American Indian headdresses are banned at San Francisco’s Outside Lands music festival to prevent hipsters wearing them
- The feathered head pieces have become a controversial fashion trend at shows
- Organizers said they were banned ‘out of respect for Native American heritage’
- Festival goers are also banned from taking totems, according to an official list
- Native Americans argue that tribal headdresses should not be worn for fashion
- Outside Lands, which will be held from August 9 to 11, first banned them last year
American Indian headdresses have been banned at San Francisco’s Outside Lands music festival, organizers have confirmed.
The feathered head pieces, which have become a controversial fashion trend at music shows across the US, are on a list of items not allowed at the three day event.
Organizers said in a statement to The San Francisco Chronicle they were banning the headdresses ‘out of respect for Native American heritage and culture’.
They added: ‘We are committed to creating a safe, respectful and inclusive environment for all.’
Native Americans argue that tribal headdresses should only be worn by chiefs and warriors as a symbol of bravery and not by non-natives as fashion items or fancy dress.
Festival goers are also banned from taking totems, according to an official list online.
They will also be stopped from bringing in selfie sticks, fireworks and drones.
Native American headdresses have been banned at San Francisco’s Outside Lands music festival. The feathered head pieces, which have become a controversial fashion trend at music shows across the US, are on a list of items not allowed at the three day event
In 2017, Assistant professor of American Studies at Brown University Adrienne Keene called out two Coachella festival goers for wearing Native American headdresses
Assistant professor of American Studies at Brown University Adrienne Keene first wrote about the issue in 2010, saying wearing them helps to ‘promote stereotyping of Native cultures’.
Keene said the items have ‘have deep spiritual significance’ and it is ‘just like wearing blackface’.
She tweeted following the news: ‘Almost a decade since my first post about ‘hipster headdresses’ at music festivals, @sfoutsidelands has banned headdresses! I’ll take it.’
Keene added: ‘Though, @sfoutsidelands your statement has one of my biggest pet peeves: ‘Out of respect for Native American heritage and culture, we do not allow headdresses at Outside Lands’…can anyone spot it?
‘HeritageS. CultureS. Plural. More than one. There’s no such thing as ‘Native American Culture.’ There are 570+ nations with their own cultures and traditions. Also only a few tribes wear warbonnets so you could even list them.
‘Still glad though. Would have liked it in 2010 when it was still trendy, but grateful they took a stand. @coachella with their tipi village next, please.’
They have become such controversial cultural and religious symbols that musicians Pharrell Williams and the Flaming Lips’ Wayne Coyne apologized for wearing them as costume items.
And in 2015 traders were banned from selling them at the British Glastonbury music festival after a petition was presented to organizer Emily Eavis.
Big Gigantic perform on the Sutro Stage during the 2018 Outside Lands Music And Arts Festival at Golden Gate Park in 2018. Organizers said in a statement they were banning the headdresses ‘out of respect for Native American heritage and culture’
It is understood Outside Lands Music festival, which will be held in Golden Gate Park from August 9 to 11, first banned the item last year.
The music event will be headlined by Childish Gambino, Counting Crows and Paul Simon.
In 2017, Keene called out two Coachella festival goers for wearing Native American headdresses.
One of those pictured wrote on Instagram: ‘I want to genuinely apologize to anyone who has been upset about my headdress post at Coachella. I’m human and I admit there are many things I’m still unaware of. While the headdress I wore was beautiful and I wanted to highlight its beauty, I regret wearing it.’
And in 2104 the Bass Coast Festival in Canada banned ‘all feathered war bonnets’ out of respect for ‘the dignity of aboriginal people’.
They said at the time: ‘We understand why people are attracted to war bonnets.
‘They have a magnificent aesthetic. But their spiritual, cultural and aesthetic significance cannot be separated. Bass Coast Festival takes place on indigenous land and we respect the dignity of aboriginal people.’