German climate youth have started a riot by not allowing a white artist to perform at a climate strike in Hanover next Friday because of her haircut. “It’s a shame we’ve been excluded because of physical appearance,” singer-songwriter Ronja Maltzahn wrote in a post on Instagram.
Maltzahn (28) is from Hanover and was booked by the local branch of Fridays for Future (FFF) to perform during the climate strike on March 25. That performance is canceled, the artist said disappointed today. ‘We were looking forward to giving a sign for peace and against discrimination with our music. It’s a shame we were excluded because of appearances,” she wrote in a post on Instagram.
She also shares a text message in which the FFF department Hannover motivates why the artist is not allowed to perform. “The reason is that, especially in this global climate strike, we are focusing on an anti-colonialist and anti-racist story, where it is indefensible for us to have a white person with dreadlocks on our stage,” it reads. “Dreadlocks on white people are a form of cultural appropriation as they are tied to the identity of black people who used it as a sign of oppression during white slavery. That’s why white people shouldn’t wear dreadlocks because they appropriate a part of another culture without experiencing the systematic oppression behind it.’
Dreadlocks on white people are a form of cultural appropriation
But that is not the end of the matter for the climate youth, they write further: ‘If you decide to cut your dreadlocks before Friday, we would like to welcome you to the demonstration and let you perform.’
The cancellation does end with an apology. “We’re sorry that we let it get to this situation in the first place and that we didn’t focus enough on the question of which artists were invited.”
Invasion of privacy
In a statement on their website, the climate youth of the local FFF chapter want to “first and foremost make it clear” that they support their decision. Nevertheless, we would like to officially apologize to Ronja Maltzahn. “The cancellation was worded insensitively and shouldn’t have been sent that way.” Suggesting that the artist would be welcome without dreadlocks ‘wasn’t okay’.
‘This is an invasion of the artist’s privacy, which should not have happened in this way. Especially given that in this sexist society women are often reprimanded for their appearance and are not free to dress and show as they please, the message was worded across borders.’
Then the climate youth explain once again why they believe that white people wearing dreadlocks is a matter of cultural appropriation ‘even though we don’t know Ronja Maltzahn’s motives’.
Incomprehension
In her response to the cancellation, the artist emphasizes that her musical accompanists and she herself do not want to discriminate against people because of their cultural origin ‘but want to give cultural diversity a stage, to appreciate and celebrate as well as to stand up for gender equality, awareness and tolerance. I hope our listeners get this image through our music and not the opposite.’
Most comments under the post on Instagram are filled with incomprehension. ‘What nonsense. How can a haircut be cultural appropriation?’, 51-year-old TV host Kena Amoa wonders aloud. He was born in Ghana to a Ghanaian father and a German mother and came to Germany when he was nine.
Fans of Ronja Maltzahn find the proposal to cut her dreadlocks extremely offensive. ‘Brutal and outrageous’, ‘incomprehensible’ and ‘ridiculous’ are the comments in the comments.
The singer-songwriter told the news site picture that she never once considered cutting her dreadlocks. “I’m sorry for Fridays for Future, because I can identify with their values.” She considers the case closed. “With the war in Ukraine, we are currently dealing with very different problems.”
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