Dirty Diaper Chic: How to tell if your Halloween costume is racist in three easy steps

Thursday, October 3, 2013

How to tell if your Halloween costume is racist in three easy steps

Let's take it from the top. Literally.

First. The wig.
Does the costume come with a wig designed to create the appearance of a type of hair typical of a race that is not your own? Yeah. that is actually sorta racist. Don't do that.

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If you really want to wear a wig, there are tons to choose from. Get a rainbow wig, a sparkly wig, an outer space alien wig. Maybe go find yourself a nice, NOT RACIST wig. And buy that one instead.

Second. The Face Paint.

If you are painting your face to appear as though it is a different color entirely (i.e., blackface, or white like a geisha)? That should be a huge, red flag. Or, God help me, if you are painting it to look like you are wearing war paint? Yeah, that is racist. Please, don't do that either. Unless you're like Mitt Romney c. the 2012 election debates. That is not so much racist and instead, I don't know, just orange. If you want to paint your face, paint it like a zombie, or a ghost, or a fairy princess. Something that isn't racist.

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via while your at it, don't do this either. not actually racist. but still.

Third. The costume.
If you are dressing up like a stereotype of a culture or ethnicity, yeah don't do that. I know that places like Walmart and, well almost anywhere, sells costumes to facilitate racism all Halloween season long. But that doesn't make it okay. There are so many cute, fun, creative, non-racist Halloween costumes out there. Try one of those!