Share FacebookTwitterPinterestLinkedinWhatsappTelegramEmail 518 The Maasai of Kenya and Tanzania embody one of the most powerful images of tribal Africa – but it’s a guise that’s becoming increasingly imitated. Companies around the world have, for some time now, continued to exploit the Maasai’s iconic cultural brand in a bid to infuse a patina of exoticism to their products and increase sales. The most familiar, perhaps, harks back to Louis Vuitton’s 2012 spring/summer men’s collection which included hats, shirts and scarves inspired by the Maasai Shuka – a traditional African blanket cast in colourful shades of red and blue. More Articles You Would Love African Luxury Brands To Become Next Generation of Global Household Names MUSIC VID: Ghanaian Singer KiDi Gets A New Video For ‘Say Cheese’ Remixed By Legendary Producer Teddy Riley The key issue here is that the Maasai people aren’t compensated for anything sold under these luxury brands’ names despite having helped them sell billions of dollars worth of goods worldwide, according to Light Years IP, a Washington DC nonprofit that works on public interest intellectual property issues internationally. As a result, another group known as the Maasai Intellectual Property Initiative (MIPI) has been created to challenge companies referring to or copying the signature Maasai style without a licensing agreement. Louis Vuitton’s menswear SS12 show featured knits very similar to the Maasai Shuka (AFP/Getty Images) It hopes that by working with the community and forcing companies to obtain licences from the Maasai that reasonable funds can then be distributed to the people. “Nearly 80 per cent of the Maasai population in Kenya and Tanzania are living below the poverty line,” the website explains. “Yet their distinctive and iconic cultural brand and intellectual property concepts have been used commercially around the globe.” Just as Burberry has the right to copyright and trademark its signature check, so too the Maasai should be able to protect its traditional designs. Read More Here http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/fashion/maasai-people-cultural-appropriation-luxury-fashion-retailers-louis-vuitton-east-africa-intellectual-a7553701.html Kenya Culture cultureculture appropriationfashionmassaipay dues Share FacebookTwitterPinterestLinkedinWhatsappTelegramEmail Nana Tamakloe Founder of FashionGHANA.com and Accra Fashion Week. I'm grateful you visited, I hope you share, subscribe and share your comments or opinions below. More For You “Reject Anti-LGBTQ Bill If You Want Ghana To Flourish” IMF Boss Kristalina Georgieva... Saira Bawumia Finally Launches Clothing Campaign ‘Wear Ghana Everyday’ As Husband Runs For... VIDEO: “People Are Taking Their Sexual Perversion Into The Childrens’ Classroom” Sam George... VIDEO: See Kenya First Afrocentric School Where Kids Learn To Take Pride In... Ghana’s Parliament Passes Long-Debated Anti-LGBTQ+ Bill VIDEO: The Congolese People Fight Back Against The West In A Series Of... Greenpeace Protests Fashion Brands For Dumping Textile Waste In Africa Niger, Burkina Faso & Mali Break Away From ECOWAS Due To It’s Colonial... Nana Kwame Bediako Claims His Exclusive GTV Interview Was Cancelled Due ‘ORDER FROM... Uganda’s President Museveni Set To Ban The 2nd Hand Clothes That Has Ravaged... Leave a Comment Cancel ReplyYou must be logged in to post a comment. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.