來自美國猶他州的18歲高中女生Keziah Daum可能怎麼也想不到，僅僅因為自己出席畢業舞會時選擇了一襲中式旗袍而非傳統西式禮服，便在推特上引發了一場軒然大波，招致了眾多網友的口誅筆伐……
Keziah Daum, a high school graduate from Salt Lake City, the United States, never expected that her wearing a traditional Chinese dress to her prom would provoke such controversy.
4月22日，Keziah Daum在推特上po出了一組自己在畢業舞會上與同學的合影，並配文“Prom”（畢業舞會）。照片中，Daum身著一條暗金印花的大紅色高叉旗袍，在一眾身穿長款晚禮服的妹子中顯得極為搶眼。
帖文發出後，網友們卻在評論區炸開了鍋......
The 18-year-old, who picked her Chinese-style dress in a bid to "be more unique and bold" at the highly anticipated prom, came under fire in late April after photos of her posing with her friends wearing a red cheongsam went viral on Twitter.
有人贊她妝容精緻，衣品出挑，也有網友對Daum進行炮轟，稱她在不瞭解旗袍文化內涵的情況下選擇身著該服飾是對中國文化的不尊重，有“文化挪用”（cultural appropriation）之嫌。
While some netizens admired Daum’s courage while rocking the dress, some others have defined her choice of the Chinese traditional prom attire as disrespectful to Chinese culture.
一位名為Jeremy Lam的亞裔網友更是連發數條推文怒斥Daum在畢業舞會上著旗袍的做法，表示“中式旗袍不應作為美國消費主義的對象用以迎合白人群體的口味”（“For it to simply be subject to American consumerism and cater to a white audience, is parallel to colonial ideology.”）
Lam在隨後的帖文中解釋稱，旗袍是由最初的寬鬆設計逐步演化為修身剪裁。從極端父權主義壓迫時期女性被禁止穿著凸顯身材曲線的旗袍，到全亞洲各階層女性群體都掀起旗袍熱，這一服飾映刻了時代變革和女性解放的大背景，象徵著性別平等，展現了女性獨有的氣質和自信，因而不應僅僅作為在西方場合博取眼球的異域文化符號。
“My culture is not your prom dress,” Jeremy Lam tweeted, adding cheongsam, as a Chinese symbol of “activism, femininity, confidence and gender equality,” cannot be simply taken as a “subject to American consumerism” that caters to a white audience. The comment has then spurred an onslaught of similar criticism over her introduction of exotic cultural elements, or "cultural appropriation."
另一位名為Jeannie的網友也表達了類似的看法：“（這種做法）很不妥。即便我是亞洲人，都不會穿韓服或者日本和服，更不會穿愛爾蘭、瑞典或者希臘的傳統服飾，因為這些服裝背後都有著深厚的歷史背景。”
面對日益發酵的輿論風暴，當事人Keziah Daum在推特上發聲回應稱自己並沒有不尊重中國文化，相反，選擇旗袍是出於自己對中國文化的欣賞。
Daum responded that she meant no offense to Chinese culture by simply wearing Chinese traditional dress.
Daum在接受《華盛頓郵報》（The Washington Post）採訪時表示，自己在鹽湖城的一家服裝店一眼就看中了這條旗袍，喜歡它高領的設計和修身的腰線剪裁。她還稱這件旗袍“讓她領略到了異域文化之美”（“really gave me a sense of appreciation and admiration for other cultures and their beauty”）。
In an interview with the Washington Post, Daum said she picked the high-collared, form-fitting dress as it gives her “a sense of appreciation and admiration for other cultures and their beauty.”
Daum的媽媽也站出來發聲說自己的女兒出身多元文化家庭，並一直接受多元文化教育，選擇穿旗袍的做法並無任何不妥（”I’m proud of her for standing her ground because she didn’t do anything wrong.”）。
推特上也有眾多網友對Daum表示支持，稱只不過是一條畢業舞會的裙子，和“種族主義”或“文化歧視”完全不搭邊，大家不應對其進行過度解讀。還有很多中國網友稱，很樂於看到外國女生在出席重要場合時選擇身著中國傳統服飾，因為這代表著對中國文化的喜愛和認同。
The Twitter backlash, however, has also prompted a wave of support for the teenager, with some netizens praising her choice of cultural fashion while some Chinese rooted users claiming to be proud that the American youngster had chosen a prom outfit of their culture.
在微博等中國社交媒體平臺，Daum亦獲得了大量網友的聲援。很多網友表示，西方人出席重要場合時身著旗袍，就如同東方人選擇在婚禮中穿西服和婚紗，都是文化交流傳播的正常現象，不應被打上“文化挪用”的標籤。
Daum has also won overwhelming support on China’s Twitter-like Weibo. Comparing Daum’s wearing of cheongsam at prom to Asian brides in western wedding dress, many Chinese have described the move as part of culture exchange rather than cultural appropriation.
其實，這並不是“文化挪用”一詞首次在社交媒體上引發熱議。
This is not the first time that “cultural appropriation” has incurred a media ruckus.
早在2013年，美國歌手凱蒂•佩裡（Katy Perry）就曾因為自己在某音樂頒獎禮上的日本藝妓扮相而被指涉嫌“種族歧視”和“文化挪用”。
American pop star Kate Perry was bombarded with criticism over “culture-appropriating offenses” for her geisha-inspired performance at the 2013 American Music Awards.
近年來，包含古馳（Gucci），維多利亞的秘密（Victoria’s Secret）和馬克•雅可布（Marc Jacobs）在內的眾多時尚品牌，也都曾因在秀場中使用外來文化元素（如黑人髒辮、印第安原住民的羽毛頭飾）而飽受詬病。
Fashion brands including Gucci, Victoria’s Secret and Marc Jacobs were also once under fire for introducing fashion genes from claimed “marginalized culture” such as dreadlocks as well as Native American’s plumage headdress to white models in their collection shows.
“文化挪用”（cultural appropriation）一詞在劍橋英文詞典中的釋義為：
The act of taking or using things from a culture that is not your own, especially without showing that you understand or respect this culture.
翻譯過來就是：挪用外文化元素，尤其是在不理解或不尊重該文化的情況下。
維基百科稱 “文化挪用”不同於平等的文化交流，因為其中往往帶有殖民主義的色彩：
Cultural appropriation is a concept in sociology dealing with the adoption of the elements of a minority culture by members of the dominant culture. It is distinguished from equal cultural exchange due to the presence of a colonial element and imbalance of power.
也有學者表示“文化挪用”不同於文化吸納或交流的原因在於，“當社會主流文化成員挪用少數派文化元素時，常使之脫離原文化背景而導致原內涵丟失或被曲解。”
但因為文化挪用本身就是相對複雜的文化現象，該如何界定某事件是否屬於“文化挪用”，至今仍未有定論。
對於外國人穿戴中國傳統服飾，你怎麼看？你認為這算是一種“文化挪用”嗎？
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