Appropriation vs Appreciation

Appreciation is when you are trying to learn about Indigenous culture to broaden your perspective and make connections to Indigenous ways of knowing and being. You are looking to understand the meaning, history, and significance of the cultural item or practice you are learning about. You are learning from people of that culture, whether in person, through books, or through websites- and giving credit to those people when sharing what you have learned. You are in no way profiting from what you have learned- either monetarily or in social standing - by for example, making and selling art in the style of a culture that is not your own, or creating workshops that people pay to go to where you teach about another person’s culture. In the Indigenous context this is a problem because of the harmful history that Indigenous people have endured since colonization. Residential schools, the potlatch ban, and other related government policies explicitly tried to wipe out Indigenous cultures. Despite this, Indigenous people have held onto their art and other cultural practices and kept their traditions alive. Profiting from a culture that is not your own continues the pattern of colonization, just in an economic form. One major problem with appropriation is that it can reinforce harmful stereotypes of Indigenous people. This is seen, for example, when people dress up as Indigenous people for Halloween, where these costumes diminish Indigenous cultures to a pan Indigenous image and where non-Indigenous people benefit not only monetarily but also in the continued reinforcement of stereotypes.

Learning to understand a culture that is different than your own is important to becoming a mindful citizen. It is especially important to understand the culture of the land that we live on. Teaching our students to appreciate the culture and ways of being of the land they are living on is an important step towards reconciliation.

Here are some guiding questions to help you when creating lessons to share with your students:

Where did you learn the information that you are sharing? Have you learned from an Indigenous source and when you are sharing what you have learned from others- are you crediting that source?

Do you understand the meaning, history, and significance of what you are teaching about, and are you sharing that as a part of your lesson?

Who is benefiting from what you are doing? Is the action you are taking helping Indigenous people or harming them?

Signs that you are appropriating culture:

You are selling and/or profiting in some way from an Indigenous culture when you are not a member of that culture. Ie. Selling art ‘In the style of’ Indigenous people

You are using or sharing symbols or designs from a culture without understanding the deep meaning and history behind that symbol.

You are wearing items considered sacred in Indigenous communities when you have not been gifted the right to wear that item (ie. Headdresses).

You are buying items that mimic Indigenous designs. Indigenous people do not have the same economic power as large companies and so cannot easily mass produce products. Buying from non-Indigenous people who are using Indigenous designs perpetuates capitalism over properly compensating Indigenous people for the time it takes to produce art that reflects their culture.