Burqas, Headscarves, and Rash Guards – Cultural Clothing

**updated September 2018**

Westerners have the idea that Muslim women are required to cover up. It is commonly thought that women are repressed and controlled by the headscarves and modest clothing. We tend to think that women are hidden in long coats to hinder their participation in the world and show that they are beneath men.

In a word – WRONG. It is simply UNTRUE.

While it is hard for us to believe anyone would choose to cover up – especially in the heat, women CHOOSE coverings.

You read that correctly, women CHOOSE – the coverings are not required. As a matter of fact, for a while in an attempt to make Turkey more western, headscarves were outlawed in schools and places of government. It was against the law to wear one. But, instead of dancing in the streets from being ‘free’, women quit their jobs rather than bare their heads. Without what they felt was a choice to wear the headscarf, they felt LESS freedom, not more.

Recently the law was repealed and happily, women in their headscarves returned to work in universities and government. Curious about the many different types of headscarves? Read more here.

Exploring and understanding cultural norms is part of the wonder of travel. Let’s start here with burqas, headscarves, and rash guards.

What is normal cultural clothing in Australia?

Due to very high skin cancer rates, Australia has a public service campaign encouraging locals to cover up in the sun. Slip. slap, slop.

Kids are encouraged to wear hats at school recess. Rash guards are common at the beach and sunscreen clothing is popular for outdoor activities. No one is suggesting that Australian women who protect themselves from the sun are ‘repressed’  or ‘controlled by men’.

Cultural clothing in China

Fair skin is prized in China and women go to great lengths to obtain it. They have taken sun protection to a whole new level with these face covers called Face-Kinis. These get lots of reactions from westerners though reactions are hard to decipher through all the laughter! Again, these women are not repressed or controlled by men by their fashion choices.

Cultural clothing in Turkey

I was very curious to see what traditional clothes were worn on the beaches in Turkey. Would the women be more covered than a rashguard? Would the women be wearing pants? Would they somehow have their hair covered? I made my daughter wear a one-piece swimsuit and a long sleeved rash guard on top of it. I wanted her to be respectful of the local culture. Imagine my surprise when she was the most modestly covered person there!

As our family adventure only took us to two beaches, I can’t speak for them all, but we went to a national park which was full of locals – away from the tourist-filled area. My daughter had on the only one piece swimsuit there. Women of every age, size, and fitness category had on bikinis.

With probably 200+ people in swimsuits, I saw one woman wearing a long shirt and headscarf – just one. I felt a kinship with her actually as I cover up from the sun myself. I was wearing long sleeves, long pants, and a sun hat – all with the fantastic sunscreen fabric I love! Were they thinking my very conservative clothing was a way for my husband to control me??

Food in Turkey. What is Turkish Delight?

Awesome underground city in Turkey

What about traditional clothes and cultural appropriation?

There are a lot of discussions these days online about cultural appropriation. What does that mean exactly? I love the clothing from different countries. Sometimes they are so colorful and ornate compared to the clothing from the US. Traditional clothing from other countries just feels….exotic. Also, since the United States is young and a melting pot, we don’t really have ONE type of dress that summarizes the culture of the country so we really admire countries that do have this.

You can walk in markets and shops in countries while visiting and see articles of clothing for sale. In Turkey, I saw lots of opportunities to purchase pieces of cultural clothing like burkas and headscarves. If I purchase something I support the local businesses. If I used it in a respectful manner I honor their culture that I came so far to see and appreciate. But, did I? No, I chose not to purchase anything with a religious meaning. I loved the colors and fabrics and settled on a scarf instead. I knew that whether I chose to wear the scarf or drape it over a lampshade I wouldn’t be offending anyone. Without a strong knowledge of the Muslim religion that uses burkas and headscarves, I felt it was too easy to make a mistake with those things – even if I have honorable intentions and appreciation.

What is cultural appropriation?

Cultural appreciation is dominant culture taking on elements of the culture of a minority culture.

What are some examples of cultural appropriation?

Cultural appropriation can take many forms and include uses of art, religion, and fashion. Things like hairstyles, makeup, and body modifications fall into this category if used in a way to inhibit the original culture.

Halloween is a time when we see examples of cultural appropriation. If you choose to dress up like a native American Indian, for example, or like a ‘sexy’ nun, these things are offensive to those groups of people. Native American people’s historical costumes are for very specific activities like, for example, a wedding dress is just for a wedding.  A ‘sexy’ nun costume is clearly inappropriate in the eyes of a celibate nun and those that respect her.

So, what about ‘it’s just funny!’ and ‘you are thinking about this too much – lighten up!’. I hear you, but…do you hear you? When you tell someone, who is trying to relate their honest feelings to ‘lighten up’ you aren’t hearing them. You aren’t appreciating them.

When you travel and see the world – why do you? To learn? To observe? To appreciate? That’s why I travel and why I take the kids – so they can see the world is a big and glorious place full of people different from us. We are going specifically to see what is different. My goodness, if you want everything to be the same – you need to stay at home.

This is a great opportunity to teach the difference between cultural appropriation and cultural celebration. Use this time to teach your children the difference and raise global citizens! Children need to understand how we can all be different and still get along and appreciate each other more now than ever before in history. The world is very small indeed.

How is cultural appropriation different from a cultural exchange?

Cultural appropriation happens when the dominant culture uses the act or use of the culture in a way that comes from historical culturalism and oppression. When a part of the culture is copied by the dominant culture and used outside of the original context – and especially when those of that culture are asking for this not to happen, it is a form of cultural appropriation and needs to stop.

So, how do you know what is OK to purchase traditional clothes and when it is a bad thing?

I think the key to this very complicated issue is respect. If you are admiring the handiwork, the colors, the beautiful fabric, and cultural history when you purchase a country’s traditional clothes then you are appreciating the culture.

If instead, you are making light, making fun, or wearing the traditional clothes while doing things that are not acceptable in that culture then you are crossing the line. For example, if you choose to wear traditional clothing from a Muslim country then don’t eat pork while you are wearing it.  Some cultures bristle at the use of their traditional clothing as a Halloween costume, too.

I asked fellow bloggers from all over the world to share their views on cultural appropriation. Their opinions are so interesting.

Let’s meet them!

*Yazmin from Generation Avocado is 1/2 Chinese and 1/2 English. She identifies as mixed race.

*Jae is Korean and is part of the team that blogs at Adventure Dragon.

*Nadia blogs at Nomadic Nerd. She is from Malaysia.

*Nuraini is Malaysian and blogs at Nomadic Nerd.

How do you feel about tourists buying and wearing traditional items from your home country?

Yazmin from Generation Avocado says,

“Hong Kong itself has a long history, which is complicated and unsettling if you start digging deeper to understand cultural appropriation. With the British moving into the territory and ‘owning’ it, it is hard to always know where the Chinese traditions start and the British ones end. That said, Chinese silks, specific colours and using accessories/motifs that are distinctly Chinese cannot be missed in Western fashion. For me, what people wear is an extension of their personality and an expression of their creativity. What I would hope, is that if tourists choose to buy and wear traditional items from anywhere (whether that is China, Hong Kong or the UK) is that they do their research and understand what they are purchasing, the heavy weight of history that may be contained in the fabric and are still happy to wear these items. Fashion statements are one thing, walking blindly into bold statements is another.”

Jae from Adventure Dragon says,

“It’s okay if they want to buy it as a souvenir, wear it to a festival, or even wear it while they’re in Korea just to try to learn about the country and culture. That’s okay. I’m not gonna say “That’s my culture. Don’t take my culture.” If you want to learn about it, that’s great. More power to you if you want to educate yourself. But don’t take it home and try to make a profit from it or turn it into something it’s not. Don’t start wearing it around school like it’s some kind of fashion statement.” 

Nadia from Nomadic Nerd says,

“I think it’s a little bit odd if I’m being honest. I’m from Malaysia and we have three different main cultures, regularly when we celebrate their respective holidays, Malaysians who are not from that culture will pay their respects by wearing that traditional outfit. For example, a Malay woman may wear a Saree during Deepavali or a Chinese woman may wear a Kebaya during Hari Raya. Outside of these situations, and with someone who doesn’t understand the significance behind the outfits, it’s weird.” 

Nuraini from Teja on the Horizon says,

“Generally speaking, Malaysians feel proud (and I guess even… validated?) if we see tourists buying our crafts, and even actually wearing our outfits. Malay heartland homestay packages or volunteer programs in village locations sometimes cross into festive periods, and they often offer foreign guests our traditional festive clothes to borrow or buy if they want to look the part on the festive day.”

Do you purchase and wear items from other countries you visit? Do you wear those items only while traveling or also when you get home?

Yazmin from Generation Avocado says,

“I personally don’t tend to purchase traditional items from countries I visit, mostly because traditional items in a country so different to mine are often less than practical! The most I tend to do is buy accessories – sometimes it is nice to own a small piece that you can wear and have the memory laying close to your heart. An example is a traditional Russian scarf, it is beautiful and the print is unusual for my general style, but it isn’t so out of place that I wouldn’t recognize it as my own. I originally wasn’t going to buy such a traditional print, but I was with my Russian friend, in Moscow with our mutual Australian friend and as they said at the time: I can get a scarf from anywhere in the world, why not make sure my memory is saved in this one. Not to mention the summer was much colder than I had expected, so I needed something to help me out and I knew I would wear it again and again!”

Jae from Adventure Dragon says,

“Yeah, sure, I might go buy some wooden shoes to take home as a souvenir from the Netherlands. Or if I stay at a traditional Japanese ryokan in Japan, I’ll probably wear a summer kimono (yukata) because that’s literally what they give you to wear and relax in around the inn. As long as there are no cultural rules against wearing a particular item, then I may consider wearing it. Because that’s what makes me mad– when someone wears something formal from someone else’s culture with no regards to what it means when they wear it. That’s being an asshole. Only Native American leaders can wear headdress. And you can’t just walk around wearing a tartan for a Scottish clan to which you don’t belong. If a piece of clothing requires earning the right to wear it or denotes some kind of honor, you shouldn’t wear it. To me, it’s the same thing as false valor– when someone who isn’t military wears a military uniform when they haven’t earned the right to wear it. Certain garbs just aren’t okay to wear. Others just show cultural appreciation. There’s really no way to know which is which unless you do research about clothing items before you wear them or ask the people to whom those cultural items belong. If there are no cultural rules against me wearing something, then I might wear it as a part of experiencing and celebrating a new country, but I don’t think I would wear it back home in my own country.”

Nadia from Nomadic Nerd says,

“I don’t think I’ve ever done this. I think the only time was when I dressed in traditional clothing to take a photo, but then I took it off. “

Nuraini from Teja on the Horizon says,

“Yes, I do. I have an ao dai from Vietnam and even had another made by my seamstress when I got home. I have Tibetan jewelry, Rapa Nui red seed jewelry, rainforest jewelry, which I wear in the same way as the more ‘normal’ silver and gold. I also have a Spanish mantilla, an Arab jilbab, a Moroccan djellaba. We are a diverse country, so I also have clothing from our minority groups – Chinese cheongsam, Indian salwar khameez. Fusion fashion is normal in Malaysia. When I buy these items, they become a part of my normal wardrobe same as my ‘own’ clothes. Like, I-will-wear-them-to-work kind of normal (*if that is what the origin community wears them for).”

How do you feel about using or having your home country’s traditional garb used for a Halloween costume?

Yazmin from Generation Avocado says,

“There aren’t many opportunities in which I think you could dress up as a ‘Chinese person’ for Halloween. I guess you could, but I don’t really know why anyone would want to! The closest thing I have come to is the theme of high school and becoming the stereotypical Chinese geek with big glasses and high knee socks – it could be seen as offensive if someone tried to make themselves look Chinese, but I would hope they would just dress up as a ‘geek’ or ‘nerd’ with their own ethnicity. “

Jae from Adventure Dragon says,

“To me, that’s just racist. If you’re wearing my country’s garb for a Halloween costume, then what exactly IS your costume? If I ask you who you are dressed as, what’s your answer going to be? Korean? Because Korean is not a costume. Korean is an ethnicity and an identity. Using Korean as a Halloween costume just reminds me of Mickey Rooney’s famously racist portrayal of an Asian character in the film Breakfast at Tiffany’s. When you use any form of “Asian” as a costume, it’s usually coupled with over-exaggerated stereotypes or humor at the expense of that culture. It typically just becomes a mockery of that culture, whether people intend for it to or not. “

Nadia from Nomadic Nerd says,

“I would be less offended and more confused because I don’t understand how any of my country’s traditional outfits can equate to scary/sexy or whatever you want to be on Halloween. I mean, you can sexify it, but that’s just rude.”

Nuraini from Teja on the Horizon says,

“I wouldn’t do it. It would be strange – it isn’t a ‘character’ to play, it’s our normal clothes. If I see my traditional clothing used as a Halloween costume, I think I would feel that the person does not see my people as ordinary and equal people, only as empty ‘characters’. However, I think if it were a fancy dress event, where sometimes people dress as someone from another country, I’d be ok with that. I’d be like, hey you’ve been to Malaysia! You know our clothes!”

In your opinion, what is the difference between cultural appreciation and cultural appropriation?

Yazmin from Generation Avocado says,

“I think a large part of it is the intent: Do they mean harm and if they don’t mean harm have they accidentally fallen into that trap through sheer ignorance? I don’t think it is excusable to take something as inspiration and use it without doing some due diligence and research first. Hopefully in this day and age mal-intent is minimal, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen. Borrowing from other cultures, showcasing what you might love about them, spreading the joy and inspiration should be celebrated, but there is also a responsibility to educate about where the borrowing has come from and what the significance of these pieces are. If an individual truly does appreciate a culture, they will want to share the history and story not just take it and present as their own.”

Jae from Adventure Dragon says,

“Cultural appropriation is taking something from another culture and using it outside its original cultural context in a way that changes, distorts, or disrespects its original meaning. The girl who made news a year or so ago for wearing a Native American headdress as a fashion accessory to a music festival would be a great example of that. Wanting to learn about another culture or celebrate that culture with the people of that culture by engaging in traditional festivals, dress, food, language, or other elements of culture in a way that aligns with the original intent of the festival, garb of clothing, or other cultural item is showing cultural appreciation.”

Nadia from Nomadic Nerd says,

“We have a great mix of cultures here in Malaysia and I think cultural appreciation is ingrained within all of us. Each celebration is treated with respect and at schools (especially my international school), they often have days dedicated to that holiday. We will all dress up in the respective outfit and they will educate the students about the history behind it. In offices or with friends, they also tend to have the same, where people outside of those cultures (including foreigners) dress up as a sign of respect. Perhaps when visiting houses for celebrations or just attending I think it’s all about understanding and educating yourself. You have to be open to learning about the outfits and also allow those who come from that culture to rightfully educate you when needed.”

Nuraini from Teja on the Horizon says,

“I had to take a day to really think about this, because I don’t think we have really been put in a position of genuine cultural appropriation, not even when we were under colonization. So, when the topic makes the news, it’s hard for me to appreciate it. 

It was a bit hard to think of a parallel scenario in terms of clothing because we don’t infuse serious meaning into our traditional clothes. However, we are serious about our food. It’s best illustrated in what I refer to as the Rendang Crispy Skirmish of 2018, when netizens of Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, and Brunei spontaneously united against the common enemy of a Masterchef UK insult, with corporations like IKEA and KFC instantly joining the fray for a bit of hilarious marketing (google ‘rendang crispy whitesplaining’ and #rendanggate)! 

 

I think the difference is that in cultural appreciation, you adopt someone’s cultural elements in a manner that places your culture and theirs on an equal footing. So you feel seen by the person adopting your cultural items. And so it makes people feel closer together. 

 

Cultural appropriation is taking someone’s cultural elements, without any regard for its meaning in the original culture, or whether it was offered to you or not, and then using it as you like, even up to displacing its original meaning with values that are disliked by the original culture. It’s an act of dominance. So you feel erased. 

 

I came to the above distinction after I tried to think of a context where some of my cultural elements really wouldn’t belong, except if it were taken from us in this way. And I thought, suppose the men’s traditional clothing, which our menfolk would wear to the mosque on Fridays, were made to be the uniform of a casino. And then, because it was done by an influential culture, the association spread as a trend. 

 

When I imagined this, even though the clothes do not inherently carry any religious meaning, I have to say, I don’t feel – nothing. I feel something. And I understood at once, everything. Why beer yoga is hurtful. Why indiscriminate wearing of Native American headdresses is hurtful. And why the Chinese community here responded with a renewed passion in the lion dance when a prominent Malay politician once tried to re-brand it. 

 

And I also understood immediately why it is not possible for a non-dominant culture to culturally appropriate, why it doesn’t feel the same. You can only feel the pain of your culture being erased when you believe it could happen for real.”

Travel opens your eyes. When you see new things try to understand them, rather than just go with your knee-jerk reaction. Discuss what you find with your kids and make them global citizens by considering cultural clothing.

Happy fashionable choices and travel,

Natalie, The Educational Tourist

Thank you google.com, dailymail.co.uk, and AFP Getty Images for the fantastic photos.

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