Some say “imitation is the sincerest form of flattery” and I agree, to some extent. Sometimes imitation can be used to make fun of something or to degrade someone. It seems like the imitation of the black culture has been a mixture of flattery, degradation, and plagiarism. If you’re going to copy or use something that isn’t originally yours, at least give credit when it’s due.
The black culture has been bitten off, plagiarized, and stolen by almost every other race, especially the white culture. They generally like to copy our music, dance, fashion, and, more so lately, our hairstyles. I can’t get too mad at them for wanting to copy us because our culture is dope and we’re innovators, but at some point, it has to stop. Eventually, it stops being “flattering” and starts becoming disrespectful and insulting. For example, Marc Jacobs used the Bantu knots hairstyle on his models for his fashion show debuting his 2015 clothing line. Shortly after, Jacobs was being credited with the “creation” of the trendy style which people began calling “twisted mini buns.” Like many other black women, and men, "flattery" was the last word I would use to describe this “new, trendy hairstyle”. That is the perfect example of our culture being taken from us and others getting credit for it.
Like I said, imitation is okay sometimes, but the copying of the black culture and style is constantly happening. What makes it worse is we aren’t getting the credit we deserve. And sometimes we get our "credit," but not completely because we’re told the imitator is doing it “better.” Being told another race is doing anything my people created “better” than we are is worse than getting no credit at all. Bits and pieces of our culture have been, and still are, plagiarized by others as if it's their own. Society accepts, and even applauds it but, if black people did that, it’d be a different story. If black people constantly imitated the white culture we’d be told we’re “trying to be white.” We’d be discouraged to continue imitating it. And God forbid we didn’t give credit! Then we’d really live up to the ignorant stereotype that we’re thieves.
Imitation isn’t always meant to be flattering, though. Sometimes it’s meant to be insulting. For example, making memes or videos showing what “black people be like” and using racial slurs, terms and stereotypes is degrading. To some of them, it’s hilarious and not supposed to be insulting or taken seriously, but it is. Being called out on your name and seeing your people and your culture being made fun of is not even a little funny.
People have stolen from and misused black people for hundreds of years and they still do now. What makes it worse is that it’s not only whites that imitate our culture, but it’s other races, too. It seems like we can never have anything that’s just for us only. Our rights, our opportunities, even black lives have been taken. If anything, our culture should just be for us since it was created by us. We should be allowed to have what’s rightfully ours without having to fight society about its true origin or how it’s meant to be. I’m not saying I want segregation, by any means, but if you’re not black…you haven’t been granted to use our culture any way that you please. You’re not invited to our table. You can’t sit with us.
