Halloweekend has begun! By now, most of us girls have our costumes planned out and we can’t wait to dress up and celebrate. We are all busy and hard working, and holidays such as this give us a chance to go out and have some well-deserved fun. It is a good time seeing how creative everyone gets with their costumes, every year there are some stand-outs that really get a good laugh.
However, what may seem like a funny costume idea to some, can actually be very damaging to others. Every year people push the boundaries of what society deems “okay” for a costume. A lot of these costumes deal with really touchy subjects of race and discrimination. What typically makes the costume provocative and inappropriate is the physical manifestation of a stereotype.
Imagine having a rumor spread about you that is completely false. Now imagine that everyone knows this rumor, and judges you for it every single day. Imagine that your family gets judged for it too, and your friends and anyone else who looks like you. Nothing you do or say can change this stigma easily, but you work really hard to change people’s minds anyway. This rumor keeps you from the things you want to do, sometimes even from people you care about, no matter what you do. This is what it feels like to be affected by a stereotype. So if you knew the costume you choose to wear for Halloween could cause someone to feel this helpless, would you choose differently?
“Illegal Alien” costume
Stereotypes can target anyone, but most offensive costumes target people of color, attacking their culture on the basis of a common assumption that is not even true, or is weakly based in reality. These stereotypes may seem like a joke or in good fun, but they carry a heavy burden of oppression for the individuals they are targeting.
STARS is a peer organization at Ohio University that stands for Students Teaching About Racism in Society. The organization’s mission is to “facilitate discussion about diversity and all isms (sexism, classism, heterosexism, ethnocentrism etc.) with an emphasis on racial issues. We aim to raise awareness about social justice, and promote racial harmony.” STARS started the poster campaign “We’re a Culture Not a Costume” in 2011 to fight back against oppressive and offensive costumes on college campuses.
This juxtaposition of real students holding pictures of other students in racist costumes that specifically attack their culture is powerful. The message is strong; it is not acceptable to wear these costumes. The cultures and races the costumes exploit are not what is being seen. A culture comes from a community of people with years and years of history. Culture means belonging to a group and sharing a bond of heritage and traditional practice. These costumes do a really good job of taking that away from groups of people for one night of “fun.”
UMass Amherst works very hard in the dormitories to promote socially acceptable costumes and a safe environment on Halloween. UMass policy bans costumes that cover the face with masks or excessive face paint, deeming all students must be recognizable at all times, including on Halloween. The Residential Assistants are also trained in educating their residents about responsible costumes. A residential assistant who works in Central residential area said “My Assistant Residential Director and Residential Director made sure to be very thorough about talking about offensive costumes in our October floor meeting. A couple of RAs on my staff have made October bulletin boards that cover what is/not offensive, and I’ve even been in other buildings that have lots of boards about how costumes can be extremely sexist, promote cultural appropriation, etc.”
Think before you act. Wearing one of these costumes may get a laugh out of some, but it won’t be received well by others. You could face disciplinary action for dressing in an unrecognizable way. Future employers could see photos of your offensive costume and decide not to hire you in the future. You may even hurt a close friend. But most of all, wearing these costumes perpetuates stereotypes of cultures that are untrue and hurtful. These costumes try to take away people’s voices and their power as a culture.
This Halloween, make the choice to be progressive. Do the right thing and make the choice to wear a costume that is not offensive. If you see someone wearing something racist, speak up. There is power in ally ship and awareness! Diversity is something to be celebrated and embraced in a community, and everyone should feel safe and accepted. Halloween should be no exception to these basic human rights.
You have the power here, collegiettes! Make the responsible choice and pick a cute costume that won’t offend anyone, and you are sure to have the best night ever.
Happy (progressive) Halloween weekend, Collegiettes!