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[Funky Papa]

You know sometimes I'm happy to not be white so I can avoid being called racist for wearing clothes or doing a hair a certain way.

Oh boy. Now that you mention it, I remember this (now permabanned) gaffer who said the most vile stuff about how young Asian girls were disrespecting their ancestors and making a mockery of their culture by dying their hair in flashy colours.

I'm old enough to remember the days of Opa, Mina and the Super Kyro (chances are most folks don't even know about those), but I believe that was my first veritable "what the shit" moment I experienced in here.

 

[Forkball]

Serious question, is your pity, pity that they've faced discrimination up to the point that they actually are uneasy/uncomfortable with this, or pity that they're not as able to rise up against discrimination and get over it, like (I assume) you and your Asian American friends have?

As I always tell people, yes, I'm Asian American, and because I grew up surrounded by Asian Americans, don't personally feel much offense when it comes to these things. I think a good example would be, I don't personally feel injured or offended by depictions of Asian men in Hollywood, because I have always considered Asian men to be sexy and masculine.

That being said, I'm not going to tell Asian American men, that ARE personally affected by the depiction and portrayal, that they should just get over it and I pity them for being unable to just suck it up or whatever just because I don't view them that way.

Because I can understand where these protesters are coming from, and I can understand the general sentiment even if I think this particular exhibit is misguided (I don't think the sentiment about how the kimono has been used often in America to represent sexy Asian women is wrong). Having empathy and bringing awareness to these feelings isn't something I think should be pitied. I might pity them the poor choice of this exhibit, but that's also partially a pity from the lack of avenues to express unhappiness.

I'm not telling anyone to get over anything. I don't want people to tell me how I should feel, so I don't tell people how they should feel. I don't think my Asian-American friends got over the kimono oppression obstacle. I'm not sure if they know that's a thing.

I just want people to look at this issue reasonably. If you personally are offended by kimonos, I won't take that away from you, but you shouldn't hamper other people's opportunities to enjoy it. My home city has an annual Japanese culture event, where people can try on kimonos. If someone came along and said, "You can't do this offensive, culturally appropriating activity." and they had to stop it, I would personally find that pretty terrible that people who were just trying to do something fun and interesting basically got labelled as a racist.

 

[BocoDragon]

I can appreciate backslash's point that a kimono could be seen as problematic in the American context vis a vis Asian Americans, and seen differently than it would be seen in Japan or in other countries with different race relations.

If a traditional zulu warrior outfit were used in promoting racist views of blacks in America... then it doesn't matter that it's an actual outfit worn by people in southern Africa, it would come to have a problematic symbolism.

I don't think the kimono does have those connotations in America at all, though. And all the same, I do think it would be troubling that a local connotation would completely erase the foreign culture's connotation, so that it could no longer be enjoyed in America as an element of that culture. A local skirmish will have ruined America's ability to enjoy an entire culture's dress... and that would be very sad.

But I don't think this group really is protesting about the kimono specifically. I think they're clumsily and naively applying cultural appropriation theory. It's a "other culture's clothes = bad and racist for you" taboo theory that came out of specific tension between certain cultures, and being applied to situations where it's quite ridiculous, in the ideal of internal consistency.

 

[Zaptruder]

I'm not telling anyone to get over anything. I don't want people to tell me how I should feel, so I don't tell people how they should feel. I don't think my Asian-American friends got over the kimono oppression obstacle. I'm not sure if they know that's a thing.

I just want people to look at this issue reasonably. If you personally are offended by kimonos, I won't take that away from you, but you shouldn't hamper other people's opportunities to enjoy it. My home city has an annual Japanese culture event, where people can try on kimonos. If someone came along and said, "You can't do this offensive, culturally appropriating activity." and they had to stop it, I would personally find that pretty terrible that people who were just trying to do something fun and interesting basically got labelled as a racist.

If there's any logic in the cultural appropriation in this issue, it's so mired in the ignorance it takes to make this an issue (really? cultural appreciation festivals are now racist cultural appropriation?) that few will be sympathetic to their plight.

 

[Mr. Pointy]

On that note, what about Australian-Asians? I live in Sydney and feel while we have our own share of rednecks, we have a really multicultural city here and a lot of Australians at this rate have a strong Asian heritage, while a ton of our cooking has strong Eastern-influences now just due to our proximity and exposure to the culture.

I've never really seen the 're-appropriation' issue come up here, yet it's not like we don't have our own race issues that are fiercely debated.

I'll try to explain how I see things.

I think it's do with, how in Australia, culture is outwardly viewed as an ethnic thing (multiculturalism), whereas in the US, culture is viewed on the surface as a racial thing (the melting pot). If you really look deep in both countries, there are most probably similarities with how cultures operate and merge and interact, but on the surface, they're framed differently.

Mainstream white Australian culture originated from Great Britain and is only 200 years or so removed from that place, and it absorbs things from other cultures prodigiously. But no one really minds because multiculturalism outwardly tries to maintain the integrity of other ethnic cultures, so the roots of something absorbed don't feel like they're lost, which I think is the point of contention with cultural appropriation. Also, from what I can tell, mainstream Australian culture is framed as something everyone can participate in. It's still an Anglo-Saxon white derived thing, but it can be viewed as a purely ethnic thing. I mean, I'm ethnically German and Thai, and I participate in mainstream Australian culture and occasionally Thai culture.

Whereas you have the American melting pot, which is ultimately a form of cultural assimilation, running in parallel with how a lot things in America are viewed and segregated by race. You end up with this American viewpoint where a kimono becomes an Asian thing, as opposed to just being a Japanese thing here. So on the surface, the ethnic distinction is glossed over and kind of forgotten. Then you have this dominant mainstream American culture, which is viewed as white, appearing to absorb things from other cultures and benefiting from them but disregarding the roots and separating the people from the originating culture as other. And this is where friction between White American culture, which has a lot of power, and African American culture, Asian American culture, Native American culture, etc. happens. Hence you see the term cultural appropriation thrown about.

Now, cultural appropriation is very muddied thing and I don't 100% get it, but I feel it is an Americanism that doesn't quite work in a multicultural context. So when I see it used outside of the US, I feel it's misguided.

Basically, I think the people protesting the use of the kimono in the art gallery tour were naive and probably hurt their cause, but I can understand backslashbunny's comments about how the kimono is viewed in America and where their sentiment possibly came from.

 

[Ratrat]

Its just sad and abhorrent when one can just appropriate something from another culture and make it a sign of oppression. Ignorant people(the ones fetishizing) do not get to dictate what a whole country's traditional dress signifies and turn it into something repulsive. Its not some fetishtic prostitute outfit or concept. It's clothes. Just plain clothes.

 

[navii]

(as s white male) I remember feeling anxious wearing a Yukata out in public at a Japanese festival. But it turned out everyone was very supportive and I had a great time! I did it again at a festival in Australia and again I had a great time... in fact I am doing it in Osaka next week and really looking forward to it.

If this ridiculous "protest" happened in my home city, I would put on my Yukata and head down there with a friend from Japan if she felt the same way about this ridiculousness.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

I honestly should have foreseen this argument, but a kimono to Asian Americans is more like the word "nigga" to black Americans than what it would mean if it were a Nigerian word.

That's the argument. Bringing in Nigeria was simply bringing in a black country, not because the word "nigga" means in America what it means in Nigeria.

I think you really jumped the shark with this one, backslashbunny... I mean, the word obviously doesn't originate from Nigeria, so that's a moot point, but come on, now. Even if it did, the circumstances in which Asian people came to America were, for the most part, vastly different than that of African people.

I don't think that "Asian Americans" (in the generic sense) have any ownership or claim to a piece of culture that is very specific to Japan, is still active, and is still evolving. "Asian Americans" in this case are no different than white Americans or black Americans in that their opinions really do not matter.

 

[Gotdatmoney]

If there's any logic in the cultural appropriation in this issue, it's so mired in the ignorance it takes to make this an issue (really? cultural appreciation festivals are now racist cultural appropriation?) that few will be sympathetic to their plight.

Cultural appreciation festivals can come off as ignorant if they are not careful in the way they depict their appreciation. It needs to be "this is another cultural, come see how they do things and inform yoursef and enjoy something outside your norm" and not "omg look they are so weird, look at me patronizing this weird way of doing shit". I have never actually gone to a cultural appreciation event where the event wasn't tasteful and really informative mind you but I sure as hell have gone to those events and seen people treating it more as an amusing joke than an actual appreciation. I don't know if anyone made this point but I think it's actually worth noting why people actually go to these things to begin with.

I don't really agree at all with these protestors in terms of this being the best venue to make their point BUT I more disagree with people trying to tell protestors how and when to protest. There is no effective one way to protest, people need to stop acting like there is.

 

[PdotMichael]

Cultural appreciation festivals can come off as ignorant if they are not careful in the way they depict their appreciation. It needs to be "this is another cultural, come see how they do things and inform yoursef and enjoy something outside your norm" and not "omg look they are so weird, look at me patronizing this weird way of doing shit". I have never actually gone to a cultural appreciation event where the event wasn't tasteful and really informative mind you but I sure as hell have gone to those events and seen people treating it more as an amusing joke than an actual appreciation. I don't know if anyone made this point but I think it's actually worth noting why people actually go to these things to begin with.

I don't really agree at all with these protestors in terms of this being the best venue to make their point BUT I more disagree with people trying to tell protestors how and when to protest. There is no effective one way to protest, people need to stop acting like there is.

BUT it's okay when some random people tell other people that they aren't allowed to be interested in a foreign culture.

 

[Zaptruder]

Cultural appreciation festivals can come off as ignorant if they are not careful in the way they depict their appreciation. It needs to be "this is another cultural, come see how they do things and inform yoursef and enjoy something outside your norm" and not "omg look they are so weird, look at me patronizing this weird way of doing shit". I have never actually gone to a cultural appreciation event where the event wasn't tasteful and really informative mind you but I sure as hell have gone to those events and seen people treating it more as an amusing joke than an actual appreciation. I don't know if anyone made this point but I think it's actually worth noting why people actually go to these things to begin with.

I don't really agree at all with these protestors in terms of this being the best venue to make their point BUT I more disagree with people trying to tell protestors how and when to protest. There is no effective one way to protest, people need to stop acting like there is.

People go to socialize and experience something different. Some people are asses about it. Sometimes the variances of asses in a group reaches critical mass. Cest La Vie! Doesn't damn the idea as a whole.

Also, the effective way to protest is to do so in a way that makes the greater public sympathetic to your plight.

It's very possible to protest in a manner that does the opposite, as evidenced in this instance.

 

[Christopher]

Kimonos...racist....???? This forum is too much sometimes.

 

[vas_a_morir]

I wore Japanese traditional clothes and went to buy geta sandals at a small traditional store in Tokyo back when I was a student. When I told them what I was doing, an old man in the store thanked me for participating in Japanese culture. Then, unrelated woman heard what I was doing (the man told her) and SHE thanked me, unprovoked. Real Japanese people LOVE when foreigners show interest and respect in their traditional culture.

Maybe people underestimate the swag Japanese people have about being Japanese. If somebody in Texas saw a Japanese person wearing Cowboy gear, they'd be like "Hell yeah!" because to Texans, being a cowboy fucking rules. That's how Japanese people, for the most part in my experiences, feel about being Japanese.

 

[genjiZERO]

You can't possibly think that a kimono is equivalent in any way shape or form to a racial slur. That is new levels of ridiculousness.

Honestly this whole issue is absurd. Are Asian-Americans treated as perpetual outsiders in American society? I would certainly say this is the case given the many experiences people have shared. Asian-Americans are certainly marginalized in many aspects of society, especially in the media. Any efforts to combat stereotypes and pigeon-holing are good efforts. However, the outcry caused by this event is embarrassing and it only hurts the (Japanese) people who have sponsored the event.

Someone please answer this so I know who is or isn't a racist imperialist:

Can a white person where a kimono?
Can a white person wear clothing made from Asian or Asian-American designers (Vera Wang, Comme des Garcons, Bape etc.)?
Can a white person study an Asian language?
Can a white person eat Asian food?
Can a white person use chopsticks?
Can a white person wear flip flops which may have been inspired by Japanese zori?

Yes, of course

Yes, of course

Yes, of course

Yes, of course

Yes, unless you are eating Thai food.

Yes, but it's hella lame

 

[PdotMichael]

Eh, I think the whole concept of ownership is... well, to some people it matters, to others it doesn't, but on a whole we in the US tend to be okay with certain groups owning certain things. I do think it's important we be sensitive when people care, even if we personally disagree..

You (or whatever self-proclaimed owners) don't own culture. So people couldn't care less if they "offend" people while wearing Kimono in an Japan exhibit. In fact the protesters are the ones who are stealing elements of a foreign culture and claim ownership.

Is really that easy.

 

[vas_a_morir]

I do hope that the US stops fetishizing and exoticizing "Asian things" soon. It would probably reduce these kinds of incidents a lot more, and maybe things from various cultures would actually be shown "respect" in ways that were more than mere lip service.

Whereas I would encourage people of all races and nationalities to enjoy my culture and I thank them for doing so. I also don't think my culture is so magical that it deserves 'respect,' but then again, people are entitled to project self-hate if it makes them feel better about being secretly insecure and ashamed of their culture.

 

[danthefan]

There are not enough roly eye emojis on the internet for the story.

So people not have better things to do?

 

[A Link to the Past]

Whereas I would encourage people of all races and nationalities to enjoy my culture and I thank them for doing so. I also don't think my culture is so magical that it deserves 'respect,' but then again, people are entitled to project self-hate if it makes them feel better about being secretly insecure and ashamed of their culture.

"Enjoying" is not "fetishizing."

 

[LiK]

this is idiotic. it's just fucking clothes.

 

[vas_a_morir]

"Enjoying" is not "fetishizing."

Hell, I encourage the fetishization of US culture, too. Countries around the world already do, and I love them for it. My culture is not sacred or magical, and the color of your skin or your nationality does not disqualify you from doing whatever you want with it. US culture is about free expression, so maybe that's the difference. Fetishizing, mocking, enjoying, anything you do with it is in the spirit of US culture.

Please, if you want to even make movies, books, comics, paintings, and porn with cowboys, gutter-punks, colonial politicians, surfers, appalachian hillbillies, or anything else... go for it. Have fun. and thank you for enjoying American culture! It's so great, and I'm so proud of it I can't be made to feel ashamed no matter what they do.

 

[Izuna]

backslashbunny has done a good job in this discussion considering how outnumbered she is in understanding this protest.

I have to say though, I still don't understand this protest. I get that they are at the end of the day, fighting back Asian stereotypes, but the protest doesn't address that at all.

I think that this event should be able to be restarted. If events like this (which themselves are harmless and actually really fun/educational) no longer happen because it is called racist, then it will just cause more ignorance.

I think what they really should be saying is that being an Asian American, doesn't make Asian culture their own. Maybe they are first or second generation American, but this protest sends out the message that they are entitled to Asian culture... and yes, while they may not be English speaking countries, it's some sort of appropriation to say Kimono has something to do with them.

Those other kids or ignorant people who see people different from themselves and assume that they must eat or wear the things that their parents or grandparents do are just trying to understand the world.

You don't give them LESS chance to learn by removing exhibitions. The ignorance will stay.

I hate to say it but I don't think any movement will have any luck when their message is so hard to understand, only they do. No one is going to stop doing anything that they get called "racist" or "cultural appropriating" over unless they can understand why.

But this is from someone who doesn't get stereotyped because I don't fit any as a mixed raced dude. So I don't know the frustration. I've done my best to understand it here but the message is so unclear and flawed.

 

[PdotMichael]

"fetishizing" is quite the strawman argument - also another barely defined term. And sure, "fetishizing" will stop if people hijack exhibits about Japanese culture.

 

[dramatis]

Oh, I agree with you in a vacuum. Unfortunately, I think for many Asian American women, kimonos are inextricably linked with racism and fetishization.

It's easy to say, oh, stop being emotional and be logical and rational, but that's not really how the world works.

Hey. I'm an Asian American woman. It's completely fine.

Of course, my opinion is anecdotal. However, I see the kimono as having become prevalent enough in fashion that people all around the world, regardless of race, are wearing kimono. Or that its design elements have been utilized in other pieces of clothing.

It's kind of like qipao/changshan (moreso qipao). Qipao is this sort of early 1900s Chinese fashion that has become sort of the de facto garment of "Chinese women" (or maybe even Asian women). Other people in other cultures have worn it sparingly, and some design elements from qipao are arguably used in other clothes. My mother is still pretty proud of qipao though (she thinks any woman, fat, thin, small, tall, can look good in a well-fitting qipao). She's not going to be offended by white lady trying on qipao, she'd just be like, "LOOK, even the white people want our stuff." (She really will say white people, she's pretty racist herself lol)

Is there probably some yellow fever dude/lady who will be like, "Oh you should dress traditional Chinese"? Yes, there is fetishization. I don't think it's so much racism as it is fetishization though, that's where things get weird. But that doesn't mean it's common. Maybe it's my benefit that I grew up in NYC, but even when I went to more rural, white area for college, I never experienced racism through clothes or cultural appropriation.

The only time I get pissy about Chinese clothing on GAF is when it's historically inaccurate (lol). In that case, I think that's a matter of artistic liberty and lack of knowledge and research. But I also know that most Chinese Americans born here probably don't know Chinese history either. I do get somewhat exasperated by the persistent use of only Qing fashion elements when it comes to 'Chinese' character design. This isn't a problem isolated only to the west though, Japan does it as well.


LiK, I'll disagree that it's just "fucking clothes" though. Clothes are pretty important for cultural and individual identity. It's why people have a lot of discussion about character design or costume design.

 

[Alx]

As the kimono has another name, gofuku (呉服?, literally "clothes of Wu (&#21555"), the earliest kimonos were heavily influenced by traditional Han Chinese clothing, known today as hanfu (漢服?, kanfuku in Japanese), through Japanese embassies to China which resulted in extensive Chinese culture adoptions by Japan, as early as the 5th century AD

So kimonos are cultural appropriation from China too ? Japanese people should be ashamed and stop wearing those...
I don't see the problem with cultural appropriation personally. Culture is meant to be shared and spread. There is probably nothing in any culture that isn't inspired by another culture.

 

[A Link to the Past]

"fetishizing" is quite the strawman argument - also another barely defined term. And sure, "fetishizing" will stop if people hijack exhibits about Japanese culture.

I have no idea why you continue to think that anyone you're replying to is defending the protest. You've had posts directed specifically at you saying the exact opposite. At this point, the most good-faith assumption I can make about your contributions to this thread is that you're trolling, because I can't believe that someone who is legitimately trying to contribute to the discussion, who has been in the discussion for its entirety, would so consistently misconstrue what everyone on the opposing side of the discussion was saying.

 

[Izuna]

I do hope that the US stops fetishizing and exoticizing "Asian things" soon. It would probably reduce these kinds of incidents a lot more, and maybe things from various cultures would actually be shown "respect" in ways that were more than mere lip service.

I feel that you misunderstand how the Japanese view foreigners wearing Kimono.

They really don't care, it's not always worn there with respect at all anyway. To them, it's basically just a form of clothing that they understand is traditionally worn, that's it.

Think of it like food.

Man, my GF will walk past Wagamama and Yo!Sushi and sigh each time. "It's not really Japanese food" she will say. Which is fine, I mean, it's westernised and it's done so for logistical reasons as well as making it enjoyable by people who don't like some of flavours they use originally.

But then again, there are places even in Japan that don't do it right. It's not racism. It's not cultural appropriation or whatever, it's just basically the same thing as Olive Garden. It's how our cultures interact and in turn, create some pretty exciting combinations or end up giving us deplorable things like a Sushi Pizza.

Japanese like taking things from around the word that are good ideas, essentially making them "Japanese" and perfecting them. You see this everywhere within Japan, so a cheap Kimono at WallMart or a bath towel shaped as one isn't offending anyone. None of it is created to hurt anyone's feelings.

--

I mean, if I dress up as an American Cowboy, is that racist or hurtful? There are stereotypes floating around everywhere about Americans in the UK, and just about anything foreign to anything.

If you, who I'm just going on a limb to say not Japanese, feel annoyed and offended when people say to YOU --

- you must look good in a Kimono
- do you eat any weird things
- blablablablablabla

Then it's their misinformation. What sucks about being a minority is that you will constantly meet people who haven't found whatever it is about you that makes you different to be normal. So you basically have to fix their ignorance for the next Asian they come across -- whereas the majority will only get that on holiday.

I know that you being Asian (I'm also guessing here) basically means nothing. You're just American to me. If I met you I'd probably ask you an ignorant question like, are the burgers really big over there? etc.

Even if these Asian culture items weren't being fetishized etc. and were only coming over through imports when they are done properly, it would have the same effect. A protest stopping people from learning that Kimono is a Japanese thing, and not basically every Asian culture (and that there are more than 2 or 3) can't be the answer here.

I may be WAY over my head here.

So kimonos are cultural appropriation from China too ? Japanese people should be ashamed and stop wearing those...
I don't see the problem with cultural appropriation personally. Culture is meant to be shared and spread. There is probably nothing in any culture that isn't inspired by another culture.

Well if you think about it... SO MUCH is. And that's a good thing.

 

[PdotMichael]

I have no idea why you continue to think that anyone you're replying to is defending the protest. You've had posts directed specifically at you saying the exact opposite. At this point, the most good-faith assumption I can make about your contributions to this thread is that you're trolling, because I can't believe that someone who is legitimately trying to contribute to the discussion, who has been in the discussion for its entirety, would so consistently misconstrue what everyone on the opposing side of the discussion was saying.

There are several post just on this page that justify the protest.

You should maybe less act like an entitled brat and read some of the posts here.

 

[A Link to the Past]

There are several post just on this page that justify the protest.

You should maybe less act like an entitled brat and read some of the posts here.

Can you cite a post that's justifying the protest instead of getting angry and insulting people?

 

[Deleted member 17706]

It's kind of like qipao/changshan (moreso qipao). Qipao is this sort of early 1900s Chinese fashion that has become sort of the de facto garment of "Chinese women" (or maybe even Asian women). Other people in other cultures have worn it sparingly, and some design elements from qipao are arguably used in other clothes. My mother is still pretty proud of qipao though (she thinks any woman, fat, thin, small, tall, can look good in a well-fitting qipao). She's not going to be offended by white lady trying on qipao, she'd just be like, "LOOK, even the white people want our stuff." (She really will say white people, she's pretty racist herself lol)

Is there probably some yellow fever dude/lady who will be like, "Oh you should dress traditional Chinese"? Yes, there is fetishization. I don't think it's so much racism as it is fetishization though, that's where things get weird. But that doesn't mean it's common. Maybe it's my benefit that I grew up in NYC, but even when I went to more rural, white area for college, I never experienced racism through clothes or cultural appropriation.

Kind of off-topic, but a funny thing about the the qipao, or "china dress" as it is typically called in Japan, is that it's just as, if not more so, a fetish over there.

 

[vas_a_morir]

Kind of off-topic, but a funny thing about the the qipao, or "china dress" as it is typically called in Japan, is that it's just as, if not more so, a fetish over there.

Dude, are you trying to tell me Shampoo from Ranma was some sort of... exotic fetishization of Chinese women and culture?

 

[Izuna]

Kind of off-topic, but a funny thing about the the qipao, or "china dress" as it is typically called in Japan, is that it's just as, if not more so, a fetish over there.

Ah damn, beat me to it. Haha.

Dude, are you trying to tell me Shampoo from Ranma was some sort of... exotic fetishization of Chinese women and culture?

It's not hard to find the sites that have these outfits.

 

[Jeevesmeister]

Thought this thread would appreciate an update.

Japan Times covered it, too.

But the reaction to the exhibition from Japan — where the decline in popularity of the kimono as a form of dress is a national concern — was one of puzzlement and sadness. Many Japanese commentators expressed regret that fewer people would get to experience wearing a kimono.

In fact, many in the kimono industry see growth in foreign markets as essential to the garment’s survival, as two new books recently published on the subject show: “Kimono: A Modern History” by Terry Satsuki-Milhaupt, and “Kimono Now” by Manami Okazaki.

Satsuki-Milhaupt reveals the kimono to be a tool of nationhood and a projection of Japan’s self-image. She shows how, during the mid-1800s, Japan itself was complicit in encouraging tacit Orientalism by making the kimono a symbol of the unified national identity it created after opening its borders to the West in 1853.

The government proudly marketed kimono at international expos, while Japanese traders sold their wares to European shops specializing in Chinese artifacts, unbothered by Westerners’ tendencies to blur the distinctions between the two countries’ forms of dress.

...

The kimono industry is now trying to adapt the garment to the modern era, as Okazaki’s visually rich “Kimono Now” demonstrates. Okazaki feels that adversity in the industry has created a frenetic energy and increased innovation. She showcases kimono houses striving to preserve traditional techniques for weaving and dyeing the kimono, but also shows contemporary designers reinventing the garment by adopting new fabrics, patterns and ways of wrapping it around the body.

One kimono format offering more freedom for interpretation is the yukata, which is seen as a younger, hipper and easier-to-wear version. Okazaki quotes Rumix, a young designer based in Tokyo’s Harajuku neighborhood, whose graphic designs are inspired by everything from the movie “Apollo 13″ to Yukio Mishima novels, as comparing yukata as the “b-side” to the formal world of kimono.

Sadly, those trying to modernize the kimono by ushering it into the fashion world — rather than preserving it strictly as a national dress — will likely be set back by the controversy surrounding the exhibition in Boston. One of those is Hiromi Asai, a kimono designer who is running a Kickstarter campaign to raise $50,000 by July 31 to hold a show at New York Fashion Week next February to show that the kimono can be a modern form of dress that “is beyond cultural and ethnic boundaries.”

Okazaki is also concerned that the industry will suffer if Americans are scared to wear kimono lest they are accused of being racist.

“Absolutely no one (interviewed for the book) found Westerners wearing kimonos to be remotely offensive,” Okazaki tells The Japan Times. “(They) all gave me interviews because they wanted people overseas to share this culture.”

Fascinating how the world turns.

 

[Rentahamster]

Thus the great Asians vs Asian Americans war begins.

 

[Zoe]

Here's the kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/530372888/authentic-kimono-on-stage-at-new-york-fashion-week

 

[Valhelm]

Thus the great Asians vs Asian Americans war begins.

That's a terrible way to characterize this. If anything, this is Chinese Americans vs white Americans, with Japanese nationals looking on.

 

[cntr]

Yeah, I knew Japan didn't actually care, but it's good to have proof.

 

[norm9]

I hope they protest the Japanese.

 

[Alucrid]

i just realized i bought a top that has a han eri collar and that in doing so i propagated the cultural appropriation that is going on here. oh my god

 

[Rentahamster]

That's a terrible way to characterize this. If anything, this is Chinese Americans vs white Americans, with Japanese nationals looking on.

I was just being facetious, don't take that comment too serious.