I am a foreigner- and I don’t know who this young lady is. BUT “The only thing predictable about [X] is that she is unpredictable” is a cliche I completely abhor. I wish people were more original about describing people.

When I was a teenager, it was “expected” that you’d get groped or felt up during a concert and if you got drunk, what happened to you was your own “responsibility”. Musicians wouldn’t say anything about it, heck half of them were probably doing misogynistic, homophobic, ableist acts themselves. While I understand that…

I assumed it is easier for young people to get a break in the American music industry than someone older. I apologize if that assumption was wrong.

I do think it is an exotic video. But my sadness is based on the fact that it will be seen as *just* an exotic video. Everything else, swept under a rug. “But it is just a video” “omg we can’t do anything without someone objecting” that kind of thing.

Taylor Swift is the combination of three of the the most privileged traits in America- young, white, conventionally good looking. While I do not question her hard work or her persistence, these traits helped her be more successful than someone who was not those things. I am sure she thinks this is just an “Exotic”…

He looks exactly like I thought he’d look. A “nice” guy.

Thanks for the explanation. You have given me a lot to think about.

Hi, I hope one of you will explain this to me. Gently please! I am genuinely trying to learn. Or point me towards a clear resource. I am a minority but I feel that I am not confident I understand “cultural appropriation” completely, and constantly worry that I will offend someone because my understanding of this is…

Yes! I wish she had treated it more like a story of two people as opposed to a story of two cultures. Or more specifically, I wished she had written it that way, because for all we know she may have intended it that way. Thanks for the dialogue, meep!

I’d have been more inclined to think that if she were not also very specific about the experiences she credits to his specific acculturation. I usually am very reluctant to post in articles like this because I don’t want to be too critical. This may be the first time I have said anything judgmental on the internet,…

If you are a woman who loves a woman, I want to say I am sorry for the idiocy you put up with everyday. The insinuations that your acts of affection are not genuine but a ploy for male attention. The belief that your disinterest in men as sexual partners means an irrational, unhealthy hatred for them. Or the…

Here is why I believed she did. And I am deliberately leaving all references where she is specific about the man in her life.

I agree that violence towards kids is bad. I agree that no one should be oppressed on the basis of their culture, their sexuality, or their religion. That said, I also feel that she did not experience “Indian culture” because it is impossible to say you have done that when you go to a country with 3000 castes, 780…

THIS. THIS. THIS. They act like all of India is one culture which boggles my mind. There are 780 languages spoken in India, 3000 castes, and so many communities. How can you say there is one culture. Is an educated Iyengar going to have the same life experiences as a oppressed Dalit? Is an affluent business owning…

My stating that she should not project her specific experiences with one Muslim dude in one semi rural area onto an entire culture means I approve of beating disabled kids and throwing gay people from building in the name of culture? /Confused.

There is. A relationship with a chauvinistic guy from which a woman emerges triumphant as opposed to having her soul sucked out of her is a story of empowerment. By choosing to frame it as more like a victory over an entire culture as opposed her triumph against an individual product of a very specific subset of a…

I am sorry, but I rolled my eyes so hard that they may have popped out of my head and are probably spiraling in a mad circle somewhere five feet east of me. The stunning insensitivity towards a foreign culture, the youthful arrogance with which a personal experience is projected to symbolize that of an entire nation…

No, not only must you complain about his orthodoxy, you should say things like: “ I had never felt consciously confronted by sexism! It was strange to discover the reality of patriarchy on the other side of the world.” and “I genuinely wanted to respect his bible belt culture, but this was too much. I’d also been…

Minor rant follows, Alex. Sorry but I was inspired by how awesome you look in red lipstick and that lovely azurite hair. I feel like people should experiment with everything they want to experiment with. No era, no color, no look, nothing should be out of bounds because of preconceived notions. If you want to try…

Five days of dancing. Awesome if you are the guest