Halloween costumes have been known to be based on a variety of cultures, races and ethnicities, but according to Wayne State students, just because it is on the shelf does not mean someone should wear it.
“There is a fine line between good humor in a costume and being offensive,” said Alex Dominguez, a WSU senior psychology major who identifies himself as Mexican-American.
“I wore a poncho and sombrero last year for Halloween, but an illegal alien may be a bit too far as it is no longer culture satire but a sensitive political issue and could upset a lot of people,” he said.
While Dominguez said he thinks it is acceptable to wear costumes of other cultures if they are in good humor, other students disagree.
“If you want to degrade yourself, then that’s your choice, but you have no right to degrade someone else,” said Sabrina Nguyen, a WSU sophomore pre-nursing student who identifies herself as Asian-American.
Qais Abulaban, a WSU senior majoring in construction management, says that he finds it offensive when he sees people dressing up for Halloween in clothing that portrays a culture different from their own and have no understanding of the clothing’s significance to the culture.
“I have seen people wearing an Arabian man dress called a thobe and a turban while being intoxicated and trying to imitate a Middle Eastern person,” Abulaban said.
Abulaban said that those pieces of clothing are worn during certain religious gatherings, and that alcohol itself is forbidden in that religion, “so it’s a mockery in a sense.”
Nicole Witzleben, a WSU junior majoring in biomedical physics, says that understanding the culture significance of clothing is an important factor people should consider when choosing costumes.
“I honestly thought of them as innocent fun until I learned more about the cultures the costumes represented and then realized the costumes were cheap mockeries of an entire culture,” said Witzleben.
Witzleben, who identifies as Caucasian, had seen an article about wearing Native American headdresses to music festivals, which sparked her interest in the cultural significance of accessories and outfits.
“The article explained the deep meaning behind a Native American headdress and that people were simply using them as a fashion accessory,” Witzleben said.
Nguyen says costumes based on cultures are not costumes at all.
“On Halloween, people dress up as characters for one night, but after that night, they take off the costumes and return to their old selves.” Nquyen said. “But it’s kind of offensive when someone dresses up as a Native American or a geisha because they are real people who cannot simply take off who they are.”
Witzleben, a Roman Catholic who attended Catholic school growing up, said that this concept also applies to wearing a Catholic school uniform as a costume.
“The purpose of Catholic school kids wearing uniforms is to promote modesty… Sexual intercourse is something sacred to Catholics and is to be saved for marriage. So slapping sexy on a costume destroys the entire meaning of the uniform,” she said.
Witzleben said she feels it can be hard for people to point out offensive costumes if they do not identify with the culture it represents, but that everyone can help stop cultural costumes.
“If the people of a culture can communicate their opinion to others it can help. If those not of that culture are aware of the appropriate stance they are better able to help stop it,” Witzleben said.
This article was originally published by The South End.
