If you haven't heard, Justin Bieber has dreadlocks now—and some people aren't happy about it.
The pop star posted several selfies to Instagram on Sunday putting his short, blonde, dreadlocks on full display. His photos have racked up millions of likes and hundreds of thousands of comments. Suffice it to say that not everyone is pleased with Bieber's look, and some have called him out for "cultural appropriation":
This isn't the first time Bieber's hair has caused controversy. Earlier this year, he faced criticism for an Instagram photo of himself with cornrows:
Bieber's dreadlocks controversy isn't the only example of cultural appropriation this week (and it's only Monday).
On Sunday, an Arizona judge decided that the Navajo Nation can potentially sue Urban Outfitters for millions of dollars over copyright infringement. Local CBS affiliate WREG reported that the retailer claimed the Navajo Nation knew its name was used to describe items such as necklaces, jackets, and underwear. But the judge ruled in favor of the Navajo Nation since there "was no evidence anyone legally associated with the Navajo Nation knew the retailer used the tribe’s trademarks."
When a massive retail company like Urban Outfitters uses the name and image of a marginalized group for profit, or when Bieber adopts a hairstyle for which black people have experienced discrimination, attempts to "honor" a culture can actually be disrespectful.
These examples of cultural appropriation harken back to a video created by actress and activist Amandla Stenberg called "Don't Cash Crop On My Cornrows."
"Appropriation occurs when a style leads to racist generalizations or stereotypes where it originated, but is deemed as high fashion, cool, or funny when the privileged take it for themselves," she says.
"What would America be like if we loved black people as much as we love black culture?"
