Check Your Privilege: Clothes White People Shouldn't Wear

You know white people...

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Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

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Being white grants you many privileges. You are the default race in America. Every other person in the media looks like you, and every other commercial is geared towards your tastes, needs, and wants. Isn't it great? Oh, and you also have the ability to appropriate style from any number of cultures—without the need to worry or deal with the cultural implications of what you're doing. Of course, doing so can make certain races get all "wait, WTF white people?" In which case you can tooootally just say "lighten up guys, I was just showing my appreciation for the culture."

Sure, there are plenty of excuses you can use as an alibi for your insensitivity—one of the other perks of being white—but there are certain times when you should leave that sense of entitlement at the door. One need only look at a brief history of fuck-ups in fashion to note that there are certain things you need to ask yourself before attempting to appropriate a piece of clothing. Beyond "does it look good on me" you should maybe consider what it says about you before you dip into the cultural style pool... and there are some clothing choices that you're better off avoiding altogether, like these. Read up and Check Your Privilege: Clothes White People Shouldn't Wear.

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Keffiyeh

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American Indian-Inspired Gear

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Kamikaze Hachimakis

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Kimono

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Du-rag

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Conical Hats

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Dashiki

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Hijab/Burqa

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Anything with a slur on it

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Blackface

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