Halloween costume - offensive ?

[Anonymous]

I find the notion of cultural appropriation very tiring, since I am multi-ethnic and have an association with many different cultures from aroudn the world. There is no way for a stranger to decide whether or not you have a legitimate link to whichever costume you are wearing!

So wear whatever you want.
I would love for my part-Asian DD to wear the Native American costume I got her, but no, she prefers to dress up as an eagle

[Anonymous]

She's dressing up as a specific person, I don't think that's offensive at all OP

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:She's dressing up as a specific person, I don't think that's offensive at all OP

No, it's actually worse because she's ascribing "generic Indian clothing" to someone who may or may not have worn anything even remotely similar. Native culture is unique to tribes and regions, and throwing on a fringe dress and calling yourself Sacagawea because that's the only Native person you know is absolutely offensive.

If she wants to be Sacagawea, rather than just wanting to wear that specific dress, help her to research what Sacagawea actually would have worn as a member of a certain tribal community.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:She's dressing up as a specific person, I don't think that's offensive at all OP

No, it's actually worse because she's ascribing "generic Indian clothing" to someone who may or may not have worn anything even remotely similar. Native culture is unique to tribes and regions, and throwing on a fringe dress and calling yourself Sacagawea because that's the only Native person you know is absolutely offensive.

If she wants to be Sacagawea, rather than just wanting to wear that specific dress, help her to research what Sacagawea actually would have worn as a member of a certain tribal community.

Way over thinking it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:She's dressing up as a specific person, I don't think that's offensive at all OP

No, it's actually worse because she's ascribing "generic Indian clothing" to someone who may or may not have worn anything even remotely similar. Native culture is unique to tribes and regions, and throwing on a fringe dress and calling yourself Sacagawea because that's the only Native person you know is absolutely offensive.

If she wants to be Sacagawea, rather than just wanting to wear that specific dress, help her to research what Sacagawea actually would have worn as a member of a certain tribal community.

Way over thinking it.

NP. Why? If you want to dress up as a person, figure out what that person would have worn and wear that.

[Anonymous]

Yes, it is.

http://nativeappropriations.com/2013/10/so-your-friend-dressed-up-as-an-indian-now-what.html

How to explain it to a little kid, though, is hard. There is some good stuff on the internet, like that WaPo article posted earlier, and this

http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/1099467/how-to-tell-your-kid-they-cant-wear-that-racist-halloween-costume

and this
http://www.mommyish.com/2013/10/24/indian-themed-costumes-racist/

Good luck

[Anonymous]

I've definitely had this conversation with my child and it's actually not THAT hard:

I'd say this:

"I know you want to dress up as a Native American but it's actually not kind to take another person's traditional dress and use it as a costume."

Then I'd share an example to drive the point home, depending on the child and our culture. Like, "Would you like it if someone wore a kippah and tzitzit as a costume or would that make you feel like someone was kind of making fun of Jewish people?"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:she needs to be a specific historical person, not just an American Indian.

I agree. If you are doing this as a learning process than it is less like appropriation.

[Anonymous]

I say let your child dress up however she wants, so long as her intent is joyful. That is pretty much the extent of it for a seven year old. I think that we start getting into murky territory when we start legislating dress. Also, when we try to draw bright lines saying, for example, that only Chinese girl can dress up as Mulan, it sends a message that we can't appreciate other cultures.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:She's dressing up as a specific person, I don't think that's offensive at all OP

No, it's actually worse because she's ascribing "generic Indian clothing" to someone who may or may not have worn anything even remotely similar. Native culture is unique to tribes and regions, and throwing on a fringe dress and calling yourself Sacagawea because that's the only Native person you know is absolutely offensive.

If she wants to be Sacagawea, rather than just wanting to wear that specific dress, help her to research what Sacagawea actually would have worn as a member of a certain tribal community.

Way over thinking it.

NP. Why? If you want to dress up as a person, figure out what that person would have worn and wear that.

Umm, that's exactly what that is explaining to do. To research what the historical figure would have actually looked like, rather than the generic native american costume.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:She's dressing up as a specific person, I don't think that's offensive at all OP

No, it's actually worse because she's ascribing "generic Indian clothing" to someone who may or may not have worn anything even remotely similar. Native culture is unique to tribes and regions, and throwing on a fringe dress and calling yourself Sacagawea because that's the only Native person you know is absolutely offensive.

If she wants to be Sacagawea, rather than just wanting to wear that specific dress, help her to research what Sacagawea actually would have worn as a member of a certain tribal community.

Way over thinking it.

NP. Why? If you want to dress up as a person, figure out what that person would have worn and wear that.

Umm, that's exactly what that is explaining to do. To research what the historical figure would have actually looked like, rather than the generic native american costume.

Right, I was agreeing with that, and questioning the idea that that's "over thinking."

[Anonymous]

I don't think it's offensive. I think that it's honoring--she wants to be a Native American, not to make fun of it, but because she is interested in it and likes the idea of it.

And her idea of it may be childish, but she is a child, and this is all about imagination--imagining being a Native American in the past, and with that opens the door to empathy. If it's shut down, then why be curious about what it's like to be something other than what she is? That just perpetuates the 50s "Dick and Jane-- we are all white and girls are all blonde" mentality.

My DDs read the AWESOME American Girl historical book set on "Kaya," and when they were OPs daughter's age, each of them wore some sort of outfit like this. My oldest is a savvy teen now, so I think if she dressed up at all, she would not do something like this for Halloween due to sensitivity, but that too is age-appropriate!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I say let your child dress up however she wants, so long as her intent is joyful. That is pretty much the extent of it for a seven year old. I think that we start getting into murky territory when we start legislating dress. Also, when we try to draw bright lines saying, for example, that only Chinese girl can dress up as Mulan, it sends a message that we can't appreciate other cultures.

I don't think anyone is saying that (or that black girls can't dress up as Ariel, blondes can't dress up as Merida, etc). Dressing in Mulan's costume is great. Dressing as "a Chinese girl" in stereotypical dress, might not be.

[Anonymous]

it's fine and the chances of having a native american in her classroom to be offended is next to nil around here

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:it's fine and the chances of having a native american in her classroom to be offended is next to nil around here

It's only racist if you get caught? Lovely.