Post #805399 by telescopes on Wed, Sep 7, 2022 7:48 AM

If a tiki bar used an actual tiki, cut it up to fit the decor in the bar, and then used it for amusement purposes, yes, I can see someone getting upset. However, I can also see people getting upset if that tiki was placed in a museum.

The genie is out of the bottle and the last ship has sailed. For example, I have quite a collection of Native American objects, some which are genuine kachinas. I treat the objects with appropriate reverence. I have a genuine peace pipe made of pipe stone and carved by a Sioux tribal member -woman of some note. I treat the pipe with respect and ensure that sage is in the pipe bowl when not in use and that the pipe is separated from the stem when not in use.

My wife has a beautiful rosary that she wears that was had carved from white onyx in Mexico by a Mayan. She gets flack from catholics from time to time because she isn't catholic. But these are some of the same people who freely appropriate other people's cultures, quite openly.

We can discuss this ad nauseam and the discussion is helpful, but for most of us, it seems the study of tiki is the study of American Pop as it was in the 40s, 50s, and 60s. That said, since this site went on line, a whole new generation has discovered tiki and of course they are bringing their own perspectives to the genre. I accept that. But it is important to remind them that tiki isn't about getting drunk or wasted. It is a fascination with and and escape to a time when tiki provided relief from the Cold War, Hot Wars, and the malaise and desperation of the Great Depression and WW11.

It just isn't so simple as to "educate" the masses on the misappropriation of cultures. Most people just want a good drink and remember a past that never was except in the imagination.