Justin Bieber receives criticism for cultural appropriation; netizens bash dreadlock look

Culture appropriation has become one of the major social issues in the west, and many celebrities have raised their voices for this matter in the United States. Justin Bieber, who is known for frequently posting his pictures on social media, has been receiving criticism from many netizens for cultural appropriation in his recent Instagram posts. The singer is seen sporting the hairstyle of dreadlocks, which is seen by many as cultural appropriation towards the African American people in the country. A few netizens have even penned brief opinions in the comments on why he should refrain from doing so.

Justin Bieber criticised on cultural appropriation

Apart from his singing talent, Justin Bieber has also gained popularity among fans for his sense of style and is regarded as one of the fashion icons in the music industry. However, his hairstyle of creating dreadlocks has not gone down by many of his fans. The singer posted a selfie in order to show off his hairstyle to his fans. Given that the hairstyle is considered as one of the cultural symbols of the African American community, many of his fans have written sharp comments to express their dismay towards this picture. 

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• Images courtesy: Justin Bieber's Instagram comments

While some netizens simply expressed their disapproval towards his hairstyle, a few of them wrote long messages asking the singer to “educate” himself on the topic of cultural appropriation. They told him to avoid sporting dreadlocks in the future, as it could be deemed offensive and inappropriate in nature. Justin had previously posted a few other pictures which have captured him in his dreadlocks look. While his criticism for posting these pictures have been gaining strength, the singer is yet to make a statement on this matter. 

Justin Bieber was discovered and rapidly gained fame for his singing abilities at a very young age. He has also been involved in several other controversies in the past pertaining to various issues. The pop star was among the many celebrities who raised their voices during the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement in the recent past. Bieber has sung many hit songs during the course of his career, including Sorry, Love Yourself and many more.   

• Promo image courtesy: Justin Bieber Instagram