At this year’s MTV Movie Awards, Selena Gomez performed her new song, “Come and Get It,” in an outfit she described as “glam tribal” with a traditional Hindu bindi on her forehead.

I took offense to how she described the style. First of all, Hinduism and “glam tribal” certainly aren’t the same thing. And since when is religion a fashion statement?

This move by Gomez drew criticism from many religious groups, including the Universal Society of Hinduism.

They released a statement saying, “The bindi on the forehead is an ancient tradition in Hinduism and has religious significance. It should not be thrown around loosely for consumer fashion. Selena should apologize and then she should get acquainted with the basics of world religions.”

This is an example of cultural appropriation.

Cultural appropriation encompasses sports teams that incorporate Native American culture into their team names and mascots, “fashionistas” wearing jewelry with crosses on it without knowing the religious connotation, or getting tattoos of Chinese characters without grasping its true meaning.

Retailers like Urban Outfitters and Victoria’s Secret have a long history of cultural appropriation.

Just last year, at the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, supermodel Karlie Kloss strutted down the runway wearing a Native American headdress, a leopard-print bikini, turquoise jewelry and fringed heels.

After the inevitable public outrage, Victoria’s Secret pulled the footage of Kloss modeling the offensive costume from the CBS broadcast.

Although cultural appropriation at Syracuse University is especially apparent during Halloween — with sexy Pocahontas costumes and so on — it doesn’t stop there. The issue bleeds into everyday outfits and the controversy deepens.

Urban Outfitters is one of the biggest offenders on this front. In 2011, it was criticized for its “Navajo”-inspired clothing line, which included a “Navajo Hipster Panty” and a “Navajo Print Fabric Wrapped Flask.”

If you’ve read your American history textbooks, I don’t have to tell you why this is deeply offensive.

The Navajo Nation Government sent a cease-and-desist letter to Urban Outfitters, demanding they remove the trademarked name from the products.

But Native American nations aren’t the only cultural groups that are portrayed inaccurately in fashion.

Urban Outfitters was reprimanded again for its St. Patrick’s Day merchandise, which featured a shirt with the slogan, “Kiss Me. I’m Drunk, or Irish, or Whatever.”

Abercrombie and Fitch sold a T-shirt that featured caricatured faces with slanted eyes and rice paddy hats with the phrase, “Wong Brothers Laundry Service — Two Wongs Can Make It White.”

The retail fashion industry also has a nasty habit of labeling any cultural print as “ethnic” or “tribal” without learning the history or even the name of the print.

Ikat prints, a complicated printing process practiced from Mexico and Uzbekistan to Cambodia and Japan, feature an almost bleeding-dye-like pattern. Shibori is a Japanese method of intricate tie-dyeing. And the often-labeled “tribal print” is actually called a Ganado pattern, developed by the Navajo Nation in the late 1800s.

There is also the question of who actually owns the rights to cultural symbols. If you visit India and purchase a traditional sari, is it considered cultural appropriation if you wear it in the United States?

I’m not saying we should never purchase culturally inspired clothes, but people should do research beforehand and avoid buying the mass-produced, offensive items sold by fashion industry giants.

Before you say, “It’s just fashion,” or “You’re just looking for something to be offended by,” think about the cultures whose traditional garb is used as sexy lingerie in a Victoria’s Secret fashion show.

Allison Mariotti is a senior magazine journalism major. She has too many shoes to count, but could always use another pair. Her fashion column appears every Monday in Pulp. She can be reached at admariot@syr.edu.

Published on April 28, 2013 at 9:28 pm