Questions re: potentially lame costume, and trick-or-treating date

[Anonymous]

DS is going to be a vampire. Great, now we've offended the undead. And you know how testy they can get.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DS is going to be a vampire. Great, now we've offended the undead. And you know how testy they can get.

You think you've got problems? My daughter's going as Medusa, we're opening ourselves up to the Pantheon. And did I mention my youngest is going as a Punk? Do you think Sid & Nancy will come back and haunt us?

[Anonymous]

I think OP is just lazy...waiting until the kid is three before celebrating Halloween, not wanting to buy a costume, etc.

OP, Halloween is about your kid, why not put her in a costume SHE would like and relate to. Stop being such a stick in the mud and crapping out. Do you celebrate the poor kid's birthday?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Will my son possibly offend firefighters if he wears his firefighter costume trick-or-treating? Should I require him to say he is "Fireman Sam" or some other "actual" firefiighter character so as to not risk offending?

Poor analogy. Many little boys want to BE firefighters. I doubt this woman's daughter wants to be Asian or has asked to be Asian. She's being dressed up as Asian because this woman considers it cute or doll-like and she's even adding make-up. What is she teaching her daughter about Asians or Chinese people?

OP, if you don't want to pay for a costume -- and you can go to to a neighborhood thrift store and get a hardly used one for $2.00, but that's neither here nor there -- maybe she could be a black cat. Maybe she could be a pink princess. Maybe the two of you could make something together.

Black cats are associated with witches and that would be offensive because the DCUM witches are coming out early. How about she dresses her DD as a flying monkey? Can''t be offensive because monkey's don't fly. Oops. I forgot. Monkeys are now offensive. Get a F**king grip. It's Halloween and kids are supposed to have fun.

[Anonymous]

This thread is so stupid (now) that I don't know whether to laugh or cry. By the way, most costume shops sell "geisha" outfits, along with "German beer girl" costumes, which are actually some sort of amalgamation of traditional Bavarian dress and slut outfits. Good lord, should I be offended? I'm German--and not in the my-ancestors-came-from-Germany way. More in the I arrived-here-on-an-airplane way....

[Anonymous]

If the child can't wear the outfit to dress-up on Halloween, when would she be able to wear it and not risk offending someone? I would personally rather see this girl's cute costume than the predictable Disney-esque costumes (Toy Story?) that so many of the kids seem obsessed with. Some of these posts are ridiculous. Really ridiculous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I think it's about as offensive as a kid dressing up like a Mexican wearing a poncho and sombrero.

I can't tell if you're saying it IS or ISN'T offensive to dress as a Mexican in a poncho and sombrero. Is a poncho & sombrero a negative stereotype of Mexicans? (that's a serious question)

My nanny (S. American) gave my little boy a traditional outfit from her country to wear to preschool on "International Day," which is when the kids dress up to represent different cultures/countries of their choice. We're not Latino. Was it offensive to let my child wear the outfit? I thought he looked adorable, and my nanny is the one who dressed him in it and she thought he looked great, so I know she wasn't offended!

On a previous International Day, I had him represent Italy - he wore a chef's hat & apron with an Italian flag on it, and he carried a wooden spoon. I also drew a little curly mustache on his face. I'm half Italian. Offensive to Italians? Offensive if we had no Italian heritage at all? Before that, one of my kids dressed to represent the American West as a cowboy. We don't have any "cowboy" heritage as our families weren't in the US during that era. Offensive to real cowboys?

Just trying to figure out where you draw the line between a child thinking another culture is interesting and having fun dressing up in traditional garb, and insulting people.

I think dressing kids up as kids from different countries on "International Day" is entirely different than dressing them up for Halloween. International Day is obviously about celebrating different Nationalities/cultures where as Halloween, traditionally, is a day you dress up as ghouls. Totally different.

You say you would dress your son up as a cowboy, would you dress the other up as an Indian? I have no problem with the cowboy, but would with the Indian. I can't exactly pin point why but it has to do with having a person of a dominant culture/race (being white) and dressing up in the stereotypical clothing of people of an oppressed race/culture. If you have no problem dressing your two (hypothetical) boys up as a cowboy and an Indian then I think their is something a little off about you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DS is going to be a vampire. Great, now we've offended the undead. And you know how testy they can get.

You think you've got problems? My daughter's going as Medusa, we're opening ourselves up to the Pantheon. And did I mention my youngest is going as a Punk? Do you think Sid & Nancy will come back and haunt us?

I bought a dragon costume for my DS. Now I'm going to have the whole mythical creatures community on my back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I think it's about as offensive as a kid dressing up like a Mexican wearing a poncho and sombrero.

I can't tell if you're saying it IS or ISN'T offensive to dress as a Mexican in a poncho and sombrero. Is a poncho & sombrero a negative stereotype of Mexicans? (that's a serious question)

I don't know if it's a negative stereotype, but it's a stereotype that we Americans have come up with and can be considered offensive to Mexicans because we appear to believe that all Mexicans dress that way. Kind of like if you had a little boy dress up as a cowboy in chaps, spurs, fringed vest, cowboy hat, red bandanna around his neck and a big brass star on his chest it wouldn't be offensive, but if a REAL cowboy saw him, he would probably get laughed at because it's a stereotype, not what REAL cowboys look like.

For the person making the vampire or Medusa references, those are both ridiculous because they are fictional characters not real people in real countries and cultures.

I think the PP that mentioned the oppressor v. oppressed relationship is on to something.

[Anonymous]

If I saw an Asian child (or any child) dressed as a Jew (yarmulke, possibly peyes, beard) I'd be amused, not offended and I am Jewish.

[Anonymous]

Mythical creature references=always funny

[Anonymous]

Ask your daughter what she wants to be. She's 3! There are tons of fun costumes that you could make if you don't want to buy something, but seriously, I'm sure there are used costumes available super cheap.

This should be a fun night for her, not just some time for you to play dress up with her as the doll.

[Anonymous]

The ignorance in this thread is such that I won't bother giving a serious effect.

Dressing up as a Chinese person is not the same as dressing up as a firefighter, or Medusa, or a vampire. Those think it is the same are showing both their ignorance and the fact that they are not a member of a racial minority in the US.

[Anonymous]

PP here- serious response, not effect.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think OP is just lazy...waiting until the kid is three before celebrating Halloween, not wanting to buy a costume, etc.

OP, Halloween is about your kid, why not put her in a costume SHE would like and relate to. Stop being such a stick in the mud and crapping out. Do you celebrate the poor kid's birthday?

Exactly. My 2.5 year old was able to tell me she wants to be a specific character from a book she loves. Ask your poor child what she wants to be!