The stakes of cultural appropriation are high, particularly given the history of colonialism, imperialism, and slavery Black women in this country have faced, said Riche Richardson, a professor of Africana studies and FGSS graduate field faculty member at Cornell University.
"What's at stake when one is not really a part of that culture's history — does not share its traumas or the burdens that are associated with that identity — is the potential for commodification and profiteering" at the expense of the people who are the original creators in the culture, Richardson said.
