Oh my gosh, have you seen the new hair trend Kim Kardashian started?! They’re called boxer braids and they are so cute!
Since this is a new trend here’s how to do them:
1. You don’t.
Boxer braids aren’y a new thing Kim Kardashian invented. They aren’t even something boxers invented. They’re call cornrows and the Kim Kardashian strutting them around and getting praised for it is cultural appropriation. Kylie Jenner was condemned by Amandla Stenberg for wearing cornrows in 2015.
It’s unbelievable how many media outlets are raving about Kim Kardashian’s “boxer braids.” They’re praising her for wearing a hairstyle she didn’t invent. They’re praising her for wearing, and essentially for appropriating, a hairstyle meant for African-Americans.
These braids Kim Kardashian is wearing are a protective hairstyle African-Americans often wear to obviously protect their hair. It’s ridiculous that she is making headlines for this when any African American wearing cornrows in public would be criticized by society for wearing it. Time and time again the Kardashians appropriate culture, specifically black culture, yet they receive praise every time they do. The problem doesn’t only lie with the Kardashians. It also lies with media and society. Too many media outlets praise celebrities for blatant acts of cultural appropriation and that only makes society desensitized to these things.
The Kardashians are extremely influential and media outlets are powerful. Since they obviously do not speak out about cultural appropriation or point it out when they do it or when it happens, it is important for people to speak out on the issues. For example; everytime Amandla Stenberg publicly calls out a celebrity for appropriating another culture (Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, Katy Perry, Kardashians, etc). We probably will never see the Kardashians speaking about these issues, like cultural appropriation, since they contribute so much to their success.