Nameplate necklace

The nameplate necklace originated in African-American and Latino communities in the 1980s and 1990s as a form of cultural expression among wearers.[4] During this time, nameplate necklaces were available from street vendors, with Fulton Street, Brooklyn, becoming a popular destination for buyers.[3]

During the 1980s and 1990s, nameplate necklaces became a staple of hip hop culture, being popularised by artists like Big Daddy Kane and Slick Rick.[5] By the early 2000s nameplate necklaces were mass-produced by large department stores such as Walmart, which mainly catered to those with common English names.[1]

Given that nameplate necklaces are sometimes associated with low-income communities of colour,[3] journalist Collier Meyerson claimed that nameplate necklaces arose as a "flashy and pointed rejection of the banality of white affluence".[6] Rosa Salas described nameplate necklaces as a "political expression of personhood" among people who have been marginalised by "racial, ethnic and class-based hierarchies".[5]

Meyerson generated some controversy in 2016 when she claimed that white people were engaging in cultural appropriation by wearing nameplate necklaces, claiming[7]

"White girls and women have other stories, but they don’t have ours. It never feels like a homage to me when I see a white woman rocking a nameplate".

Katherine Timpf from National Review responded "cultures and trends are shifting all the time, and elements from outside sources are always inspiring mainstream fashion".[6]

• In the 1998 comedy-drama series, Sex And The City, the main character Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) wears a gold nameplate necklace displaying the name "Carrie".[1] The necklace was incorporated into the show after Parker's stylist saw some "kids in the neighbourhood" wearing nameplate necklaces.[8]