The hip-hop fashion trend in America did obviously not just start out as a fashion trend, but, as with wearing military clothes to criticize the Vietnam war in the 70s, a social statement that referenced a certain group of people in society.  In the case of hip-hop fashion, that was the inner-city Black population.

In America, I believe that most people who wear those kinds of clothes are aware of the social implications of their wear, even if they have picked up on the style through commercial means.  There is a spirit of ridicule about those who wear hip-hop clothing, however, for those who do not come from the social background of those who would normally wear it.  For example, I grew up in a reasonably homogenous small town in Connecticut, but the boys I went to school with wore baggy clothes, sneakers or boots without laces, and they had certainly never undergone the experiences of the people who originated hip-hop fashion.

In Japan, now, I see something similar.  There is a hip-hop dance group on campus, and walking by their rehearsals, it is easy to spot their distinctive fashion:





But how many of these people are aware of the social consciousness and background that came with these clothes?

The article "Who copped my hip-hop?" (http://search.japantimes.co.jp/member/member.html?fl20030413a2.htm) has many humorous attempts by the author (African-American himself) to discover why 'his' fashion has been appropriated with no concern for its historical and cultural background. 

There are many cute anecdotes he cites, such as when he first ran across someone outfitted in that style, and trying to determine how conscious they were about what statements they were making:

"I couldn't help asking him: "Say, have you ever heard of Malcolm X?" I was referring, of course, to the black political activist memorialized in the Spike Lee movie and easily the most influential figure in modern black America after Martin Luther King, Jr.
"Nope," he said.
"Never?"
"Nuh-uh."
"Are you, well, curious about anything related to black culture?" I persisted.
"Nah, not really," he said, and looked away."

Generally, I feel as though this is the norm, that hip-hop fashion is just another cultural fad disseminated by the ever-moving force of globalization.  Though, of course, this is not necessarily a bad thing, I believe that things spread abroad in this manner tend to lose a great deal of their significance.  It would be a strange thing if, to look cool, an American started wearing the uniform for a top Tokyo high school.

From America, messages about cultural strife seem to be only few.  However, the article wraps up with a description of four teenagers who WERE aware, through hip-hop culture (Japanese) of current events and were paying attention to them:

"Yuri, 17, told me that, partly because of hip-hop, young Japanese have become more interested in human rights and other world issues. The best example of local hip-hop consciousness, she said, was the veteran Japanese rap group King Ghidorah, which released a CD lamenting the carnage of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. "King Ghidorah spoke," said Yuri, "and we started to listen"."

Current Mood: busy