmful
@Holier than Now- haha, I totally didn’t even notice! Thanks! I’ll correct it right now. I have been dealing with so many ppl with the Holier than thou attitude, I think I typed it without even thinking. That’s what I get for being in an Ivy League world. 🙂 Sorry, hope you weren’t offended!