Appaloosa News Monthly – May 2022

Appaloosa Heritage

Cultural Appropriation

With an eye toward societal awareness, both exhibitors were asked for their responses if a bystander were to suggest the Heritage class was a form cultural appropriation. 

David: “I don’t view the class as cultural appropriation. The Appaloosa is a breed of horse originally developed by the Nez Perce and it is my opinion that the heritage class celebrates this. I have gained an incredible amount of knowledge of Native American culture from my participation in the Heritage Class.”

Jaimee: “Cultural appropriation is the inappropriate or unacknowledged adoption of elements of a culture by another culture. I feel the Heritage exhibitors that choose to create a costume or regalia that is from a different culture than their own generally take great care to honor the culture they are representing. Many of us strive to be respectful and historically correct in our creation of these elements. We want to honor the history of our wonderful breed and want to be considerate of the Tribal Nations’ history and traditions without overstepping any boundaries.”