by
Black Girl With Long Hair
When I saw this, all I could think was “Finally!” Kudos to the Ohio University students for speaking out against this. We’ve documented the tendency of people to use natural hair in silly costumes; from the “Ghetto Fab” wig to afros being the costume of choice at a bike parade. I’m not sure why there’s such a desire to racialize Halloween costumes, but here’s hoping the trend will end.
Check the gallery below for more photos from the Ohio University campaign. And click here for more details on the movement. Ladies, what do you think of the campaign?
115 Responses
Does this mean that ethnic people will stop dressing as Europeans for Halloween? I mean some could find a non euprpean person in a traditional European “French maid” costume as offensive? Or how about people who dress as lepercons… Do the scotch/ Irish find that offensive… I mean the Irish have been victims for centuries, their is still conflict between the north and south. How about all the “kiss me I’m Irish tshirts and red wigs worn during saint Patrick’s day?? Now how about a person who chooses to study bellying dancing, if they are not the decent of the culture that practices belly dancing do they offend the said culture culture by learning the art and wearing the costumes for shows?? This seems like a slippery slope. We are all humans and we should embrace each others postive culture and learn from each other to correct the negative within our own. I’m am sickbed by racisim as much as you. I just get worried that people will be scared off from exploring and embracing another culture if this gets taken too far. The best of humans comes from the merging of our cultures, humans do best when we learn and share with each other which leads to gaining understanding for someone else’s view point. This movements scares me, I hope it can focus on the outright offensive done on purpose and does not leak onto people who truly respect and adopt aspects from a culture they were not born in. Divided we fall and united we stand. Sorry for the bad grammar and typos, English is not my strongest skill.
Hello, i believe that i noticed you visited my weblog thus i came to return the choose?.I’m trying to find things to improve my site!I assume its good enough to use some of your ideas!!
Pretty nice post. I simply stumbled upon your blog and wanted to mention that I’ve truly loved surfing around your blog posts. In any case I’ll be subscribing on your rss feed and I am hoping you write again soon!
hi!,I love your writing so a lot! share we communicate extra approximately your article on AOL? I need an expert in this house to solve my problem. Maybe that is you! Looking ahead to see you.
This girl dress as lil’wayne but I find Lil wayne music, character to be offensive and he is black.
To people who aren’t offended, then you don’t understand the point!
A stereotype is NOT a costume.
You cannot wear a culture’s clothing or a stereotype of a culture’s clothing and deem it a “costume”. It is insulting and degrading to the culture. This is a culture/ethnicity/religion…not a Peter Pan costume. It’s not “just” Halloween, “just” for fun or “just” a silly. I’m honestly so shocked that people are not offended.
PS to the people that said something like, “there are other issues in the world!!” … the fact that other issues besides racism exist IS NOT a counter argument to racism.
Loved the campaign.
Kudos to the students at OU! I went to Denison, so I’ve been there, done that with the crazy costumes (whether it was halloween or not!). I hope the media picks up on this, and blows it up. I can’t believe people think this is ok.
This is a brilliant idea! Way to go on responding back!
You notice it’s the white people dressing up like this….smh!
You are forgetting one racial group, the majority racial group in fact. White people. Let’s not think that they don’t get ridiculed or stereotyped. I am sure there will be plenty of hillbillies this Halloween, as well as every Halloween hereafter.
If you let things like this get so serious that you need a campaign against it, you are way too sensitive. Find a sense of humor and let it go. There are too many important things to worry about than one day of the year where people have license to be foolish.
Thank you for trolling, please come again.
Sooo blacks who don’t find these costumes are “ignorant”. I’m sorry but I just don’t see the serious issue here. Its just a costume that will be worn for ONE day. There are plenty of other important issues that are worth getting angry about. Isn’t there a very important election coming up in less than a year? But nooo people want to get hung up on a jackass pretending to ride a burro.
True some of these maybe offense (which IMO the most offensive is the Muslim) but can’t people understand there will ALWAYS be stereotypes and racism. There will always be the white person using the n-word, people pretending to hold their eyes to look Asian, and folks says Hispanics can’t drive etc. Just accept that somethings will never change and ignorance is a disease that has no cure. Like I said there are more important issues at hand than a costume.
Chicky,
I agree with you that there will always be stereotypes and racism, but that should not be used as an excuse to sit on the sidelines and do nothing about it. There is more to this issue then just wearing an offensive Halloween costume. It is about standing up against the racial stereotypes that infiltrate our nation and have made us into a people divided instead of a people united. A person’s culture is at the heart of who they are; when you diminish a person’s culture you are diminishing that person and therefore perpetuating the racial system that has been thriving for too long in our society. This is an important issue and has been since the founding of our nation, and it should not be thought of as less important then the elections coming up.
We are a country obsessed with overcoming racism and stereotypes, it’s a bit disgusting. More money goes into diversity and social justice campaigns than into feeding the homeless. Let’s make sure no one in our country is dying of starvation and that everyone has a roof over their heads before we tackle these issues which pale in comparison. No point in defending a person’s ethnic background if they are dead.
“We are a country obsessed with overcoming racism and stereotypes, it’s a bit disgusting.”–Lol!
You are hilarious!
Bravo Ohio State!
This is off topic, but a great deal of these comments seem like their coming from ignorant people of color or people who are not of color.
You have to be real foolish if you think those costumes weren’t in some way offensive. If you don’t think so, pick up a real history book.
If a black person dressed up as a Jewish holocaust victim there would be outrage.
Quoted: “A great deal of these comments seem like their coming from ignorant people of color or people who are not of color.”
ITA!!!!! That is EXACTLY what I thought when I read these!
I think you miss understand. People think wrong but enough to go up in arms about. I mean. I can easily get offended by nurse costumes for my nurse friends, and fat costumes, friends who are over weight, or female slut costumes that guys wear, and even redneck costumes which these ad seems to negated from the list of cultures. But why there are far more serious problems to be concerned about than a one day costume. That is were I think they are coming from.
I think the problem more lies in the fact that not everyone is going to read the history books for each culture, honestly. So this ad is helpful to show that it is insensitive. But as a one off (one day) which is not a mythical creature/character people are going to go with something in popular culture which no matter how you offended you are is not going to stop and will offend someone some where whether you are offend or not.
Sorry correction one my first two sentences.
“I think you maybe misunderstanding. People think it is wrong, but not enough to go up in arms about.”
Where’s the white kid with the picture of an African American male in a cowboy costume? Oh that’s right; you can’t take a picture of an African American making fun of ‘honkies’ or ‘rednecks’. Where’s the picture of the guy dressed up as a woman being held up by a woman? Where the picture of the fat girl holding a picture of someone in a fat suit. I mean seriously, I’m offended a hundred times a day by someone who is considered a “minority” but I just have to suck it up. Because there’s no such thing as racism against ‘white’ people. We get so much handed to us we should just sit back and comment about how racist we are. Guess what, I can guarantee those kids in those pictures have made fun of white kids on more than one occasion. I vote let he among us without sin be the first to condemn.
amen!!!!!! If you can be up in arms about a “costume” then so can whites!..if you’re going to be fair, then be fair all across the board!!
History lesson: there were black cowboys.
I know there were black cowboys, and that would be fine, but when you are dressing up as a cowboy named bubba who screws his sister, then you’re a racist. And that is what I was referencing.
I don’t think that applies here since no one thinks all white people are incestuous rednecks, but I’ve met plenty of people who think all Muslims are terrorists and all black people are ghetto, even to the point where they told me that I’m “not really black” or I’m “not one of those scary black people” because I don’t act like a stereotype.
That is not true. At all there are plenty of people that I have met that have that perception about white people. If your going to be fair be fair across the board is right.
I honestly if they are going to start pointing out insensitivities to cultures it should be all cultures. But why stop there how about fat costumes, gender costumes, or job costumes.
I see their point, but you when you start something like this then you have to understand that everyone will need there say on what they find offensive and misrepresentative of there minority, weight, social class, job, etc.
But the problem then becomes can anyone have fun for halloween (or even cosplay) if it is going to offend someone? I like halloween but I think it might be case of knowing when to let something slide and when point out when some is going too far. Rather than write off everything.
“At all there are plenty of people that I have met that have that perception about white people.”
LOL If those people aren’t from the Deep South and don’t own a TV, never listened to the radio, and never picked up a magazine then that’s a little sad. I’ve always seen white people represented as educated and “normal” for the most part, but maybe it’s just what I’m watching.
I love, love, LOVE this campaign!!!!!!!! Needs to be a PSA in every town, every where in this country.
I’m increasingly disturbed by a point many here seem to be missing.
If you see something as a problem, my failure to see it that way does not mean that a problem doesn’t exist.
If someone has done something you find offensive, the fact that I don’t/wouldn’t find it offensive does not mean that no offense occurred.
If someone does something you find dishonorable out of a misguided or ill-conceived intent to pay homage, my failure to understand why you’re insulted does not nullify or undo the insult.
If this was a matter of law or the breach thereof, every lawo-respecting cop and judge in the land would echo the same refrain: “Ignorance of the law does not excuse breaking the law.” Meaning that if you don’t know the law, there are enough resources available and easily enough accessed that you can remedy your ignorance quite easily and avoid breaking the law.
This particular case is a matter of having/not having empathetic respect for each other and others’ cultures and cultural sensitivities and practices. Generally, it goes much, much deeper and stretches much, much wider. It’s about having/not having empathetic respect for each other in all things. If something I’m doing is seen/felt/perceived/received as insensitive/prejudicial/wrong/cruel/offensive/etc. by someone else, how I feel about it is not the point. Nor is it my place to tell the offended party, whether I caused/intended/contributed to the offense or not, that how they feel about it is invalid or that they “need to lighten up”. Maybe it is invalid to me, but again, that is not the point. My failure to understand does not negate the other party’s perceptions, nor does my insensitivity take away the sting of their hurt. If it matters to someone, it matters, period. And that matter deserves to be respected. This failure to be empathetic and to respect is far and away worse than the Halloween costume abuses depicted in the STARS campaign and other similar occurrences and is, in fact, what allows that kind of abuse to occur.
Until we come to the point of having empathy and respect for each other to the point of allowing it to matter to us how other people feel about what we or others do to them, even when we meant no offense or don’t understand why it should matter, then we will continue having hateful divisions between/among cultures. And there will remain the valid need for campaigns like STARS.
“Ignorance of the law does not excuse breaking the law.” Meaning that if you don’t know the law, there are enough resources available and easily enough accessed that you can remedy your ignorance quite easily and avoid breaking the law.
“This particular case is a matter of having/not having empathetic respect for each other and others’ cultures and cultural sensitivities and practices.”
Cygnet- Well said!! Peace and Blessings to you! Your empathetic spirit shines brilliantly!
I do not support the movement!!! Lol! C’mon people! It’s HALLOWEEN for goodness sake! Let’s all just lighten up…and go get some candy!!!
Seriously??? There are much bigger issues in the world than some other ethnicity wearing an afro wig for Halloween. In that case Indian and Chinese women should be up in arms with all the black women parading around with their hair on their heads pretending to not have kinky hair underneath!
LOL yes!
Apples and Oranges Anon.
If you’re a person of colour and you’re sitting there making excuses for people who wear racist Halloween costumes, I honestly feel sorry for you.
You can say that again! Such a bunch of cowards.
THANK YOU!!!! What is wrong with people??? I don’t even have the time to type a comment to them either lol
ok.. but someone could also say if some black women could put the Indian or the asian hair hair down.
I feel this whole think needs to be dissect.
I am not making excuses but you can’t look at one without the other.
My problem with the ad is that the people look very sad and defeated over what are arguably ignorant/silly costumes. I don’t like the message that something as trivial as a costume (which may have had little thought put into in in terms of the message it conveys) can defeat our spirit.
I thought the costumes were hilarious, especially the Muslim character. I am sure if some non white dressed up like Heidi with blonde pig tails and a milk maids dress, no one would care a bit. Stereotypes are funny and even funnier to poke at, and every group has it. My motto is if you can’t laugh at yourself then you shouldn’t laugh at anyone else.
Yeah it’s sad that alot of people will wear a costume to make fun of that person or religion racism is definitely alive and running. Some make it obvious while others do it behind your back. Just like something I saw on The View talking about halloween costume that’s being called in to get is the Casey Anthony as the most hated. But I don’t think it would be wise to buy it considering that she got away with murder,and some folks might do there own justice to the wrong person who happened to be seen wearing it..
Its just insensitive!
Did yall see the story on CN? about the hubby that threatend to leave his pregnant wife because he doesn’t like her natural hair.. So sad, all I could do was just shake my head and pray for that lady.
http://www.curlynikki.com/2011/10/we-will-not-lose-our-love-our-marriage.html#comments
I think some of you are viewing this from an overly, almost charitable liberal viewpoint. It’s great when you live in a multi-cultural, diverse and well intergrated city where this can be openly discussed and cultures borrow and learn from each other in an innocuous, friendly manner. However, there are places where this just does not happen, where non-minority people are only too happy to don blackface, geisha make-up or traditional costume and parade it as weird/other. Halloween is a time where people dress up as monsters, ghouls and mythical creatures as well as public figures deemed admirable or suitable to lambast but I don’t feel that wearing say a native American costume/traditional dress is an acceptable costume for Halloween. We have to accept that sometimes it is done out of a fear and lack of understanding of that which people find other. I disagree with people feeling they can dress up like Lil Wayne, do a blackface, get laughs from their friends and then all enjoy a hearty sing along to a Wayne track while puncturing the air with every n-word that arises. There are better ways to learn about and celebrate each other. After all, we are expected to celebrate, honour and absorb white western culture at every turn even if we don’t realise it. I don’t feel non-white should be reduced to novelties or that the bridge to approach and understand should only be lowered during Halloween where mockery and cheap laughs are often the order of the day. Even if it only makes people stop and think about why they think certain things are acceptable on Halloween, then that is a good thing. There probably is no white student there because no non-whites tend to pick an aspect of white culture i.e gypsys, leprechauns, Amish, Maypole dancers, druids and then lampoon it in costume under the guise of fun times.
SMH @ some of these Herman Cain-like comments. Sorry, but a white person donning black face, or strapping a fake bomb to themselves and putting a sheet over their head to be a Muslim (LOL so funny…not) is not a-okay or “Not the serious”.
Agreed! I think people think this is about PC, but it isn’t. I’ve been to a party where a white chick dressed up as a ghetto black chick and she was in blackface. She thought, because of her costume, she and I could bond because she was in blackface and I was black. She thought I knew what it was like to be a black chick from the hood. No, sorry, I grew up in Syracuse, NY. The only thing hood about there is that you should wear one when it snows. And for some people who don’t know, there were white people who found Dave Chappelle’s white face not so funny because they thought he was encouraging stereotypes, so it really goes both ways.
Seriously, I’m flabbergasted at the level of ignorance in here. People are acting like this crap is harmless fun when it isn’t.
People of colour really need to decolonise their minds and start thinking about this stuff critically because we’re really contributing to our own destruction by ignoring stereotypical depictions like these.
Amen. It amazes me how some people – especially those of color – are quick to write off this whole issue as being unimportant. If it weren’t offensive and degrading to those specific racial minorities, then it would not be an issue…smh
I honestly didn’t know that the white woman was dressed as Lil Wayne; I just thought that she was dressed as what she assumed to be some “[ghetto] black person.” What bothers me most about these costumes besides the fact that they are stereotypical is that they represent the over-generalizations and misconceptions that these people have about people of color.
I find it interesting – but not surprising – that many of the people wearing these demeaning costumes were white. It shows how ignorant many of them are regarding the cultures of people of color in the US.
but ask yourself.. what is the point of halloween?
THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Somebody who gets it! I’m telling you, the next time I hear a black person in particular say “You take these things seriously don’t you?” or “Chill, it’s just light banter”, I swear, my hand will just marry that their face.
People with culture complain everytime a white person acts too ignorant yet they allow the dummest things to be said or done in great disrespect of their culture/lineage. Worse yet, it’s usually done by them -.-
Please Please Please people, please Wake Up and think.
+1000. I am trying hard to understand how the things you have mentioned could be deemed as harmless. And even if the white chick was trying to be Lil Wayne, black face is NOT ok.
ROTFLMAO!!!! “Some of these Herman Cain-like comments” LOL!!! Yup, he’s uber brainwashed and too deep into the lie to see the light.
I think the campaign should be aired…nationwide! There are plenty creative and funny costumes for Halloween! I think people who dress like the stereotypes for Halloween are not thinking outside the box!
im not thinking it’s that deep…in all fairness, where’s the pic of a white student holding a photo of someone dressed in something that highlights a common stereotype about them! (because Lord knows there’s plenty!) I think maybe people like to pull the race card about everything. it’s halloween…one of the most non-serious days of the year…shut up and go enjoy yourself.
I think we are so enslaved to “their” validation. Why must we be so concerned about what these little nonfactors do at damn Halloween?
I am black and I don’t celebrate holloween, I am not sure why even have halloween
I Agree with you.
Some people dress like michael jackson and act like michael jackson on halloween… how come some blacks are raising an uproar…
I don’t have energy for every little petty fight…or stupidity going into the media.
I think there is an issue being created where there is none.
One costume is not meant to represent a race/ethnic group, its meant to be OBVIOUS so that everyone knows what you’re supposed to be dressed up as! That is why stereotypes do the job perfectly! Who wants to be an educated latino for halloween..? Nobody, cuz we see them everyday, but this mule-riding latino is something you don’t see (if you live in the city). That’s why someone chose it as a costume.
I do believe the “occupations argument” is valid, cuz if we can be oversensitive about this we can be oversensitive about that too. Firemen and doctors do a very important job during which casualties happen all the time, this shouldnot be taken lightly and made into simple costumes…And dressing up as animals should also be discussed, cuz lots of animals suffer everyday/are endangered/in need of a home so its a serious issue that shouldnt be made fun of…
It’s easy to defend something if the reason is that it offends some people. Something always offends somebody. So are we going to ban everything?
Honestly i think this will just generate a vicious cycle of oversensitivity lol.
Find something serious to protest about, guys.
I agree 100%!
its halloween, its not that serious. If thats the case Halloween would be stopped all together and every costume would be considered offensive from the pirate to the princess. We should find better things to focus on like the huge income gap thats affecting everybody. In the whole sceme of things and whats going this is trivial JMHO
Brilliant Ohio University!
I think that if I didn’t care about respecting other cultures I wouldn’t be offended. I value our differences and the beauty and rich history of others. I do not believe it is ever ok to mock a group of individuals especially when you know nada about that group. As a society we need to do better and expect better from each other.
Good!! And this goes for those of “us” who deem to denigrate and degrade our own culture.
Wonderful campaign! I should go national!
They need to add a poster of a Black loc’ed person holding a picture of someone in those awful ‘rasta’ wigs as well as a poster of a Black afro’ed person holding a pic of someone in an afro wig.
Brilliant campaign!
Honestly, I think this is not that deep.
I think the problem is stereotyping the culture. Not all Mexicans ride mules, not all Muslims are terrorist strapped with bombs…no one person represents a culture. People from those culture don’t walk around looking like that. They are just them, nothing that would be a costume. They’re not even famous. It’s just a generalized person from what the wearers think the culture is, which they no nothing about.
You know it’s bad when Lil’ Wayne (if that’s who she is, I just thought she was a random black chick) is the representation of the black culture. :/
Great concept!
The geisha one doesn’t belong though. It’s an occupation/character. Women dress like “hoes” and strippers for Halloween. I was a belly dancer once. Same thing, it’s just a Japanese dancer/”hoe” instead.
For the record, geishas are not hos. Being a geisha is nothing sexual, you are thinking of japanese women who would dress up as geishas to exoticize themselves and sleep with American and British GIs during WWII.
Belly dancers are also not hos. I think the campaign is brilliant because it educates people about the inconsistencies and misconceptions, that you have yourself, about a culture.
Sorry, she is a gardening tool?
Also not all Mexicans wear ponchos, or all black people multimillion dollar singers… Why can’t Japanese girls be hyper sensitive. Don’t be discriminatory against the Japanese!
“Sorry, she is a gardening tool?”
*Giggles behind one hand, raises the other, church-lady fashion*
Tee-hee-hee :-)!
Actually, the word in question is a mispronunciation of the word “whore”, forgive me for pointing out the obvious. I do so to suggest that if one simply substitutes an apostrophe for the “r”, i.e. “who’e”, that would put one closer in spelling to the word intended without offending garden tools or those who use them :-).
Okay, carry on, y’all! *tip-toeing on out*
Fyi, Japanese women do find this offensive for good reason, so yes, it does belong. Maybe you should read up on geishas and the fetishization of Asian women.
Ummm…both geishas and belly dancers are known to work double as prostitutes. There are books and movies about this- and not from the Western perspective. Geisha’s would sell their virginity to pay back the house that trained them. Indian dancers worked as prostitutes as well.
Secondly, I know “hoe” is a slang way of writing “whore” hence the quotes. I originally had “whore” but it sounded too harsh (and too proper for this forum), so I went with “hoe” as in “Pimps and hoes” parties (which are never called “Pimps and whores parties,” note. I wasn’t aware that this was an official publication.
Dancers of middle eastern/north african genres do not all (or even most) double as prostitutes. Some very specific cultures, such as the Ouled Nail, do this to accumulate wealth (then they get married and settle down) but this is not the norm.
It is an individual’s choice to participate in sexual services: prostitution is not inherently linked with these genres of dance. I am passionate about this becasue I AM a so called “belly dancer” and despise the claim that my art form is inherently linked with prostitution. I’m sure traditional Indian folk dancers and women who spend years perfecting the art of dance, song and conversation as geishas do would feel the same.
And why even go and protray a prostitute in the first place? It’s a terrible position to be in if forced into it and a pitiable lifestlye if by choice, there’s nothing funny or amusing or scary about prostitution.
Okay, here’s a compromise/clarification:
SOME geishas and bellydancers double as prostitutes.
I never said all, do note. (When I dressed as a bellydancer, I wasn’t going for the “with extras” edition.)
I brought up the prostitution example because though that can be a questionable choice of costume to some, I wanted to make the point that it is not specifically an attack on a CULTURE (as implied in the poster). If whore costumes are allowed, then one can have US ones, Japanese ones, Indian ones, etc. (Most comments I read about the geisha were about how it portrays the sexualization/exoticization [probably made that last word up. hehehe] of Asian women. My response: no different from the sexualization of US women.)
I agree with your comment (the plight of women in porn and prostitution is too often not shown for the horror that it really is), but people do it. I’m not arguing whether someone should or shouldn’t dress as a prostitute. My comment is just to say that I don’t think that a geisha would be a racist costume. I guess b/c I’ve not come across people stereotyping all (or even majority of) Japanese women as geishas. Now, if that person were to say something crazy like “Me so horny!” then they deserve a punch in the face.
I actually learned that belly dancing could be a cover for prostitution from a Hindi movie (ever seen “Omrao Jaan?”). I was shocked! And not all women that dance in clubs in the US are prostitutes, either. (Go-go dancers?) But again, that element was mentioned to make my point (whether or not the costume is RACIST. Whether or not it is offensive or appropriate: another story.) I feel like the poster is mixing the two up. (Though that could definitely change depending on how the person wearing the costume acts out their character.)
Hopefully that makes it clear. I took belly dance classes as well and had NO intention of taking it to the red light district.
I support them 100%!!
I think this is taken WAY too seriously. People put on costumes all the time. Most of the time it’s a form a flattery. Halloween gives people the occasion to be whoever they would like to be for one day, maybe someone they admire secretly, or think is fascinating. Is it really that bad? Sometime, it’s just a reflection of what’s going on in our society. Maybe it’s a way to be able to start a conversation about it.
Why does this always has to be received as in insult? Because some might make fun of them? Why so insecure? It’s JUST a costume. When the Wayne Brothers dressed up as white chicks it was not an issue. Why should it be and issue that a white chick dresses up as Lil Wayne?
I was thinking the same thing. I am in no way offended at the white girl dressing like Lil Wayne. It does not define me in the least. Its never an issue when a black person dresses up to be white, but when its the other way around all hell breaks loose.
That movie was…ugh…. I like them better when they looked like themselves on their tv show.
I’m with you. I don’t see what the big deal is. This is the last thing black people need to focus on (yes, I’m aware that blacks aren’t the only minorities in this PSA but I’m speaking specifically to blacks regardless). It’s Halloween–why are we so sensitive? Are cops in uproar about costumes being worn in their likeness? What about entertainers? Are they putting up posters about outlandish costumes being worn in their honor or dishonor?
Like someone said about there being a difference with occupations, dressing up as a cop or doctor (though not scary) doesn’t seem as bad as ‘I’m going to be a Native American!’ or ‘I’m going to buy that Mexican costume.’ People being other ethnicities is weird…. People just are MExican or black, it’s not anything extra. I’m not explaining it well. I could go as a black woman for Halloween.
I see what you mean…there is a difference, but is it a difference that should be taken as offensive? I’ve seen college educated black people make fun of ghetto blacks. That’s more offensive because they’re not using their “higher” position to help them. The costumes are for fun and I do see that costumes are stereotypes, but some people fit stereotypes! That’s why they’re funny. We talk about other races in a degrading manner many days of the year. Comedians poke fun at different cultures all the the time and there are no PSAs being funded. It’s about having a good laugh…and it’s funny because some of it is true. Not for every individual of that particular culture, but I think most people understand that (I hope).
I think the main problem is how people perceive these costumes for themselves. Which leads to senseless censuring and attack of self expression.
I’m pretty sure not ALL the “college educated black people” who dress “ghetto black” do this to make fun. And for those who do make fun, they’re just stupid and ignorant despite their college degree.
This is how I see this : Maybe they love the creativity and originality of their fashion sense because it’s not a blend boring way of dressing up, maybe it’s a way for them to stay grounded. I know for having gone to a private school where I was often the only black girl in the class, I proudly wore my “ghetto style” clothes during school trips when we were aloud to wear our own clothes because I like the style, I grew up listening to hip hop, which is what I honestly identified with. I was not making fun. I just liked the clothes.
I also LOVE Native American Headdresses. I think they are beautiful and would love to wear one at some point. The only time I can wear something like this is during a halloween or costume party. I’m not making fun of them.
See what I mean?
“Don’t be offended, I’m just honouring your beautiful culture” = NO. STOP RIGHT THERE. It doesn’t matter if you, a non-Native, think that you’re “honouring” Native culture by wearing a head dress or war bonnet. The fact of the matter is that there are hundreds of Native tribes that have items and languages specific to their tribes. Natives find it extremely offensive and racist when people dress up as generic First Nations people and have objected against these racis/problematic depictions for years. Not caring about how you’re offending them contributes to their subjugation and oppression within society. If someone asks you to fix your prejudiced behaviour, the proper thing to do is to LISTEN and FIX IT, not give them some lame excuse about how you’re honouring them.
Agreed!
Perfect response! Agree completely=)
SO WELL SAID. Bravo.
I see where you are coming from, but I looked at those costumes and they are offensive IMHO. The only one that could truly be considered based off an actual character would be the one looking like a Japanese geisha, and that is if it really is a geisha costume, and not just some random Japanese woman in traditional dress. Look very carefully at those photos. A man dressed with an old t-shirt or whatever over his head to mimic an Arab with dynamite strapped to his chest? A Mestizo with his donkey? Native Americans of all ppl, who were so oppressed in their own land? Plus the girl who is in black faced I think they stuffed their rears to mimic black women’s larger rears for amusement. I do not see these pictures as benign. As easily as they tried to do a costume based on an entire ethnic group, they could have chosen to find one notable figure who did something great from that group and dress as that person. What about dressing as Simon Bolivar, Omar Sharif, Queen Nefertiti, or Hiawatha? You see what I am getting at?
+1
I understand the first girl dressed as Lil’ Wayne (though I’m somewhat uncomfortable with the black face)… she is being a character or emulating a person. Same way I understand when girls dress as Pocahontas. There’s a difference between costume and mockery and I find the Arab and Mexican ethnic costumes are the most offensive to me even as an outsider (African woman).
If you’re dressing as Nefertiti, you’re not dressing as an entire ethnicity/culture of people. You can dress like Nefertiti without resorting to black face. If I dress as a famous historical figure from Asian history, I’m not going to paint myself yellow and tape my eyes back because that crap is offensive and oppressive. We don’t live in a bubble where the world is free from racism, stuff like this hurts people and when they ask you not to do something, you need to listen instead of derailing with excuses.
well what do you think about this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChICboQK7GE&feature=feedu
I saw the vid…I’m not offended in any way she looked pretty…Its one thing to stuff your real and then cover yourself with paint and have gold teeth…very different…sorry.
I’m sorry, your saying people shouldn’t embrace other cultures? Your Mexican or Black, don’t go talking to those white people?
A couple years ago a bunch of university students went as the Jamaican Bobsled team from 1988 Olympics: 4 white guys in black face and a black guy in white face, nation wide press but no one got offended by the black guy emulating a fat white alcoholic.
Right. And if I dressed up as Bradley Allen from the ‘Artisans & Their Arts’ segments of SCTV, you’d probably be offended (because I’m a Black man dressing up as as a white Jewish dude, who the character originally was.)
I’m sorry, but I’m not going to sugarcoat any of this; you are actively contributing to racism by not taking this seriously.
+10
It’s not flattery.
Flattery would be accurately recreating a cultural costume. All of the above examples are charactiture, save maybe Lil’ Wayne, but that’s minstrel territory to me.
Example: For less than $30 and an inkling of thought and research, you can find a much nicer kimono than the one the lady is wearing in the picture. That example is what I think western society sees as Japan/Asian. The structure is wrong, the fabric is wrong, the outfit is worn wrong. It wants to be a “geisha” costume shows next to no idea as to what geisha actually wear. It’s not an homage, it is perpetuating an ignorant racist idea of what being Japanese/a geisha/Asian is.
If the “flattery” was done in better taste, then perhaps there would be nothing to be up in arms about. I often see costumes that portray stereotypes of a culture and not who we truly are (as the poster says). That could be the point where it is offensive.
Great points, but if you really want to imitate someone, imitate yourself… think, think, then rethink, the situation first before insulting cultures. I mean come on with all thats going on in the world today I am pretty sure you can find others costumes to display your ignorance.
Absolutely Awesome!!!
absolutely powerful. just powerful.
I’d love to see the reactions of people who have worn these type of “costumes” after seeing these images. Bet any money some of them wouldn’t do it again…hopefully, lol.
Er…I get the girl in the picture was trying to be Lil’ Wayne and therefore was going for a person specifically and maybe not the black culture…but that blackface makes me super uncomfortable.
Kudos, this needs to be addressed.
I was thinking she was lil wayne too. Sometimes I think people get too bent out of shape about stuff. No, that’s not who she is or who we are – but it is pretty close to who he is. If some black guy was lady Gaga it wouldn’t be anything but funny..
The funny thing is though, if a black person were to dress like Lady Gaga, the last thing they’d think of doing is putting on make up to make their skin lighter.
You can dress like lil wayne without painting yourself in blackface. If I’m cosplaying an anime character or a character who is not my exact race/skin colour, I don’t paint myself white.
I hope I’m not misinterpreting your tone, it seems I wasn’t clear based on the response I’m getting. I do not think she should have painted her skin, it was completely in bad taste. As I mentioned she made me uncomfortable. I think it might have even been funnier and had more of an ironic effect if she had left her skin alone save the tatoos. I was hinting that perhaps she was thinking “I’m going to be Lil’ Wayne” more than “I’m going to be a random black person!” I’ve seen the latter done to minstrel-like effect. I believe in shooting to be as close to Lil’ Wayne as possible she ended up stepping into offensive territory.
The good thing is now she knows.
You people are jokes. Serious, jokes.
You are the people with problems, not some girl that decided to have a neat costume.
I ASSUME YOU ARE CAN’T LOOK INTO THE PICTURE FAR ENOUGH TO REALIZE THAT, OH, THE WHITE MALE PAINTED HIMSELF WHITE. I SUPPOSE THAT IS RACIST, AS WELL?
All of you, grow up.
Yea!!! It’s about time!! Glad my alma mauter is stepping up with this campagin.
I agree, love the campaign!! Have seen the pics all over facebook, but didn’t know it was done by students at my alma mater. OU represent!!
Good! It’s about time! Thank you for sharing this!
+1
I love this campaign. Those “costumes” are ridiculous and I don’t see how anyone that isn’t drunk out of their mind would think that’s an appropriate outfit.
This is an absolutely brilliant campaign and a great message. Kudos to Ohio University!
Wonderful campaign!!!
I absolutely love the campaign.