Is this cultural appropriation?

[Olivegreenstrawberries]

My father is Libyan with soft afro hair and my mother is white Trinidadian with brown straight hair.

My hair is dark brown and sort of fluffy curly, not very wirey but quite tight curls. Since it's thin I wear hair extensions which I guess are what you might describe as black hair. It's dyed brown to match my hair colour. The hairdresser that puts them in is black. If you saw me from behind you might think I was black or mixed race with black and white, based on my hair.

Is this cultural appropriation? Or more accurately do people think this is cultural appropriation?

My intention isn't to look a different race to the one I am...it is to have thicker hair.

I just wonder if people think I am trying to be black. Obviously I don't know of a hairdresser that specialises in Libyan mixed with white Caribbean hair.

Sure, people might think that. People think all kinds of daft things. Cultural appropriation is definitely a thing but I don't think this is it. You just want thicker hair, and it can't be that dissimilar to your own hair texture otherwise it'd look odd. I'd say crack on, and I'm black FWIW.

This whole "cultural appropriation" thing is a load of shit. Wear what you like, the people who choose to judge you for it are the problem, not you.

As a Hispanic person I want you to know that you can borrow anything from my culture and I will never be offended. Who make these rules anyway? You will find that the majority of people from minorities think this madness is BS.

Yeah the curl definitely matches. The texture isn't a perfect match but it defo works. People are surprised when I mention I wear extensions.

@MatildaIThink

This whole "cultural appropriation" thing is a load of shit. Wear what you like, the people who choose to judge you for it are the problem, not you.

I think of cultural appropriation more as people wearing traditional Indian dress for Halloween suggesting it's scary or a novelty, the Nazis using the swastika etc, not someone having hair extensions to make their hair thicker. I don't think it's a load of shit but equally I think it's a hugely overused term. I wear braids, but couldn't care less if a white person wore the same style (one of the biggest examples of people shouting about CA)

@Olivegreenstrawberries

Yeah the curl definitely matches. The texture isn't a perfect match but it defo works. People are surprised when I mention I wear extensions.

Honestly I'm sure it looks great. Enjoy your hair and wear it with pride 😉

I think you are inventing things to worry about

@Orangejuicemarathoner

I think you are inventing things to worry about

That made me laugh out loud... Of course I'm guilty for over thinking things but I don't think I invented cultural appropriation. 😊

People of all races get extensions. You get ones which are the closest you can find to match your own hair at its healthiest. So the type of hair you get put in is not really cultural appropriation either since you have a mixed heritage and the hair you get put in is close to your own hair type.

But the hair is the same as your actual hair so how can it possibly be cultural appropriation. I think it’s sad that people from all cultures can’t enjoy whatever fashions and styles they want as long as they’re not using it in a derogatory way.

@MatildaIThink

This whole "cultural appropriation" thing is a load of shit. Wear what you like, the people who choose to judge you for it are the problem, not you.

I agree

It's not. You're not borrowing an aspect of a culture/race to profit/benefit from it while the members of that culture/race would be discriminated against for using that same aspect.

You're not pretending to be a less privileged race in order to benefit from sympathy/positive discrimination.

No. Pretty much every culture has used hair extensions in one form or another. Ancient Egyptians, Sumerians, Chinese, Native Americans, Europeans, Australians/Polynesian, Indus Valley, etc etc. I think only thing different between now and then is that hair extensions used to be for men as much as women.

I don’t think so.. everyone wears hair extensions these days if they want. I think of hair enhancements as something that’s for everyone... It’s just beauty like makeup or anything.

Well said