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Dear POC: Think Again Before Wearing Racism This Halloween
ICYMI: Being a member of a racially-marginalized group doesn’t grant you carte blanche to don a culturally-inappropriate costume on October 31.
Well, it’s that time of year again and Halloween is days away. There have been countless lists of dos and don’ts that fall under offensive or flat-out racist Halloween costumes that White folks should steer clear of. There’s not nearly as much discussion about racially offensive or inexplicably distasteful Halloween costumes that people of color should rethink — or not even think about at all.
As we all know, being a member of a racially or ethically marginalized group does not make a person above biased perspectives or behaviors. And some people of color seem to find themselves guilty of joining the latest offensive Halloween costume trend in the name of being humorous. Sometimes these poor choices are rooted in bias and prejudice and other times absurd costume choices are a consequence of sheer ignorance. In either case, prejudice and discrimination are never a laughing matter even if it comes in the form of a seemingly unassuming Native headdress, or a Hawaiian grass skirt or wearing blackface makeup. Covert acts of discrimination are just as dangerous as more explicit behaviors and as such, they maintain White supremacist ideology all the same.
