The process of globalization, which begins with the first steps of man beyond the horizon, is almost complete. This integration of politics, economics, culture, and biology has ignited a volcano of change in many traditional societies and has also shaped American culture. Not only have uncontacted Amazonian tribes carried questions on their lips about the metal flying birds they have seen for many years, but men like Percy Fawcett, Edmund Hillary and David Livingstone have already plucked the apple from uncharted regions to explore. . The final brush strokes on the maps of the Earth have dried, however, the assimilation, acculturation and alteration that is taking place today is led by the melting and molding of societies by the hands of globalization.
American popular culture is not only affected by the patterns of globalization, but eagerly seeks and accelerates the response of appropriation through networks of exchange that span the globe. The oldest traditions of a foreign culture are seeping into the American lexicon, as they have for centuries through immigration, economic ties, and exploration, but now even the latest trends in food, clothing, and technology are embedded in western customs.
When this occurs, there is of course the unfortunate truth of a deviation from the original intent, or a bastardization of the original form. Americans’ insatiable taste for all things foreign falls prey to America’s even more overwhelming sense of cultural superiority. Love for the customs of others falls victim to self-lust, as original economic, technological, socio-cultural, political, and biological import elements pass through the gauntlet of both transnational diffusion and the meat grinder of American interpretation. What happens is not quite a parody, not quite a tribute… but a different and divergent race.
One need only look at the average American dress, manners, vernacular, religions, arts, media and food… The list stretches as far as the imagination goes… to find the result of the cultural appropriation in American life. From Japan, we take the fashion for sushi, kimono robes, martial arts and more. What we did with them was fry them in oil, dress them casually, practice for exercise, and make fun of them in movies. Adventurers wear berets and black clothes to the French cinema. Neighborhoods thrive on revealing a perceived/dishonest pact with the old country, spreading stereotypes and generalities to their children. Americans eat up religion, pseudo-mysticism, philosophy, and iconography faster than they can tie a Kabbalah bracelet, faster than they can do a downward facing dog, or rearrange the living room to promote positive chi.
While these corruptions are spreading what were once exotic “isms,” once relegated to crossword puzzles, trivia, and social studies classroom posters, ownership also takes on a new meaning. With a proliferation of Westernized foreign elements (read bastards) found in the Western world, there is also an alleviation of the cultural trauma, acceptance, and acclimatization that immigrant populations face upon arriving in receiving cultures. The “coolies” of yore, being both slack-jawed and treated as inferior, are now nothing to look at. Americans may be more apt to spend a day celebrating Bastille Day, Cinco de Mayo, or any other day of drinking and merriment than a French, Mexican, or any other. Lean cuisine of frozen curries, instant Pad Thai, and celebrity-endorsed Pannini sandwiches are easy testament to the protein protoculture that came to American society via offshore farming pits. The product may be seen as a usurpation, co-option, or vulgarity of the original form and intent, but the crucible has long been stirred with a crooked soup spoon.