The importance of youth voices in ending cultural appropriation
Every summer, millions of young people spend at least a week or more at camp. They stay in rustic cabins nestled among trees and lakes. They take part in swimming, games, and crafts. They sing traditional camp songs.
Camp can be a deeply joyful experience, steeped in rituals and traditions, encouraging confidence and growth. And many summer camps also feature longstanding elements that have been appropriated from Native American and Indigenous people.
Raise your hand if this sounds familiar: Native or “Native-inspired” cabin names. Totem poles and dreamcatchers. Powwows and “Native American” legends shared around the campfire. These elements have been around for so long and have become so embedded into the world of summer camp that participants almost come to expect them. And because of this expectation, many leaders now find it difficult to extract them.
At Camp Fire, leaders have spent the past six years engaging in difficult conversations around cultural appropriations with camp professionals and Native partners. One of the group’s primary observations is that, while there is a strong drive in the summer camp community to remove outdated practices that cause harm, not everyone is on the same page about what cultural appropriation is or why it is harmful. Another observation is that, amid these emotional discussions, leaders sometimes forget to include youth voices.
To avoid confusion, let’s begin with a broad definition of what constitutes appropriation. Cultural appropriation occurs when members of a dominant culture take elements from a non-dominant one and use those elements for entertainment or profit. This is done without permission and in ways that do not benefit and can even harm members of the non-dominant culture. In this context, Camp Fire can serve as an example. For decades, Camp Fire incorporated Native American names, languages, symbols, and ceremonies into its programs, either taking these elements outright or crafting names and rituals that were “Native-inspired.” This was done without permission or input from the Native and Indigenous people whose cultures were being appropriated.
There is a famous statement by Maya Angelou: “Do the best you can until you know better. Then, when you know better, do better.” The call to do better has been growing louder for some time, and camp leaders now recognize that many of the camp’s earlier practices caused harm. While they may have been well-intended (a common defense against the charge of cultural appropriation), intention doesn’t override impact. Camp Fire’s decision to address and correct more than a century of cultural appropriation was the result of many voices coming together, determined to do better. Among the most vocal were youth.
The Power Of Youth Voices
Not long ago, Camp Fire hosted a social-justice retreat aimed at 12-18-year-olds, which took place at an overnight camp in Oklahoma. These details are important because Oklahoma is home to 39 federally recognized tribal nations, and because these young people were especially attuned to issues of equity and action. Upon their arrival at camp, the youth saw the “Native-inspired” cabin names and found them deeply disrespectful. They were adamant that the adults in the program cover the signs immediately. They then pushed to have the cabins renamed, not only for the duration of the retreat, but permanently.
Around this same time, Camp Fire’s longstanding practice of making ceremonial gowns was challenged by youth participants who found it hard to reconcile the things they loved about Camp Fire with a culturally appropriative practice they considered outdated and hurtful. They wanted no part of an activity that caused harm. Soon after, members of Camp Fire’s national Youth Advisory Cabinet (YAC) turned their attention to the camp’s recognition emblems, which for more than a century included symbols and imagery appropriated from a range of Native American cultures. Working side-by-side with adults, YAC members helped Camp Fire implement a full redesign of its emblems, which now feature original images created for Camp Fire by young people.
Credit: Camp Fire
Taking Action
While a step-by-step guide to dismantling cultural appropriation at camp isn’t in this article, there are several actions staff members can take to get the ball rolling. Start with learning a camp’s full story. What is the history of the land on which the camp now sits? What are the roots of its traditions? Leaders can audit games, craft projects, and songs. Audit the names of cabins and trails. If they include stereotypical words and images, or cultural elements taken without permission, it is time for a change.
Don’t be afraid to include campers and Counselors in Training (CITs) in this process. Teach them the history of the land. Ask them to share their thoughts and feelings about camp names, activities, and longstanding traditions. Make use of guided reflection circles, small focus groups, and storyboards to gather and record camper input. (These conversations can easily take place among regular camp activities.) Although leaders should be careful not to place the full burden of change on young people, they can listen, coach, and empower them to become active co-creators of the camp experience. They can use the information gathered in focus groups to determine what matters most.
When the team is ready to develop new practices, invite young people to help update and replace appropriated symbols and images. Part of the purpose of camp is to give young people a transformative experience. One of the ways staff members can do this is by allowing campers to contribute. Some of Camp Fire’s camps have taken the added step of inviting former campers back to camp to update projects from earlier eras. In doing so, they send the message that the programs still value their contributions and that the organization wants them to have a voice and a presence at camp, even amid change.
Hesitation And Resistance
Let’s talk about hesitation (or even full-on resistance) to ending culturally appropriative practices. Change can be hard. Sometimes resistance comes from alumni, who have cherished memories of their summer camp years and do not want to see traditions upended. Sometimes it comes from camp leadership, who may be reluctant to take on the enormous scope of this work, especially when there is potential for backlash. Sometimes it even comes from the current generation of campers, who may not fully understand what cultural appropriation is or why it’s hurtful.
Campers of all ages feel deeply invested in the camp they love, and it’s reasonable to fear that any change will make it feel less familiar.
To this, Camp Fire leaders offer the gentle reminder that camp is always a work in progress. Any camp that has been around for at least a decade has likely experienced change. (It’s reasonable to suspect that, minimally, the approach to paperwork has been updated.) Change doesn’t have to feel disruptive. It can be a natural metamorphosis. Modifying songs and stories, updating craft projects, and adapting older camp traditions to be more inclusive of present-day campers in no way diminishes what camp is about. Quite the opposite, replacing those elements that harm specific groups ultimately strengthens the culture of camp.
Camp Fire in 2025 in many ways looks very different from Camp Fire in 1910. Yet its mission, to connect young people to the outdoors, to each other, and to themselves, all while nurturing confidence, competence, and contribution, remains constant. The changes the camp has made over time continue to live out the organization’s values and serve its core purpose of well-being, inclusion, and belonging.
Camp Belongs To Young People
There has been much written in the last few years about the importance of elevating youth voices and giving youth greater choices and decision-making opportunities, especially in youth-development spaces. What can this look like at camp, especially in the context of cultural appropriation?
Leaders can ask youth if there are camp traditions that feel harmful to one or more groups of people. They can ask what campers value most about camp and what they would change if they could. They can ask whether camp makes youth participants feel safe, welcomed, and included. They can listen to what young people have to say and be ready to turn those thoughts and opinions into action.
It’s important, as staff members work to correct outdated practices, that they remember who camp is for. It is not simply for those who used to attend, although leaders still want to celebrate what camp meant to them and avoid casting aspersions on their experiences. But camp belongs to the youth of today.
The Aspen Institute reminds us that, “by centering and prioritizing youth voice and experience, we can create a more just and equitable society that benefits all, especially our youth and young adults, and communities of color.”
While leaders should not hand over the entire responsibility of correcting past wrongs to young people—this is not only unfair to them but is also a way of dodging responsibilities—they should invite youth to pull up a rustic camp chair and have a place at the table.