Good People,
A couple of months ago, there was a robust discussion on our internal church Facebook page about cultural misappropriation.
The discussion particularly focused on Dia de los Muertos, though it is an issue that we need to consider in many contexts. On Christmas Eve our service will be based on the Latinx tradition of Las Posadas, so I want to share thoughts about cultural misappropriation.
We are in a new period of addressing race issues in our country, the most active perhaps since the Civil Rights era. People of Color are again asking us all – especially white people of European backgrounds – to be aware of the long legacy of colonizers who appropriated, stole, adopted, profited from the cultures of the peoples who were colonized, or enslaved, or wiped out.
This is not always comfortable work but it is important for us to talk about it and listen to what people from those cultures say about what it feels like when white folks from the dominant-normative-centered culture adopt practices from their cultures. It is so easy to cause deep pain if the “adopters” don’t do their work to understand and respect that culture.
I love doing a Day of Remembrance service around the end of October and beginning of November. For related and unrelated reasons, many traditions celebrate loved ones who have died at this time of year. I’ve been leading such services, including Day of the Dead services, my whole ministry. When I arrived in Ventura, I didn’t want to make any assumptions, especially as a white woman newly living in a place with a vibrant Latinx culture.
I learned that this congregation has had a tradition of doing Day of the Dead services. So in our second year together we celebrated Dia de los Muertos, and the energy came from Latinx members of the church who created the altar for our offrenda and who spoke about their relationship to the holiday.
There is nothing more mortifying than people – especially from the centered culture – who take up a tradition not their own and mangle it or take on the bright shiny bits without understanding sources. A person of color recently told me that it’s especially galling when people adopt the culture and runaway with it without taking time to understand deeply. It feels patronizing when someone starts explaining her own traditions back to her, as if they are suddenly experts. Or they have fun with the celebration in ways that actually dishonor it. And that really hurts.
It is not comfortable for me to think of myself as benefiting from the acts of colonizers, though I do. My heritage is 2nd, 3rd, 5th, and about 9th generation immigrants to North America. I have to consider this legacy. To often white, European Americans think that all the traditions that make up this nation are fair game. They are not.
It’s impossible to draw bright, clear lines about what is and is not cultural misappropriation. We will all make mistakes – perhaps never getting it “right” all the time. We want to be a more racially diverse community, yet reaching that goal does not mean we have to be perfect about racial issues. We do have to be willing to talk about it – to make mistakes, to learn, and grow. If we approach diverse traditions thoughtfully, intentional, meaning to honor and respect them, we will do it better more often than worse. With humility, we will all learn, grow, and deepen into a fuller humanity.
That is indeed my fond hope.
Rev. Dana
