# What constitutes "acceptable" cultural appropriation?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-acceptable-cultural-appropriation/703031>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [October 30, 2014, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-acceptable-cultural-appropriation/703031 "2014-10-30T17:08:58Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 6

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![PookahMacPhellimey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pookahmacphellimey/32/3175_2.png) [@PookahMacPhellimey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PookahMacPhellimey)\
**Post date:** [November 3, 2014, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-acceptable-cultural-appropriation/703031/101 "2014-11-03T19:40:23Z")

</div>

> [@clairobscur](#):
>
> And why should we care about these people being offended?

Because we’re nice people? We don’t need to cater to every person’s every whim and I do agree someone polite seem to enjoy playing the victim card. But if someone tells me in a reasonable way that they rather I didn’t wear something significant to them for fun, I feel it is polite to stop wearing that item. Call me a bleeding heart liberal or something, but I don’t like going through life not giving a fuck about other people’s feelings.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\
**Post date:** [November 5, 2014, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-acceptable-cultural-appropriation/703031/102 "2014-11-05T17:32:58Z")

</div>

> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#):
>
> ah! you sort of prove my point for me. I hate those sappy cover versions with a passion, in some cases they stomp all over some of my own very deeply revered cultural icons. I (and my ears) are offended by them.
> 
> My reaction to them?..a roll of the eyes, a “hurrumph” behind a rustling newspaper and a (hopefully obvious) tongue-in-cheek pit thread. It niggles me, it doesn’t send me into an apoplectic rage. By no means should the fact of my offense be seen as reason to ban something.
> 
> In all seriousness, given dictatorial powers I wouldn’t stop people recording them, just as I wouldn’t stop people picking and choosing cultural artefacts to play about with. You may look like a dick but no-one should try and stop you doing it.

Obviously, people who cluelessly make devalued versions of songs is a pretty lightweight kind of appropriation. But it _did_ bother you enough to notice and comment on it. In a perhaps small way, something that meant something to you has been reduced. You’re entitled to be annoyed.

I have never suggested that they should not be _allowed_ to do so (to the contrary, in fact). I say only that you (everyone) might think of this when considering the larger and more significant (to the taken-from cultures) appropriations. The interwoven fabric of all of human culture belongs to all of us, and can make our lives richer, but only if we respect what it is, where it came from, what it means. To do less means cheating both sides of the transaction.

[Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-constitutes-acceptable-cultural-appropriation/703031.md?page=5)