As fall settles in, you can feel the excitement growing on campus. With the red and orange leaves comes the habitual return of thick woolen scarves, brown boots laced to the top, and the sipping of steaming pumpkin spice lattes as one rushes off to class, October is by far one of the finest months, with all the anticipation leading up the 31st. Halloween.
Now trust me, I’m as excited as you are -- I mean who doesn’t love a day where you can feast on Milky Way bars, carve ordinate faces on pumpkins, and jump around in scary face paint? But something that needs to be addressed, especially with our current divisive political and social climate, is the act of appropriation. By definition, appropriation means the use or exploitation of a people’s cultural attributes, usually without the permission or support of the people themselves.
Individuals of different cultures and ethnicities aren’t costumes. Let’s just put that out there. It’s not cool to dress up or pretend to be a part of a group you aren’t associated with. Be respectful, and be aware how your choices may be interpreted by your peers. If you’re even a little bit unsure if your costume crosses the line- play safe and don’t follow through. These tips should help you gage whether or not your costume could be appropriative.
1. Do you find yourself putting on a headdress of any kind? If so - stop.
In some cultures like Native American or Aztecian, headdresses are extremely sacred, only worn on very special occasions by highly esteemed members of a tribe or group. In Native American culture, for example, headdresses were usually made from sacred animal feathers or pelts with the belief that the innate power of the animal would be then transferred to the person who wore it. These were symbolic and marked who the people were, what they valued and what they worshipped. Wearing something as representative as this as merely a “costume” in effect reduces the culture to something akin to a fashion statement. Avoid at all costs.
2. Face paint: the right and the wrong.
Honestly, it’s not that hard to literally not paint your skin the color of someone else. Want to tint your face green and go as the Wicked Witch of the West? I’m here for it. Maybe go as a sexy skeleton with some cool black and gray shading? Dope. But c’mon. Dressing up as a character from a movie or TV Show doesn’t necessarily require you to mirror them in every aspect (especially if their skin is a different color than yours). Using paint to make your skin reflect a different race or ethnicity is insulting to the people who have that skin tone. People will get your costume, and if they don’t know who you are, honestly just explain it to them. It’s as simple as that.
3. Ask yourself: Does my costume encourage a stigmatized stereotype?
One of the largest overarching problems with culturally appropriate costumes is that it contributes to a stereotype that is usually racially or ethnically charged. Dressing up as a “Mexican” for example encourages a 2D image of what that individual is in society. Instead of seeing a complex, hard-working person with a life, a culture, a family, a set of values, Mexicans are instead degraded to a comical image, perhaps merely a man holding a burrito complete with a large black mustache and a thick accent. Perpetuating this cycle of stereotyping not only makes people seem as “the other” or as inherently “different”, but belittles the beauty and depth of another culture. Hard pass.
4. No, culturally specific hairstyles are not for you.
As a rule of thumb, it’s usually not wise or even necessary to dress up in a hairstyle that isn’t culturally applicable to you. This picture above caught widespread criticism last year as famous designer Marc Jacobs made the choice of putting dreadlocks, a traditionally black hairstyle, on white models during New York Fashion Week. Not only is this offensive to black or African Americans who are routinely judged and degraded for using styles that accent their natural hair, it makes dreadlocks and other traditional hairstyles seem “edgy” or “fashionable” for their event garners. Twisting something that normally oppresses others and using it as a fashion statement, especially coming from a white person of power, like Marc Jacobs, is morally corrupt and not something you should attempt to repeat in your own Halloween costume. Again, shouldn't be that hard to avoid.
5. Don’t be a “sexy gypsy” or any other minority woman for that matter.
Some people think it’s fun to dress up as something a little sexy for Halloween and that’s totally fine! It’s your body and choice to do whatever you want. However it’s important to not cross the line and dress up as something, or someone, you’re not. Before you put on the long skirt and jingly bangles characteristic of a “gypsy”, remember that there’s a woman behind that costume. For example, Romanian women have been labeled “gypsies” and scrutinized under the presumptuous stereotype for many decades. Dressing up as “sexy” versions of women from different cultures contributes to an unrealistic standard and expectation of how these women are supposed to act like or dress like in real life. When they are over-romanticized in this way, they seem “exotic” and “mysterious”. C'mon man, they're just trying to live their lives. Put the bangles away.
6. Traditional dress vs. costume
Traditional style of dress universally holds symbolic and cultural significance in the lifestyles and customs of various ethnic groups. If your costume in any way represents or mocks some form of characteristic attire attached to a certain society- just stop yourself. Even if your costume looks and appears legitimate, it often won’t come across that way to your peers so it’s best to stay clear.
7. Don’t dress up as the LGBTQ+ community. Period.
This includes drag as well. Drag, historically, has been empowering for some members of the queer community, encouraging pride and openness and self-love. Mocking or degrading people that have fought through (and continue to fight through) so much hatred and bigotry is just sad. I think it says a lot about a person when someone takes it upon themselves to put down others in order to make themselves seem more “manly/feminine” or more “hetero-normative”.
8. Appreciation compared to appropriation
Some people try and justify their offensive costume choices under the guise of “appreciation” compared to “appropriation”. Listen Linda, do you know the historical and cultural significance behind that bindi and henna you’re wearing? What about that kimono huh, Jan? Educating yourself is a big part of appreciating a culture on its own and by its own standards. But perhaps, consider that maybe a frat Halloween party isn’t the best location for you to “appreciate” another culture’s traditions.
9. Check your privilege and analyze.
Appropriating other people and other cultures is inherently a selfish and demeaning thing to do. People have faced very real, sometimes life-threatening discrimination for embracing and promoting their own traditions. By profiting or using other cultures as costumes, or something to make you look “sexy” or feel “exotic”, you are displaying your incredible privilege. You do not have to live or go through what that person experiences daily. You do not have to constantly battle stereotypes and stigmatization based on those traits you find so “fashionable." And instead you have the option to pick and choose what aspects of that culture to use, and for that you need to check yourself. Ask why you feel you need to take from others to add to your own repertoire. Why you haven’t stood up when you saw appropriation elsewhere. How destructive this privilege is on those who don’t have it.
Ultimately, I can’t control what you go as for Halloween. But I hope you make the right decisions based on the issue at hand. Let's enjoy fall y'all -- but how about this year without the offensive costumes. Can we agree on that?
