Khloe Kardashian Accused Of Cultural Appropriation By Social Media

Khloe Kardashian may think she’s just an easy target on social media, but she loves to tiptoe the line of cultural appropriation. Ever since she slimmed down and started doing squats at the gym, she’s been accused of taking styles from black culture and it making it her own.

The reality star’s latest offense is her new hairstyle. The surprisingly slimmer Khloe Kardashian took to Instagram to show off her Bantu knots on Instagram on Tuesday, Aug. 9. Kardashian, in the photo below, is seen wearing an oversized Raiders sweatshirt with black over-the-knee boots.

The 32-year-old also paired her look with a “KOKO” choker and neon green nails. But fans were not happy when she captioned her photo “Bantu babe” and then crediting her makeup artist, Joyce Bonelli, and her hairstylist, Justine Marjan. Kardashian removed the previous photo and posted a similar one with the caption, “I like this one better.”

Of course, the internet never forgets. Her tweet was screengrabbed and immediately circulated on social media, who accused the starlet of cultural appropriation.

Good choice. #RaiderNation https://t.co/2SZjjTPSN5

— OAKLAND RAIDERS (@RAIDERS) August 9, 2016

In addition, the Oakland Raiders saw Kardashian’s photo and retweeted it, along with the caption “Good Choice.” It’s not clear whether or not the NFL team was being sarcastic about Kardashian’s hairstyle and photo. But, that was also when people decided to slam the television star on how she styled her hair, according to Hollywood Life.

“Khloe Kardashian wearing Bantu knots is so not surprising ok she has appropriate just about everything there is to appropriate from us,” one fan wrote on Twitter.

“@khloekardashian it would be nice if you paid homage to the black woman culture when you do our hairstyles,” another fan added. “But carry on.”

“Why can’t the Kardashians be creative and innovate their own hairstyles? Oh …. Wait. No talent. Do some Armenian hairstyles to your head,” another user wrote under Kardashian’s Instagram post.

“Didn’t think Khloe Kardashian could ever look stupider than she did in cornrows but I see today that she attempted Bantu knots,” another user wrote in the photo’s comments.

Cultural appropriation has been a hot topic among the Kardashians lately. Besides, this isn’t the first time that Kardashian has come under fire for it. In the past, she’s been slammed for having various hairstyles, such as cornrows and Harajuku buns, which seemed to cross the line of cultural appropriation.

According to a report via Us Weekly, Bantu knots first originated from South African Zulu tribes. These days, black women wear Bantu knots to allow their hair to curl natural without using any heat. They twist their natural hair when it’s damp repeatedly to create the knots, which they keep in for a day or so, and then remove so they can wear their hair curly. But the Kardashian and Jenner sisters seem to think that this is just a cute and trendy hairstyle that both them and their stylists should capitalize on.

Kardashian’s half-sister, Kylie Jenner, is also receiving her share of backlash this afternoon for sharing a photo of her wearing bright red cornrows for her 19th birthday. Last year, Hunger Games actress Amandla Stenberg called out the starlet for wearing the traditional African hairstyle.

Khloe Kardashian hasn’t yet responded to the controversy over her latest hairstyle. Instead, she probably assumed that changing photos would help downplay any backlash she may receive from it. And Kardashian learned little from the backlash Scott Disick received for his offensive “Arab Sheik” costume on a past episode of Keeping Up With the Kardashians. She also sparked outrage from Native American tribes when she wore a Native American headdress to North West’s “Kidchella” birthday party, according to the Hollywood Take.

And, in her latest Vogue questionnaire, Kardashian said that her “spirit animal” is Bella Hadid, who gives her plenty of style inspiration. Kardashian has been slammed for cultural appropriation once again since the term “spirit animal” is offensive, according to a previous report via Refinery29. It mocks Native American tribes and the origins of their spirituality. It’s also clear that Kardashian doesn’t get her style inspiration from the youngest Hadid sister.

[Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images for Allergan]