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Kylie Jenner braids hair into cornrows again despite being criticised for 'appropriating black culture'

The 18-year-old ignores the debate around appropriation

Chris Mandle
Wednesday 12 August 2015 16:35 BST
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Kylie Jenner
Kylie Jenner (Snapchat/Kylie Jenner)

Kylie Jenner has braided her hair into cornrows again, despite being criticised for 'appropriating black culture' when she did so last month.

The teen uploaded a photo to Snapchat, in which she was appeared to be celebrating her 18th birthday, and the photo soon circulated on Instagram and Tumblr.

In July, critics accused Jenner of being culturally ignorant by copying the hair style without understanding the cultural context surrounding it. But if Jenner had taken any time to understand why people were offended, she wasn’t doing a very good job of showing it.

When Jenner posted a similar picture last month, Hunger Games actress Amanda Stenberg hit out at her on Instagram, saying she was “appropriating black features and culture" but failing to use her position to help black Americans.

She also accused Jenner of prioritising her new range of wigs over the turbulent political situation in America.

A photo posted by King Kylie (@kyliejenner) on

Stenberg has previously spoken out against cultural appropriation. In a video entitled “Don’t Cash Crop My Cornrows,” she discussed her views on the misappropriation of black culture, from music to hairstyles.

“Appropriation occurs when a style leads to racist generalisations or stereotypes where it originated but is deemed as high fashion, cool or funny when the privileged take it for themselves,” she says in the video

But, as Jenner was indifferent last month - she simply replied "Mad if I don’t, Mad if I do…" to Stenberg - don’t expect an apology or an interest in understanding black culture any time soon.

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