It has everything. Halloween. Cultural Appropriation. And Disney!

[PollyannaMom]

But I just don't see the difference between casting in a show and casting in the parks. Both are supposed to be playing a role.

The difference is that at a play, the audience is meant to understand that the people are actors, putting on a show.

In the parks, small children are meant to actually believe the characters are real. If they don't look as close as possible to the movies, they are afraid the children will ask questions and not believe in the magic anymore.

So I think that's why Disney is more free with casting in shows than in the parks.

 

[LSUmiss]

So the consensus so far in this thread is kids should be able to wear costumes and dress up as any princess they wish, regardless of whether their own race and skin color matches the skin color of the Disney depicted Princess from the films. I agree.

But...

Does it go both ways? Would people have an issue if the theme parks had an asian woman playing Snow White, African-American women playing Anna and Elsa, a caucasian woman playing Tiana, etc? Or would people get upset over that?

I think this is different b/c it’s not about race as much as authenticity b/c they are supposed to be real. Take race out of it even, Cinderella can’t have red hair b/c that would be too obvious that it was someone dressing up vs being the real thing. Children dressing up aren’t supposed to be the real thing so it shouldn’t matter. Now painting your face in black face or brown face or something stupid like that would be racist but not wearing a costume.

 

[PollyannaMom]

I think this whole costume controversy is ridiculous, and teaching children exactly the opposite of what we want to teach.

If we want them to grow up knowing that all people are the same inside, we cannot turn around and limit their costume choices due to their race!

 

[RedAngie]

If the author and some readers think it's inappropriate, fine. I understand and respect their views.

But don't tell others that they're wrong and can't or shouldn't dress their kids in that costume.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I think articles - and ideas - like this are confusing to people. They just don't know what to do, like the mom mentioned in the article who ultimately decided to not dress her "white" daughter as Moana simply because "it wasn't a good idea". (I wonder how she explained it to her daughter?)

If we're asking people to not make race an issue, then we really should not make race an issue.

A friend of mine is a woman of color. I helped her plan a trip to Disney with her family this year. She sent me a pic of them all in front of the castle and her two little girls were dressed as princesses that did not align with their race. [gasp!] I really never gave it much thought until today. But kudos to my friend for not making race an issue.

 

[3 MEN AND A BOAT]

My 5yo daughter wants to be Batman, and guess what mommy and daddy bought her. Take that Redbook.

 

[tzolkin]

I read the article quickly and honestly I really don’t get it. Most of the way through it was emphasizing in explicit terms how racist anyone is who would possibly even consider wearing a costume of a character of a different race, but at the end it seems to completely contradict that.

“...suggests that they make their own outfits, without attempting to recreate "designs [they] think are Polynesian." After all, she writes, "my culture is not a costume." But she does say it's okay to dress kids in official Disney/Warehouse/K-Mart/any other unofficial knock off Moana or Maui costume...“

So, horribly horribly racist, but, well, a costume from the Disney store is okay. ??

 

[mummabear]

So the consensus so far in this thread is kids should be able to wear costumes and dress up as any princess they wish, regardless of whether their own race and skin color matches the skin color of the Disney depicted Princess from the films. I agree.

But...

Does it go both ways? Would people have an issue if the theme parks had an asian woman playing Snow White, African-American women playing Anna and Elsa, a caucasian woman playing Tiana, etc? Or would people get upset over that?

Exactly, no one is really worried about children dressing up as the favourite princess regardless of the child or characters skin tone.

When you dress as a Disney character, you are dressing as a character, not a cultural stereotype. That was the first mistake in the reasoning. The second was to sort people by skin color, or to make them have to follow what the color of their skin is

I absolutely agree. There is a difference between dressing up as Moana and Island Girl. Or Pocahontas and an Indian costume.

I think in theatre there is way more room for artistic license that the director can take; also the actor essentially makes the role their own.

In the parks, you're supposed to be meeting THE character, plucked straight out of the movie, so there's a strict adherence to their appearance in the movie.

I think in the park the characters are meant to be the characters and I would extend that to the characters in the park as well.
Kids want to meet the character and having a white Tiana or a Asian Cinderella is a dead giveaway that they are not.
I do understand that “similar tone” may apply, just like Cliff Curtis has o my played a Maori for the first time in his career in FTWD, before that he had been South American or Arab etc

 

[CinderDuffy]

I think it's silly to tell a child that they cannot wear Moana's clothes. What I would have an issue with would be something like a white child who wanted to dress up as Tiana and instead of simply buying the gown, their parents also put them in blackface. Totally different issue. I think this article missed the mark.

 

[Hikergirl]

Just saw a Walmart commercial where a little blond white girl picked a Moana costume. Get ready for the boycotts

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Just saw a Walmart commercial where a little blond white girl picked a Moana costume. Get ready for the boycotts

Shhh!!! Don't let the Redbook editors know!

 

[LittleMissMagic]

Honestly, this is something that I've really been thinking about - I wanted to be Princess Jasmine for Halloween, but I am not of Arabic descent. I wasn't going to paint my face brown or anything, but I didn't want to rub anyone the wrong way, so I went with Ariel instead.

But with a kid wearing a cartoon character's clothing.... as long as they aren't painting their faces brown, I don't think that it's culturally insensitive or disrespectful.

 

[diznygirl]

If my kid wants to be Frankenstein would that be considered cultural appropriation of monsters? What about vampires? Would being a wear wolf mock those who have the condition?

Honestly, that article was stupid.

 

[mmouse37]

That article is ridiculous....it is having the exact opposite effect of what it is intending. Not allowing kids to dress as they want is the racist part. It's stupid to say a child of color can't be a Disney princess other than Tiana and that white children can't be dressed as Tiana or Jasmine or Mulan. Totally dumb on Redbook's part.

MJ

 

[Jafar30]

My favorite part that I've read about this

"Mommy and Daddy can I be Moana?"

"No honey, that's cultural appropriation"

"Okay then I'll be Elsa"

"Now you're just throwing your white privilege other people's face"

 

[DisneyOma]

Had a good discussion about this with my daughter. It was something she studied in college. She explained how it is OK to wear the actual Disney-marketed costume no matter the skin color/race/culture, as long as culturally significant things like tattoos, etc, were not included. It's like people wearing feathers in a band around their heads to be Native Americans. Those feathers represent an important part of their culture - they are earned in a specific manner. They are not to be worn just to make you look like 'an Indian'. Just as henna designs are fine as long as you don't do the palm/sole stuff that are part of Hindu marriage rites. (not sure if I got that part right - the designs brides have on their hands, feet, that symbolize prosperity in how long they last after the wedding, I think? Sorry if I got that wrong!) It's about the difference of being a character and perpetuating a stereotype. And remember, Disney movies are ripe with stereotypes.

 

[Jafar30]

I would also like to point out that I look nothing like my screen name or avatar.

 

[L&Lfan]

I wonder if people who wear Rosary beads around their necks realize they are misappropriating Christian culture?

 

[Planogirl]

I think that the article is very racist. It comes across to me as being about people staying in their place. Redbook should be ashamed.

 

[mom2rtk]

Had a good discussion about this with my daughter. It was something she studied in college. She explained how it is OK to wear the actual Disney-marketed costume no matter the skin color/race/culture, as long as culturally significant things like tattoos, etc, were not included. It's like people wearing feathers in a band around their heads to be Native Americans. Those feathers represent an important part of their culture - they are earned in a specific manner. They are not to be worn just to make you look like 'an Indian'. Just as henna designs are fine as long as you don't do the palm/sole stuff that are part of Hindu marriage rites. (not sure if I got that part right - the designs brides have on their hands, feet, that symbolize prosperity in how long they last after the wedding, I think? Sorry if I got that wrong!) It's about the difference of being a character and perpetuating a stereotype. And remember, Disney movies are ripe with stereotypes.

And if the Disney Pocahontas costume has head feathers?

Where does one get a copy of the rule book for all of this? Or maybe there's some sort of Halloween costume advisory board people could run proposed costumes past before making any big mistakes?