Is this insulting to you?

[anniemae]

Yeah, I think the Mulan costume is fine, but I would skip the make up part.

 

[mamamary]

I have no idea if the white makeup is offensive, but I would not use it on a little girl under any circumstances. For a school parade, the costume and a little makeup would be all I would use, and call it day.

This sounds good to me

 

[PlutoPony]

Surprised the school makes such a big deal of Halloween. The parade with a prize for best costume seems over the top imho. I can just see how elaborate some of the costumes will be with parents/kids trying to outdo each other. And then other kids who can't afford even something basic.....

Parties are done here but they are cut down to an hour or so, and costumes haven't been worn for years. Interesting how this varies area to area.

 

[Jaime4004]

I would dress her however she wants to dress. It's a children's cartoon character. If my DD wanted makeup for a costume, i'd do makeup. Probably try it on for a bit first to make sure it was comfortable enough to wear for a long period.

 

[ColoradoDisneyFreaks]

The only time something like this would be insulting, is if the reason for the makeup is to degrade a culture, like the old blackface in minstrel shows. This isn't the case here, she is dressing in a costume of something she likes, not dressing up to act like a fool and make fun of the culture.

 

[mjkacmom]

Surprised the school makes such a big deal of Halloween. The parade with a prize for best costume seems over the top imho. I can just see how elaborate some of the costumes will be with parents/kids trying to outdo each other. And then other kids who can't afford even something basic.....

Parties are done here but they are cut down to an hour or so, and costumes haven't been worn for years. Interesting how this varies area to area.

Our elementary schools have been doing parades for at least 50 years, but no contests. There are always a couple of kids in each class who have really creative costumes. I'm lazy and usually buy, so my kids would never win anyway.

 

[CandleontheWater]

If she has to wear the makeup all day long at school (as in you apply before the school day starts), then I wouldn't do it, it wouldn't be practical and likely a bit distracting. If you can do it right before the parade, and the parade is at the end of the school day, I don't think it would be a problem. You are dressing your child up as a character from a movie, taking the make up directly from a specific movie scene (and I imagine your daughter will be wearing the dress shown in that scene). I think if it were really offensive there would have been an uproar when the movie came out, people don't generally stay silent when there are culturally offensive things shown in Disney movies.

 

[DopeyDame]

Like pretty much everyone else, I'd stick with just the costume. A 6 year old doesn't need elaborate makeup to be Mulan.

 

[TLSnell1981]

Oh, my goodness. Too many things have become "offensive". This is getting ridiculous.

OP, what does your daughter want....makeup or not?

 

[Wishing on a star]

I agree with the concerns and issues re: the white-face full makeup.
And, I am one of those who is NOT all politically correct and easily offended.
Quite the opposite.

Beautiful asian 'Mulan' attire is one thing.
But, I do feel that a young girl being presented as a geisha in full make-up has its issues.

PS: Don't get me started on MIL and her opinions. Even though I agree with PART of what she is saying... What she is saying, how she is saying it, and the fact that she thinks her 'opinion' has any weight or merit... But, of course, that is a whole different issue!!!

 

[Hrhpd]

Ok... I don't know why... (maybe because shes a miserable person...), but MIL told me tonight that dressing up my DD6 as Mulan, (costume from Disney Store) for Halloween, with geisha style make up... is insulting to the Chinese community and that I "can't paint her face white" (like a geisha)...

Now I'm kinda freaking out... DD just happens to like Mulan... and there is a parade at school with costume judging so of course we'd add makeup and hair...

Is this insulting? Or is it "just a halloween costume"?

Not insulting to me but I am not of that culture so have no idea whether it is insulting like black face would be.

Does your school allow facepaint? Ours banned it for parades and parties because it was getting everywhere.

 

[Farps]

I think that whatever your daughter wants is fine, I don't think that it would be inappropriate at all. It's Halloween for crying out loud !

 

[FlightlessDuck]

I don't know, I'm not Chinese. But I would encourage my daughter to dress in Mulan's warrior outfit than her "go find a man" outfit. Otherwise, you are missing the point of the story.

 

[Colleen27]

Some people are looking for excuses to be offended, I think. DD is worried about her Halloween costume for her "friends" party because some well-meaning person suggested that it could be offensive - she's dressing up as a black TV character (Michonne from The Walking Dead) and wearing a dreadlocks wig. Not blackface, which I can understand being offended by considering the history. Just a wig because the character's "look" is really defined by her dreadlocks.

When DD was Mulan we didn't do the makeup. I don't remember now if that was because the school didn't allow it - their current school doesn't because the party is at the end of the day and having parents in doing their kids' makeup was too chaotic - or just because I knew DD would be more comfortable without it. She had a terrible tendency to touch her makeup too much and then get upset about it being all messed up, so it was just easier to skip the facepainting/makeup parts of costumes for school parties.

 

[sksjasams]

I don't know, I'm not Chinese. But I would encourage my daughter to dress in Mulan's warrior outfit than her "go find a man" outfit. Otherwise, you are missing the point of the story.

I can understand why a 6 yo would want to wear the fancy princess style dress over the warrior outfit. However, when we met Mulan at EPCOT, I was surprised she was not in the warrior outfit - you are right, that was the whole point of the story. I loved that movie - such a great role model for girls (powerful, strong, smart, brave).

Anyway OP, I also vote for no face make up!

 

[Colleen27]

Our elementary schools have been doing parades for at least 50 years, but no contests. There are always a couple of kids in each class who have really creative costumes. I'm lazy and usually buy, so my kids would never win anyway.

Same here. The elem is part of a K-12 campus so they "parade" over to the high school and trick-or-treat there, as well as through the rectory. No costume contest or anything, though; it is just a fun thing for the kids at both schools and a nice way to build connections between the different levels.

 

[BrianL]

I can understand why a 6 yo would want to wear the fancy princess style dress over the warrior outfit. However, when we met Mulan at EPCOT, I was surprised she was not in the warrior outfit - you are right, that was the whole point of the story. I loved that movie - such a great role model for girls (powerful, strong, smart, brave).

Anyway OP, I also vote for no face make up!

I saw Mulan randomly at Epcot once (she was walking to her M&G spot) and I really didn't realize who she was because I don't think of her in that outfit. In the movie, that's when she felt most out of place. I thought it was just a performer for the acrobat show until I saw the line just outside to meet her.

 

[PsychoCelloChica]

I hate to sound like a Tumblrina/Social Justice Warrior, but I'll chime in with my 2 cents.

What you're asking about is what's called 'cultural appropriation' these days. In a nut shell, it's when someone from a dominant culture/race takes something from another culture/race and incorporates it into their own use without consideration of the impact or origin.

I'm white (Scottish and German), and even I have felt a little appropriated sometimes. I get a little sad when I see a wedding party that decided to wear full formal kilts because "they look pretty" even though no one is Scottish... or someone who got a PA Dutch hex sign as a tattoo or as home decor because they "just like the pattern". If they had taken time to research and learn about the meaning of those things and chose to do them because of THAT knowledge, it wouldn't bother me. If not, it devalues something important. These are just VERY minor examples, but the only ones I can speak on as experiencing it myself... most cultural appropriation that we talk about is more across racial boundaries and that makes it more noticeable. (For more info, look into the drama over War Bonnets and Day of the Dead makeup).

And unfortunately, there is no right answer. For every person of Chinese descent who says "Yes, that's offensive.", you're going to find one who says "No, I'm not offended, I'm glad that someone wants to dress up as a character that looks like me." And as a white person, I can't speak for people of Chinese descent, I can only try to think critically about my actions/choices and how they may be perceived.

The question for me is: Does your daughter NEED the makeup in order to dress up like the character Mulan? Does she want to be the Mulan because she is beautiful potential-bride looking for a husband during the Han Dynasty? Or does she want to be Mulan, the hero who saved her country? I don't think you need makeup for the second, even if she is choosing to wear a beautiful dress. I'm going to guess that your daughter likes Mulan because of WHO she is (a kick-butt heroine) vs. WHAT she is (a Han Dynasty Chinese woman).

 

[Hrhpd]

I hate to sound like a Tumblrina/Social Justice Warrior, but I'll chime in with my 2 cents.

What you're asking about is what's called 'cultural appropriation' these days. In a nut shell, it's when someone from a dominant culture/race takes something from another culture/race and incorporates it into their own use without consideration of the impact or origin.

I'm white (Scottish and German), and even I have felt a little appropriated sometimes. I get a little sad when I see a wedding party that decided to wear full formal kilts because "they look pretty" even though no one is Scottish... or someone who got a PA Dutch hex sign as a tattoo or as home decor because they "just like the pattern". If they had taken time to research and learn about the meaning of those things and chose to do them because of THAT knowledge, it wouldn't bother me. If not, it devalues something important. These are just VERY minor examples, but the only ones I can speak on as experiencing it myself... most cultural appropriation that we talk about is more across racial boundaries and that makes it more noticeable. (For more info, look into the drama over War Bonnets and Day of the Dead makeup).

And unfortunately, there is no right answer. For every person of Chinese descent who says "Yes, that's offensive.", you're going to find one who says "No, I'm not offended, I'm glad that someone wants to dress up as a character that looks like me." And as a white person, I can't speak for people of Chinese descent, I can only try to think critically about my actions/choices and how they may be perceived.

The question for me is: Does your daughter NEED the makeup in order to dress up like the character Mulan? Does she want to be the Mulan because she is beautiful potential-bride looking for a husband during the Han Dynasty? Or does she want to be Mulan, the hero who saved her country? I don't think you need makeup for the second, even if she is choosing to wear a beautiful dress. I'm going to guess that your daughter likes Mulan because of WHO she is (a kick-butt heroine) vs. WHAT she is (a Han Dynasty Chinese woman).

You better tell the Pa Dutch not to sell Hex signs to tourists then. I have one hanging in my hallway that I bought from a tourist stand ran by the Amish. I have spent quite a bit of time in prime Pa Dutch country, so have lots of quilts, iron work and yes, hex signs.

 

[Andtototoo]

Mulan was not a geisha. Equating a Chinese woman with a Japanese geisha is insulting in the sense that it appears that all Asians are the same to the person in a Chinese costume with geisha makeup, rather than understanding about having distinct cultures.