"The unacknowledged or inappropriate adoption of the practices, customs, or aesthetics of one social or ethnic group by members of another (typically dominant) community or society."-Oxford Dictionary

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      Cultural Appropriation has been an ongoing issue that has been occurring for hundreds of years, but the term only has begun to be recognized after the 1900s. To fully comprehend the meaning of such a term, it is important to understand what both culture and appropriation mean. Culture, refers to anything associated with another group, wether it be religion, ethnicity, geography, behavior, customs, or values. Most often, culture has as sense of belonging to one particular group. Appropriation is when something is taken that doesn't belong to you, and occurs most often when a dominant group takes or borrows something from a minority group that historically may have be oppressed. This differs from cultural appreciation, where someone looking to borrow something of another culture is done in a way of respect. They understand what the other culture is about, and want to honor its beliefs and traditions through learning and listening.

        There are may different ways and examples of cultural appropriation which include fashion, food, art, dance, music, artifacts, and makeup. The specific topic looked into on this capstone, is fashion.

         Hijabs and henna are two examples of a cultural aspect of a community being used by outsiders. The problem is not that it is being used, but that it being used without knowledge of the history and meaning of these items. People often are not offended by others wearing hijabs and henna, when the wearer is educated and understanding of their symbolic nature.

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 We should understand the difference between cultural appreciation, and cultural appropriation. 

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