What is cultural appropriation?
The textbook definition of cultural appropriation is the “taking [a.k.a. appropriating] from a culture that is not one’s own of…cultural expressions or artifacts [or] history.” Many people hold that cultural appropriation is wrong because by stealing an element from someone’s culture and then representing it in a different (and often shallow) context, you both damage and dishonor the culture you have taken the ritual from. Does suspension fall into the realm of cultural appropriation? Suspension is a tool that can be used for many purposes, and one that has been explored by numerous cultures. No culture can “patent” suspension and ask others not to be involved with it. As such, the real question would be, is suspension a cultural misappropriation? Suspension itself — the physical act of hooks through flesh suspending a body — has very little cultural meaning. The meaning comes from the ritual and philosophies surrounding it. We can use suspension, but it is our job to come up with
