shoutout to asian trans people!! chinese trans people, indian trans people, pakistani trans people, indonesian trans people, bangladeshi trans people, japanese trans people, korean trans people, filipino trans people, vietnamese trans people, turkish trans people, iranian trans people, thai trans people, singaporean trans people, malaysian trans people, all asian trans people, ily <3
That went from zero to 100 REAL quick lets get some education about tā moko up in here before we make these wild claims!
Tatau or tattoos have been found all over the world in many
civilisations, but it was absolutely the Age of Sail and the
colonisation of the Pacific Islands that popularised it and spread it
around the world. Tatau is a samoan word that means to strike, and many
polynesian cultures have a rich history of tattooing with very specific
meanings and connections. Western sailors visiting the islands got their
own and soon brought tattoos back to white civilisation where we know
and love it today as artistic body modifications. Western tattoos usually come with
deep individual personal meaning as opposed to the widespread cultural meaning that occurs in polynesian tattoos.
Tattooing has also had a big impact on the queer community too which
makes the ofmd connections all the more interwoven (it’s about the
intricate rituals)
Edward
“Blackbeard“ Teach from Our Flag Means Death is played by Taika Waititi, a maori and jewish man,
and as part of his character design, Taika’s own tattoos were added
upon to create the visuals of blackbeard! These tattoos are an essential
part of the character and it makes sense that anyone drawing or
especially cosplaying Blackbeard would want to make sure that these
tattoos are included. Unfortunately there has already been a few
(probably well-intentioned) call-out posts for doing so (see above), saying that
cosplayers should not be drawing on tattoos that have specific cultural
significance! Which is absolutely correct!
The problem is these
posts have also failed to recognise what is and isn’t Maori tā moko and
what is literally just . . a regular tattoo 🙈
Here’s Taika and his tattoos:
The eagle on his chest, the little Rita Ora tattoo on his hip and yes, those black bands on his arms are all likely to have very personal meaning to Taika but they are not tā moko.
Tā moko is the practice of tattooing that is specific to the Maori people and a quick google search will show you just how recognisable tā moko is, a tradition that goes back hundreds of years.
Tā moko is usually the more traditional type reserved for the face and the more modern concept of tattoos as body art can be referred to as Kirituhi. Every piece is unique to the wearer, with koru (spirals) that represent family and the darker infilled parts using various symbolic patterns.
Here to give some input as Maori people themselves are my friends on twitter speaking about the specific tā moko that Taika has that you shouldn’t try to reproduce: The tā moko on his leg, the whare (meeting house) on his wrist, and the traditional imagery of rā the sun on his back (seen in the above photo of Taika also)
So to conclude: YES as a non Maori person you should avoid drawing on tā moko as part of a cosplay as there is very deep cultural and personal significance in those specific tattoos, and Maori people who see their culture misrepresented in a poor rendition of tā moko will likely take offense.
but unless Taika himself has asked people not to there’s nothing wrong with drawing on the tattoo’s that aren’t tā moko, including the eagle on his chest and yes, those two black bands on his arms.
BUT ALSO: do not erase tā moko from fanart of blackbeard, if you want to draw the whare on his wrist or the rā on his back, or the kirituhi on his leg - power to you!!! And don’t bloody whitewash the man either or I’ll set the kraken on you!!! ☠🐙
(Please go retweet and support my friends on twitter I have linked them all above their tweet screenshots!)
Nothing is as predictable as racism. Love to Javicia for looking out for this young girl. I recently asked about Percy Jackson because I saw all this excitement about the casting. I always get caught up in our safe bubble and fooled into thinking the world is getting a little better.
Autistic Sri Lankan Canadian. She/her and occasionally they/them pronouns. Librarian in training, researcher, former teacher in training, and amateur fancaster focusing on representation in media.
Taking over the racebending tag one fancast at a time.