Very recently Fort Collins has again celebrated a fun and local tradition: Tour de Fat. For those of you who are not familiar with this beer infused weekend treat, it is a brewery event by our very own New Belgium Brewery here in Fort Collins. The event itself helps support local non-profit bikes shops and local businesses as people are allowed to dress up in wild and wacky costumes and hit the town! This tradition has been going on for years and people of all ages, from toddlers, to college students, to grandparents can hop on a bike and rout the town’s beer and food cultures.
I have never fully attended the event, since each year I’ve either been too young to drink or working. This year I happened to be working at a restaurant in the heart of Old Town, and got to experience the event second hand for the first time. For the most part, I enjoyed the playfulness and creativity put into the costumes of the people marching the streets. However, by some I was left irritated and disappointed, as multiple people dressed in horrendously insensitive garb.
Within the first few hours of working I looked out the window to see at least five or six white folks with large Native American headdresses on, people donning sombreros and Mexican ponchos, dashiki’s and even a few women dressed in sarees with big, jeweled bindi’s between their eyes.
As uncomfortable as this conversation always is: we as a community need to discuss the negative appropriation of minority cultures in the United States. It happens everywhere, not just here in our backyard. However, helping to fix people’s understanding of how cultural appropriation negatively affects their local culture can be a huge benefit to any community.
Cultural appropriation is about taking something from another culture and adopting it to your own culture, sometimes using false stereotypes (like a sombrero) or even historically significant artifacts (Native American headdresses) for personal reasons. History has shown that cultural appropriation has always had a hand in America, resulting from forces like mass genocide, colonization, and imperialism. This has played a part in the dehumanization of minorities from all kinds of cultures including the black community and of Native people.
Some people argue that cultural appropriation is a positive thing in our society, and that it creates a melting pot of cultures that are shared through cultural exchange. However, what we need to understand is that there is nothing wrong with celebrating and learning about another culture, but really this is about taking away from cultures without truly respecting or educating yourself about the history of that culture. What is respectful to Native Americans about putting on a headdress and spreading black eyeliner on your face?
People wearing these costumes to events will probably roll their eyes and say that our society is “just too sensitive” or that “political correctness” is stifling their choices of what they can and cannot wear. I’d like to point out that ignoring the feelings of a culture that you are demeaning by wearing those clothing styles can really harm and exclude entire populations of people within a community. Fort Collins is not an inherently diverse place to live, and I can empathize with the fact that most people might not really know that what they say or wear to local events like this can hurt or anger groups of individuals exploited by them. Public schools don’t really teach political correctness these days, and sometimes we have to depend on the voices of those oppressed to point us in a positive direction.
Cultural Appropriation creates generalizations about groups of people, and sometimes creates hostile or uncomfortable environments for students or citizens becoming immersed in our town’s heritage. Appropriation creates a power dynamic, and usually does not go both ways. People can say, “Well, Native people speak English and wear our clothing.” Yes, and Native people who want to celebrate their heritage and culture are only allowed to on reservations and were forced to adapt generations ago to English culture. I am choosing to focus on the appropriation of marginalized cultures, yes, but the fact is that white Americans are not being oppressed by appropriation of their culture whereas minority groups are being held in constant disrespect and inequality while we pick and choose what we’d like to from them. The fact is “white” is considered a societal norm.
Unequal systems exist in western culture, including xenophobia and white supremacy, and the people outside of those chosen minorities benefit the most from that system, which is why cultural appropriation is not usually seen as “going both ways.”
Perhaps you think that what you wear to Tour de Fat is trivial, but to somebody else it could be a very sensitive and aggressive power-play over their cultural heritage. Since Fort Collins is a primarily white, westernized society we have to remember not to ostracize groups of people in our community so that we can gain a more culturally diverse and happy environment. After all, Fort Collins was voted one of the happiest cities, and we should want to expand that and hold onto that atmosphere of prosperity and diversity in our neighbors.
Let’s remember that our actions always have impact, whether negative or positive. Let’s keep Tour de Fat a positive and fun experience for people across cultures and backgrounds! Happy drinking!
