An Antidote to Cultural Appropriation | BoF VOICES 2021

The Business of Fashion Podcast

The Business of Fashion

Fashion & Beauty, Business, Arts

4.6 • 770 Ratings

🗓️ 15 April 2022

⏱️ 23 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Teacher, farmer and indigenous women’s rights activist Seno Tsuha travelled over 40 hours from her home in Nagaland, northeast India, to reach Soho Farmhouse in time for BoF VOICES 2021 because she had an important message to share with the global fashion community.

“When it comes to textiles we use, it’s not just a piece of cloth, it has cultural meaning,” said Tsuha. “When we talk about respect, especially in fashion, it’s very important to understand the local context or historical context and also the social meanings, the cultural meanings attached to the piece of cloth. If you understand that, and if you acknowledge that, that’s where respect comes in.”

Alongside Rebecca Hui, the founder of indigenous arts organisation Roots Studio, Tsuha led a compelling conversation on why cultural inspiration doesn’t always have to be problematic. Together, they suggested a framework for more mindful cross-cultural borrowing rooted in respect, reciprocity and remuneration.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, this is Imran Ahmed, founder and CEO of the Business of Fashion.
0:08.1	Welcome to the Bof podcast.
0:10.4	It's Friday, April 15th.
0:13.0	Fashion brands have long contended with the issue of cultural appropriation, plundering from
0:18.1	the heritage of other cultures to use in their fashion products for years.
0:22.9	And then the pandemic hit.
0:25.2	Artisanal communities who depend on these heritage crafts for their livelihoods
0:29.4	were already treading water pre-COVID.
0:32.7	The pandemic only exacerbated their challenges.
0:36.3	This is where Root Studio comes in. Founded by the entrepreneur
0:40.0	Rebecca Hui, the Indigenous Arts Organization aims to provide credit and equitable compensation to
0:46.8	artisans around the world. At Bof Voices 2021, Rebecca was joined by Sano Tsuha, a teacher, farmer, and indigenous women's rights activist
0:57.0	who belongs to the Chakhesang tribe of Nagaland, India.
1:02.0	When it comes to the textiles that we use, it's not just a piece of cloth, but it has social
1:07.5	meanings to eat, it has cultural importance to it.
1:11.0	And so when we talk about respect, especially in fashion,
1:14.9	I think it's very important to understand the local context,
1:18.5	the historical context, and also the social meanings,
1:22.0	the culture, meaning, spirituality, meanings,
1:24.8	attached to the piece of cloth.
1:26.8	And I think, you know, if you understand that and if you acknowledge that, that's where
1:32.4	respect comes in for me.
	...

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