"Lesbian chic, Goth chic, rocker chic, Masai chic, androgynous chic, biker chic, punk chic, minimalist chic: fashion is culture’s Godzilla, devouring everything in its path. Half the time, the monster doesn’t know what it ate.

Most recently it gobbled up the complex Navajo tribal culture, which then, semidigested, turned up on runways, in stores, online and finally in the news, as last week the people who unwittingly provided inspiration for Navajo chic took legal issue with a process of cultural appropriation that American Indians know perhaps too well.

“We are very proud of our name, Navajo,” said Ben Shelly, Navajo Nation president, referring to a civil legal action begun in late February by the country’s largest Indian tribe to stop Urban Outfitters and its subsidiaries from misappropriating the Navajo trademark and name.

“To be used in this kind of fashion, I’m very unhappy with it,” Mr. Shelly said in a public statement, referring to 20 or so items — some by now renamed or removed from circulation by the mass market retailer — apparently inspired by one of the more unpredictable fashion trends of recent years."

Get the Story:
An Uneasy Cultural Exchange (The New York Times 3/15)

Related Stories:
Navajo Nation sues Urban Outfitters over 'Navajo' products (02/29)
Blog: Urban Outfitters faces big problems after 'Navajo' flap (01/13)
Blog: 'Native' trend in fashion ticks off real Native Americans (12/07)
Native Sun News: Navajo Nation stands up for its trademarks (11/17)
Blog: Forever 21 also offering string of 'Navajo' products (11/04)
Blog: Forever 21 sells necklace with 'Native American' girl (11/01)
Fronteras: Who should benefit from Native inspired items (10/26)
Editorial: Navajo goods should be made by Navajo artists (10/24)
Colorlines: Corporations pimping other cultures for profits (10/21)
Navajo Nation hails action by Urban Outfitters on products (10/20)
ICT: Urban Outfitters erases 'Navajo' name from products (10/19)
Sasha Houston Brown: Corporations rip off tribal property (10/18)
Navajo Nation sent trademark letter to Urban Outfitters in June (10/17)
Opinion: Urban Outfitters is obsessed with 'Navajo' fashions (10/11)
Living: Asking Navajos about the neo-Navajo trend in fashion (9/26)