Florence Pugh apologises for past cultural appropriation

Little Women star Florence Pugh has issued a detailed apology reflecting on her past actions of cultural appropriation, which include braiding hair into "corn rows" and getting henna tattoos. The 24-year-old actor's three-page statement comes in the aftermath of the killing of George Floyd, and her comments noted that the last four weeks have been "huge" in terms of understanding and acknowledging white privilege.

Floyd, a 46-year-old African American man was killed by a white police officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota last month.

"The world is trying to make change and I'm learning a tidal wave of information that frankly, was always there but I was unaware of. I've tried my best to post, learn, pass what I've learnt on to others and of course, echo the voices of those who don't have a platform to share their wisdom," Pugh began.

The Oscar-nominated actor wrote that her past oversight was first brought to her attention by a fan calling her out for a photograph she posted of herself when she was 17. Pugh called the picture an example of "Rastafarian cultural appropriation".

According to Oxford Learner's Dictionary, the term 'cultural appropriation' refers to the ​act of copying or using the customs and traditions of a particular group or culture, by somebody from a more dominant group in society.

"I braided my hair and painted a beanie with the Jamaican flag colours and went to a friend's house, proud of my Rastafarian creation. I then posted about it the next day with a caption that paraphrased the lyrics to Shaggy's song 'Boombastic'," the actor said.

"I am ashamed of so many things in those few sentences," Pugh admitted. It was "cruel" of her to forget about the photo, pointing out that for eight years she had "no idea how many were offended," she added.