Anyone else find it ironic in the midst of all this hysteria over inappropriate costumes that the top prize at the White House Halloween party – presided over by the President and Michelle Obama – went to Li’l Pope, a toddler dressed up as the Pope, riding in a mini Pope-mobile?
In their Halloween costume guidelines Yale’s Intercultural Affairs Committee instructed wearers of “religious costumes” to ask themselves, “Does this costume mock or belittle someone’s deeply held faith tradition?”
That certainly could describe Li’l Pope. Maybe America’s 70 Billion Catholics (and the White House) can differentiate between well intended humor and micro-aggression.
with the events in Paris, it made me think of Charlie Hebdo and the support they received after the killings in their office. Charlie Hebdo stands for the opposite - the freest of free speech, no matter who it offends. I wonder how many of these kids were sympathetic to Charlie Hebdo or if they think about the intersection of these things at all.
I also wonder if movies like Borat, or Monty Python, or shows like South Park are no longer welcomed on college campuses as they “create an unsafe environment” by mocking people / institutions? I mean, I could get pretty offended at Borat’s “is this gun good for killing Jews” or the Jews transforming into cockroaches scene.
I just read an invitation that went out to students at a public university. Students, faculty and staff were invited to the home of the President for a “Holiday Open House.” There will be singing around a piano and a station for decorating a gingerbread man. I thought it was a lovely invitation. Then I wondered if students at Yale or Amherst or Missouri would find something offensive about it if they received the same invitation at their school. It seems to me that it isn’t that difficult to find something objectionable about events, people, emails, etc. It is easy to complain when one doesn’t like something. It takes much more effort to be tolerant, respectful and engage in thoughtful discourse about issues.
I teach kindergarten. In my classroom, there are five languages besides English spoken. We have learned about traditions in Turkey, Pakistan, China, Korea, Mexico and the United States. We also have children who are differently abled and children who suffer from allergies. Everyone gets along. If an AA child wants to pretend to be Elsa from Frozen, no one tells her she is appropriating a culture that isn’t hers. In the past, we’ve had little white girls pretend to be Ruby Bridges. Again, no one says that she is being disrespectful to AA culture. I guess my point is, if kindergarten children can get along and recognize and respect each other, celebrate our differences and rejoice that we all live together in a country where we have many freedoms, why can’t everyone else?
@oldUVAgrad The intent, but moreover the life experience of a 5 year is all-together different than 20 year grappling with greater societal issues, or thinking wearing a plains Indian war bonnet with some skimpy attire, would make for a really “hot” Halloween costume. In short, the former is benign and innocent, while the latter is overtly and patently offensive, and begs for historical instruction.
I would imagine that “holiday” songs are largely xmas songs. I have never in my life made a gingerbread cookie or house as that seems connoted with xmas. That said, given the bigger issues going on in the world, it seems pretty trivial.
I think oldUVAgrad was attempting to get at that we don’t begin our lives as bigoted and close minded…intolerant of others and shying away from doing the hard work of understanding each other.
As to the specific question, many would go, but I would keep in mind that we are increasingly a secular society, and the concerned generation is more and more, religiously apathetic.
“The intent, but moreover the life experience of a 5 year is all-together different than 20 year grappling with greater societal issues, or thinking wearing a plains Indian war bonnet with some skimpy attire, would make for a really “hot” Halloween costume. In short, the former is benign and innocent, while the latter is overtly and patently offensive, and begs for historical instruction.”
You added “skimpy attire” to the equation. Isn’t that slut-shaming, to suggest a young woman shouldn’t be free to show her body as SHE prefers? If the young woman in question is obese, aren’t you then fat-shaming to suggest she might not be well served by the bikini top and short shorts? See, it never ends!
What’s interesting to me with the president’s open house scenario is that if the president were of certain ethnic backgrounds and sharing his holiday food, customs, it would be part of the delightful panoply of diversity, but this president can’t be trusted to share his holiday customs. Maybe he’s Swedish and they make some kind of special gingerbread treat. I used to get worked up over this kind of thing, but now I don’t. It’s hardly as though he’s demanding everyone accept Jesus as their savior the moment they walk in the door. Is the pres allowed to have his family’s Christmas tree up?
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As to the specific question, many would go, but I would keep in mind that we are increasingly a secular society, and the concerned generation is more and more, religiously apathetic."
Many of the microaggressions and issues are around safe spaces for those of minority religions.
Please, the marginalization of natives (over 10 million killed in the last two centuries) is not even in the same paragraph of the modern awareness of being sex positive. The fact is, if someone dressed up as Anne Frank, in stilettos, thigh highs, and a thong, much of the easterseaboard would have a conniption.
“Please, the marginalization of natives (over 10 million killed in the last two centuries) is not even in the same paragraph of the modern awareness of being sex positive. The fact is, if someone dressed up as Anne Frank, in stilettos, thigh highs, and a thong, much of the easterseaboard would have a conniption.”
I agree that would be tasteless. (I’m still not sure how “skimpy attire” got brought into these costumes.)
I guess the question is - is one allowed to be tasteless.
Well personally, I always thought that the fact that the months of November and December are considered holiday season is not ideal. I probably wouldn’t do anything about the Holiday Open House, but it is something I think about a lot this time of year. I’m not Jewish, but I always found it sad that many people are more familiar with Hanukkah than the more major Jewish holidays. And that the only reason for this is that Hanukkah happens to be around the same time as Christmas.