Ep. 59: The Jacket | 那件夹克

About this episode

The episode explores the complexities of cultural appropriation and appreciation through the lens of a Chinese-inspired Adidas jacket.

It started with a jacket. A Chinese-inspired Adidas jacket with frog buttons, released around Lunar New Year, flying off the shelves. Meg’s husband suggested it could be an entry point into Chinese culture — like Mulan, he said. They went to the store. It was sold out. And somehow, that jacket opened a conversation that neither of them could stop pulling on. What does it mean when a culture becomes a trend? Who gets to wear its symbols — and who feels the pressure to justify it? When does appreciation tip into appropriation, and why does that line feel different depending on which side of it you’re standing on? Amy brings her own experience to this one: as a Chinese journalist who spent years being expected to cover only China-related stories, she knows what it feels like to be reduced to your cultural background. To be seen as a symbol before you’re seen as a person. Meg reflects on what it means to marry into a culture — to love it deeply, to be changed by it, and to still know that some things are not hers to claim. Together, they trace the conversation from an Adidas store to King Louis XIV’s Chinese-inspired decor, from Mulan to social media’s “very Chinese time” aesthetic…

People in this episode

Hosts: Amy Tianyi Zhao, Meg Dowaliby

Topics covered

• cultural appropriation
• cultural appreciation
• identity
• representation
• cultural symbols
• cross-cultural experiences

Keywords

• cultural appropriation
• cultural appreciation
• Adidas jacket
• Mulan
• identity
• cultural symbols
• cross-cultural marriage

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Adidas

Books & works: Mulan

Places: China

More episodes of The Spark Podcast 火花电台

• Ep. 60: What Are You Wearing? | 你穿的是什么？ · May 21, 2026 · 1h 8m
• Ep. 58: What We Carried | 我们带走的声音 · April 23, 2026 · 37 min
• Ep. 57: Hello From China | 来自中国的“你好” · April 16, 2026 · 2h 4m
• Ep. 56: The Ones Who Came Before | 我们的先辈们 · April 9, 2026 · 1h 0m
• Ep. 55: What Enough Looks Like | “知足”到底是什么样？ · April 2, 2026 · 1h 0m
• Ep. 54: Becoming Someone New | 蜕变成另一个自己 · March 26, 2026 · 46 min