A poem inspired by the sight a red and black kuffiyahs hanging underneath a “10 minute Cellphone Charge Service” in a tourist’s haven on 6th avenue in between 15th and 14th street:
What is the power in a cultural symbol?
Do I honor what it was
What it became
Or what it is becoming?I said: what is the power in a cultural symbol?
Function, freedom, or freemarketFunction
Asr jahiliyah
Bedouins roaming South Arabia
covered head in kuffiyah in deserts
to protect from blazing heat
and air replete with sand grainsFreedom
1930s
With the threat of land stolen,
nationalism emboldened
by the wearing of the hatta
Palis try to put a halt on British forces
and divorce from European cultural imperialismFreemarket
2000sviva la revolicion to co-option and sometime cold weather solution
On the necks of olsen twins cheney’s daughter
That soho boho making urban outfitters Richer
ignorant of a time when the same scarf belonged to a resistor
Riviera scarf, anti-war woven cloth,U changed its name:
Kuffiyah, hatta, shemagh
Added fluorescent colors
Magenta, sunburst, lime green
Pounded your foot on it to stomp out its Arabness to make it more saleable to AmericansWhat happens when your promise of (and inspiration for) freedom turns into a cultural capitalist commodity?
Would i buy a Che shirt
Cause jay rapped about it?Parade red, black green
To go with my Jordans, baggy jean, and a gangsta lean?Tie a red string on wrist
to add Kabalah to my spiritual list?Buy a gold and diamond Jesus piece
To demonstrate how i walk with his pauper swaggerPeople do u understand?
How offended do u feel?
When people co-opt for cool your cultural symbols of freedom?Even more extreme than what it seem
u love our scarves and hate my peopleI’m sorry but u cant have both.
Next time u stroll on canal, chop it up with vendors on 14th street, peruse urban,
Ask them if know the aboutwhite miraculously unsullied in sandstorm
the black pain tattooed on a white landscapeAsk them if they know
that woman who wrapped it over her face to conceal her identity from the IDF’s terror squad,that Bedouin man who braved the Levant wind and desert storms
The Iraqi refugee who sells red pistachio on damascene sidewalks
The fellayeen covering their heads with red-checkered shades while doing fieldwork,the Pali man proudly wearing and asserting his Arab nationalism in the face of a duplictious, abhorrent British imperialist army.
Ask them if they know what this fucking scarf means!
Tell me, What is the power in a cultural symbol?
What is the power in a cultural symbol co-opted to commodify for consumption?
Related posts:
- Kuffiyah Kraze: Another Mainstream Spotting
- Kuffiyah Kraze: The Islamofashionist Order of the Skull and Bones secret society
- Kuffiyah Kraze
- Kuffiyah Kraze and Arabphilia in Ironic T-Shirts: Arabs Steal Che’s Iconic Thunder
- McCain Steps Up Kuffiyah Kraze Contest
That’s the joy of this country and our system, frankly. Our power to co-opt is stronger than anybody’s power to imbue with meaning.
And yes, I mean that un-ironically. I think it’s better for the world that global cultures mesh and merge into a post-passionate, consumerist society this way. I smile every time I see a kid walking down the street with a ‘Che’ shirt who has absolutely no idea who he was.
Posted by Joe | May 10, 2008, 5:56 pmthe whole thing is getting out of hand…apparently there’s a new name for it:
liberty inspired
so despite the fact that palestinians lack liberty, somehow their kuffiyehs inspire others to craft ‘liberty-inspired’ fashion accessories. crazy.
Posted by الفلسطينية | May 10, 2008, 6:16 pmRoses are red
Violets aren’t pink
Your posts really suck
And this poem especially stinks!
Don’t quit your day job – airhead.
EVERYBODY READ KABOBfestWATCH!
Posted by Programmer Buydatti | May 12, 2008, 10:24 amI’ve been wanting to get myself a green Kuffiyah (smagh, checkered tablecloth, or whatever preferred name for it) for some time now. I noticed them hanging on the wall in the picture with this post. Does anyone know where to obtain such GREEN head gear? I’d post the purpose here but the PC crowd might ignore my request.
Viva La Migra
Posted by Clea Tarus | July 29, 2008, 11:25 amThat nigga is trippin’. I get my lean on wit my Kuffiyah erryday. Ya’ll fools needa’ take it eazy an’ respek us respekin’ our Muslim homies.
Posted by Fotim | December 11, 2008, 4:46 pmHi,
Stock market India is volatile and all those who speculate in market are loosing everyday. Please remember stock market is not for speculation purpose. If one feel investing in stock market is gamble then its better to think again.
One should always note that if they want to invest money they should do proper research be it fundamental research or technical research. Just think how come you can invest
your money without any convincing reason for the same?
Indian stock market is one of the most happening and emerging market. Major Indian stock exchanges are BSE and NSE and both are of world class standards.
So grab good stocks and invest that’s the bottom line.
Posted by Sharetipsinfo | February 17, 2010, 7:35 am