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CHEONGSAM_RED

                                                    May 14, 2018

                                                  CULTURAL_APPROPRIATION
  Actually, I see Amy Qin covered this story
  at the NYT, the day before the issue was
  brought up on reddit:

     https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/02/world/asia/chinese-prom-dress.html


  As I suspected, knowing more about the actual details
  doesn't really help understand anything.  (Is there
  a name for that phenomena?).




"When Keziah Daum wore a Chinese-style dress to her
high school prom in Utah, it set off an uproar-- but
not because of its tight fit or thigh-high slit."

"After Ms. Daum, 18, shared pictures on social media         
of her prom night, a Twitter user named Jeremy Lam        Is the number of    
hotly responded in a post that has been retweeted         "retweets" inversely   
nearly 42,000 times."                                     related to           
                                                          intelligence?       
  "My culture is NOT your prom dress"                                         
                                                          (Is there a name        
  "I'm proud of my culture, For it to                     for that phenomena?)
  simply be subject to American                           
  consumerism and cater to a white                        
  audience, is parallel to colonial                       
  ideology."                                              

"Some Twitter users who described themselves as
Asian-American seized on Ms. Daum's dress--  a
form-fitting red cheongsam (also known as a qipao)
with black and gold ornamental designs--  as an
example of cultural appropriation, a sign of
disrespect and exploitation. Other Asian-Americans
said the criticism was silly."


"... many people in mainland China, Hong Kong and
Taiwan proclaimed her choice of the traditional
high-necked dress as a victory for Chinese culture."


"Others were quick to point out that the qipao, as it
is known in China, was introduced by the Manchus, an
ethnic minority group from China's northeast--
implying that the garment was itself appropriated by
the majority Han Chinese. In its original form, the
dress was worn in a baggy style, mostly by
upper-class women during the Qing dynasty, which
ruled China for more than 250 years, until 1912."

"It was only in the 1920s and '30s, when Western
influence began seeping into China, that the qipao
was reinvented to become the seductive, body-hugging
dress that many think of today."


"These days, it is rare to see Chinese women wearing
qipaos in the street. Western 'fast fashion' has
taken over ..."

  How disrespectful.  We should defend ourselves
  against such cultural appropriation.  No wearing
  T-shirts unless you look like Marlon Brando.


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