Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting and More Stars in Native American Outfits, Headdresses: Is It Offensive?

Khloé Kardashian, Kendall Jenner, Harry Styles and more have all donned controversial feathered accessories

By Rebecca Macatee Sep 30, 2014 9:05 PMTags
Kaley Cuoco-SweetingRichard Shotwell/Invision/AP

Any time you step out wearing a Native American inspired headdress, you're bound to ruffle some feathers.

But is this an innocent fashion faux pas or offensive cultural appropriation? Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting, Khloé Kardashian and even One Direction's Harry Styles are just a few of the countless celebrities (and let's not even count the hipsters) who've tried pulling off this distasteful trend.

The fact is, ignorance isn't a good look on anyone, and lots of people—both members and non-members of the Native American community—are taking a stand against it.

Earlier this year, the Bass Coast Festival banned "feathered war bonnets, or anything resembling them, onsite," explaining, "We understand why people are attracted to war bonnets. They have a magnificent aesthetic. But their spiritual, cultural and aesthetic significance cannot be separated."

NativeAppropriations.com has a post titled "But Why Can't I Wear a Hipster Headdress?", which lays out some of the reasons it's not OK to follow any "tribal trends." The site compares wearing a feather headdress to wearing blackface, stating simply, "You are pretending to be a race that you are not, and are drawing upon stereotypes to do so."

It also explains the headdresses, feathers and warbonnets "have deep spiritual significance" to Native Americans, making pairing one with a tube top "just as bad as running around in a pope hat and a bikini, or a Sikh turban cause it's 'cute.'"

There are much better (and less offensive) ways to accessorize — none of which involve stereotyping someone else's culture! Now, you know. We''ll give these stars the benefit of the doubt.