I think it’s fine to dress up as characters of other ethnicities. But just don’t do blackface. If no-one “gets” your costume because you didn’t do blackface, then it’s a shit costume, but at least you weren’t being racist. If people get it and you aren’t wearing black-face, what’s the problem?
I dressed up blackface once… I was eight or nine, and the whole family was dressing up as the star trek voyager crew, since that was airing at the time and we were huge trekkies. I got to be the coolest of the characters - Tuvok. I got to dress in black clothes with yellow shoulders, a spatula as a phaser and the tv-remote for a tricoder, and my dad put band-aids on my ears and darkened me with some shoe polish. I felt awesome. I was so cool. I got to do all the lines and be all vulcan and logical. Later, I understood it might’ve not been the most tasteful…
When I was about that age, in Finland, and we were in the Mayday fair, my dad bought me a literal black face, as in a rubber mask that covered your face and was EXTREMELY racist, with like the worst 19th century racist drawing of a generic sub-Saharan African you could think of. The whole 9 yards. No. 900 yards.
I found the mask like a few years ago while we were cleaning out grandmas house and man, the shame I felt. shudder
Your post reminded me of being 10 when 9/11 happened. The amount of racist hate that I saw on a daily basis is absolutely disgusting to me. All that fuckin’ nationalism really turned a lot of people into monsters. Even me.
Shit, I remember a friend of mine who was suspended for calling a Muslim girl a “sand n*”. All my dumbass 12 year old friends, including me, going on about freedom of speech. Fuck. I fucking hate Amerikkka, bro.
Well this was like at most 2-4 years earlier than that, so around the same time.
I’m not even American. I’m Finnish. I don’t think you’d understand how prevalent racism here is. Like even the stereotypical hippie girls, you know? Like it’s a sort of somewhat casual racism, but it’s very deep in the society.
My therapist who’s British originally told me how he was in a sauna one day and the discussion turned to something political and that the people just threw out the n-word so casually. And this was like just this year, uh, last year I mean.
Yeah the “sand n” word is used her as well, pfff.
Like genuinely I’ve gotten into a lot of trouble for calling people out for those things. Which is like… honestly. I get looked down on for saying that we shouldn’t use racial slurs? Like genuinely, you’ll get more disgusted looks in Finland by saying “you shouldn’t use the n-word” then you would by saying the n-word. Perhaps it’s different in the capital area and the younger gens? I fucking hope it is.
I was always disappointed that the cultural appropriation includes disallowing dressing as other cultures. Why would it be so wrong to play someone else for a moment? It’s just some innocent fun, so why prohibit it?
I’m problematic.
When I was 17, on Halloween, I dressed up as Aladdin.
I did not darken my skin.
But still, it feels weird in hindsight.
I think it’s fine to dress up as characters of other ethnicities. But just don’t do blackface. If no-one “gets” your costume because you didn’t do blackface, then it’s a shit costume, but at least you weren’t being racist. If people get it and you aren’t wearing black-face, what’s the problem?
I dressed up blackface once… I was eight or nine, and the whole family was dressing up as the star trek voyager crew, since that was airing at the time and we were huge trekkies. I got to be the coolest of the characters - Tuvok. I got to dress in black clothes with yellow shoulders, a spatula as a phaser and the tv-remote for a tricoder, and my dad put band-aids on my ears and darkened me with some shoe polish. I felt awesome. I was so cool. I got to do all the lines and be all vulcan and logical. Later, I understood it might’ve not been the most tasteful…
Bro.
When I was about that age, in Finland, and we were in the Mayday fair, my dad bought me a literal black face, as in a rubber mask that covered your face and was EXTREMELY racist, with like the worst 19th century racist drawing of a generic sub-Saharan African you could think of. The whole 9 yards. No. 900 yards.
I found the mask like a few years ago while we were cleaning out grandmas house and man, the shame I felt. shudder
Damn.
Your post reminded me of being 10 when 9/11 happened. The amount of racist hate that I saw on a daily basis is absolutely disgusting to me. All that fuckin’ nationalism really turned a lot of people into monsters. Even me.
Shit, I remember a friend of mine who was suspended for calling a Muslim girl a “sand n*”. All my dumbass 12 year old friends, including me, going on about freedom of speech. Fuck. I fucking hate Amerikkka, bro.
Well this was like at most 2-4 years earlier than that, so around the same time.
I’m not even American. I’m Finnish. I don’t think you’d understand how prevalent racism here is. Like even the stereotypical hippie girls, you know? Like it’s a sort of somewhat casual racism, but it’s very deep in the society.
My therapist who’s British originally told me how he was in a sauna one day and the discussion turned to something political and that the people just threw out the n-word so casually. And this was like just this year, uh, last year I mean.
Yeah the “sand n” word is used her as well, pfff.
Like genuinely I’ve gotten into a lot of trouble for calling people out for those things. Which is like… honestly. I get looked down on for saying that we shouldn’t use racial slurs? Like genuinely, you’ll get more disgusted looks in Finland by saying “you shouldn’t use the n-word” then you would by saying the n-word. Perhaps it’s different in the capital area and the younger gens? I fucking hope it is.
Not from the sound of it
I was always disappointed that the cultural appropriation includes disallowing dressing as other cultures. Why would it be so wrong to play someone else for a moment? It’s just some innocent fun, so why prohibit it?
I believe the concept of cultural appropriation divides more than it unites and it would be a net positive to get rid of it
Sounds racist if you want a group of people to (not) do something because of their race.
Exactly
It’s saying “Stick to your own kind”, but in a different context.
Why was it weird?
You’d have to ask Bo Burnham.
Who? What?
It’s a song from a comedy special
That special was very impactful to me. Reminded me why I was always a big fan of his too.
Context