Dear Editor,

Recently, British pop star Adele posted a photo wearing African Bantu knots and a Jamaican flag-inspired bikini top. The photo, taken in the backyard of her Los Angeles home, was in tribute to the popular UK Notting Hill Carnival, which celebrates Caribbean and black culture and was cancelled this year due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

There was a lot of backlash online, saying the look was cultural appropriation. One person wrote: “dear white people, please just be yourselves and stop it for good with cultural appropriation, Adele the Bantu Knots were unnecessary, the Jamaican flag bikini top was unnecessary, please just stop it!”

I think too many people get touchy and uptight over the topic of cultural appropriation to the extent they don’t understand it. It’s one thing to mock a look or a culture or race, which would be unacceptable; it’s another to embrace it and celebrate it in a positive light. Adele chose the latter.

She was not wearing the controversial black face, neither did she add a gimmicky or derogatory comment in the caption to suggest she was making fun of the look. Would people say the same thing if a Caucasian wore an African dashiki?

Adele’s photo paid homage to a popular cultural event embraced by blacks and Caribbean people especially. It gained a lot of publicity globally for Adele, Jamaica, and the UK summer carnival which some people might not have been even aware of. The story was featured in People magazine, Vanity Fair, Entertainment Tonight, National Post, among other popular magazines, newspapers, and tabloids.

In my opinion, it was a win-win for both Adele and Jamaica. Some people need to lighten up and start living a bit more and stop being so angry all the time.

P Chin

chin_p@yahoo.com