Cultural Appropriation in the Philippines as applied in Cultural Heritage, Art and Culture

1. APPROPRIATING
CULTURAL HERITAGE
PHILIPPINE CULTURAL POLICIES
Based from the Slides of
Mr. Carlo B. Ebeo (NCCA Commissioner)
Mr. Leandro Cariño (Cultural Advocate, Curator)
Mr. Wilfred Dexter G. Tañedo (Art Teacher, Visual Artist-Writer)

2. CULTURAL HERITAGE
• Defined as property that is passed from
generation to generation, protected as
cultural property
• Cultural property may be natural or man-
made, tangible or intangible
• Natural cultural heritage/property may be
natural provided there is interaction with
man

3. Cultural Heritage is the legacy of attributes of a group or
society that are inherited from past generations, maintained in
the present and bestowed for the benefit of future
generations.

4. CULTURAL
APPROPRIATION
 THE UNACKNOWLEDGED OR INAPPROPRIATE ADOPTION OF THE CUSTOMS, PRACTICES, IDEAS, ETC. OF ONE PEOPLE OR SOCIETY BY
MEMBERS OF ANOTHER AND TYPICALLY MORE DOMINANT PEOPLE OR SOCIETY.
 ADOPTION OR USE OF THE ELEMENTS OF ONE CULTURE BY MEMBERS OF ANOTHER CULTURE.
 OFTEN FRAMED AS CULTURAL MISAPPROPRIATION, IS SOMETIMES PORTRAYED AS HARMFUL, ALTHOUGH IT'S OFTEN HARMLESS,
AND IS CLAIMED TO BE A VIOLATION OF THE COLLECTIVE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS OF THE ORIGINATING CULTURE.
 OFTEN UNAVOIDABLE WHEN MULTIPLE CULTURES COME TOGETHER, CULTURAL APPROPRIATION CAN INCLUDE USING OTHER
CULTURES' TRADITIONS, FOOD, FASHION, SYMBOLS, TECHNOLOGY, LANGUAGE, AND CULTURAL SONGS WITHOUT PERMISSION.
OFTEN, THE ORIGINAL MEANING OF THESE CULTURAL ELEMENTS IS LOST OR DISTORTED, AND SUCH DISPLAYS ARE OFTEN VIEWED
AS DISRESPECTFUL BY MEMBERS OF THE ORIGINATING CULTURE, OR EVEN AS A FORM OF DESECRATION. . .

5. • 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 (Cambridge)
• “Taking intellectual property, traditional knowledge, cultural expressions, or artifacts from someone
else's culture without permission. This can include unauthorized use of another culture's dance,
dress, music, language, folklore, cuisine, traditional medicine, religious symbols, etc. (Scafidi, 2017)
• the illegal, unfair, or unjust usage or taking of something that belongs to someone else. So, when
someone is accused of cultural appropriation, they are accused of taking or using elements of a
culture to which they do not belong.(Cole 2017)
OTHER DEFINITION OF CULTURAL
APPROPRIATION

6. PRACTICES IN THE FASHION INDUSTRY
• Borrowing
• Representing
• Commodification
• Consumerism
• Inspiration
This is readily apparent in the fashion industry, where
styles of dress or patterns from native cultures, for
example, are appropriated, mass produced, and sold for
profit. This is especially upsetting to the groups from
which items or practices are appropriated when they have
special significance. (Cole, 2017)
An unnamed author eloquently explains in a must-read
essay:
...'appropriation' often occurs without any real
understanding of why the original culture took part in
these activities or the meanings behind these activities,
often converting culturally significant artifacts, practices,
and beliefs into 'meaningless' pop-culture or giving them
a significance that is completely different/less nuanced
than they would originally have had.

7. THE 1987 CONSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF
THE PHILIPPINES
Arts and Culture
• Section 14. The State shall foster the preservation, enrichment, and dynamic evolution of a Filipino
national culture based on the principle of unity in diversity in a climate of free artistic and
intellectual expression.
• Section 16. All the country's artistic and historic wealth constitutes the cultural treasure of the
nation and shall be under the protection of the State which may regulate its disposition.
• Section 18. (1) The State shall ensure equal access to cultural opportunities through the
educational system, public or private cultural entities, scholarships, grants and other incentives,
and community cultural centers, and other public venues.
• (2) The State shall encourage and support researches and studies on the arts and culture.

8. LAWS THE PROTECT ARTS AND CULTURE

9. The 1987 Philippine
Constitution provides under
Article XIV Section 15 that “Arts
and letters shall enjoy the
patronage of the State. The State
shall conserve, promote, and
popularize the nation’s historical
heritage and resources as well as
artistic creations.”
ENABLING LAWS

10. •Culture as a
Human Right
•Culture as a
reflection of
national identity
•Culture is for the
people
THE NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR CULTURE AND
THE ARTS ( RA 7356)

11. IPRA
(INDIGENOUS PEOPLES RIGHTS ACT)
• Section 17 of the Constitution states that the State shall recognize, respect, and protect
the rights of indigenous cultural communities to preserve and develop their cultures,
traditions, and institutions. It shall consider these rights in the formulation of national
plans and policies.
Thrust:
• Certification of Ancestral Domain Tenancy and
• The Preservation of Indigenous Knowledge Systems and
Practices
FPIC – A.O. 1&2

12. THE CULTURAL HERITAGE ACT
• 2009
• Codified practices in conservation
• Allocated jurisdictions and instituted legal
remedies and quasi-judicial processes to prevent
destruction of heritage (cease&desist order)
• Unintentionally created the practice of heritage
law

13. •An Act providing for the
protection and conservation of
the National Cultural Heritage -
its property and
histories and the
ethnicity of local
communities
•Strengthening the NCCA and
Other Cultural Agencies and
other purposes
•Protect Cultural Workers and
Ensure their Professional Well
Being
REPUBLIC ACT 10066. CULTURAL HERITAGE ACT
OF 2009

14. Article 3, Section 5: “For purposes
of protecting a cultural property
against exportation, modification
or demolition, the following
shall be considered Important
Cultural Property, unless declared
otherwise by the pertinent cultural
agency.”
IMPORTANT PROVISIONS:

15. Cultural property would include works such as “those by
Manlilikha ng Bayan and National Artists, archeological and
traditional ethnographic materials; those by
heroes; marked structures and structures dating at least 50
years old; and archival material/documents at least 50 years
old.”

17. Mandate to the NCCA, DTI and DOT, involved directly
or indirectly . .

18. THE NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR
CULTURE AND THE ARTS
 Administers the heritage act
 Supervises all cultural agencies, including the National Museum
 Is mandated to protect, conserve and popularize cultural heritage
 Quasi-judicial agency
 In charge of repatriation of cultural property

19. WHAT ARE THE RELATED ISSUES IN APPROPRIATING
CULTURE?
• Ethics vis-a-vis
Aesthetics
• Context and Praxis
(Cultural Sensitivity)
• Approaches and
Methods
CREATIVITY
AND
INNOVATIONS

20. COMMON ISSUES AGAINST INDIGENOUS
CULTURAL HERITAGE APPROPRIATION
1. Loss of indigenous knowledge, artifacts and resources
2. Individuals or communities choose not to pass down customs and traditions
3. Lack of awareness and appreciation of one’s cultural heritage
4. Assimilation of outside culture (e.g. language, lifeways)
5. Globalization
6. Illegal trade of artifacts and materials
7. Ecological Destruction
8. Commercialization and commodification of culture
9. Bastardization of culture (uncontextual et al)
10. Failure to comply with intellectual property rights (FPIC: Free Prior Informed Consent)

21. WHAT DO WE NEED TO DO?
• Section 18 of the Philippine Constitution states that. (1) The
State shall ensure equal access to cultural opportunities
through the educational system, public or private cultural
entities, scholarships, grants and other incentives, and
community cultural centers, and other public venues.
• (2) The State shall encourage and support researches and
studies on the arts and culture.

22. SEC. 41: CULTURAL EDUCATION

23. A QUICK PRIMER FOR ETHICS IN DESIGN
HTTP://MLAB.UIAH.FI/POLUT/YHTEISKUNNALLISET/LISATIETO_ETHICS_PRIMER.HTML
Ethics in goals
Do you think it creates a better world?
To who?
How?
Why?
Is someone's good someone else's
bad?
Multiculturality
Are your goals bound by cultural imperatives?
Which and why?
Should you change them?
Should you make your design solution local
(works for specific cultures) or global (works in
as many cultures as possible)?
Innovation and Tradition
If you innovate you force people to change traditional
ways
Imposing change vs. Introducing Alternative Ways of
using
Should you bow to tradition just because it is?

24. BEFORE YOU GET INSPIRED WITH YOUR CREATIONS, ASK
YOURSELF THESE QUESTIONS (BROWNTURAGE AND MOJUICY)
• What culture does this style
reference, and what is my relation to
that culture/practice?
• Why am I wearing it or make it?
• Who made the product, and who's
selling it?
• How accurate/respectful is it to the
source?
• Again, Is it Ethics or
Aesthetics? Context or
Praxis. . .Are you
culturally sensitive with
the cultural property of
your inspiration?