San Diego State University’s Independent Student Newspaper Since 1913

The Daily Aztec

San Diego State University’s Independent Student Newspaper Since 1913

The Daily Aztec




San Diego State University’s Independent Student Newspaper Since 1913

The Daily Aztec

Costumes spoof identities, spark controversy

Inappropriate Halloween costumes have gained national media attention in past weeks, sparking debate about costume appropriateness.

Last weekend, two coaches from the local Serra High School painted their faces black to accompany their Jamaican bobsledder costumes. In response, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People has called for the coachs’ resignation, the U-T San Diego reported. The San Diego Unified School District started an investigation.

San Diego County deputy district attorney and San Diego State business ethics lecturer Wendy Patrick said offensive costumes can trigger emotional reactions, which was also illustrated by the George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin costumes that recently made a splash in news media.

“People disagree on what is ‘funny,’” Patrick said.  “The students who dressed as George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin this week found this out the hard way.  Those costumes are not funny.”

Patrick also said it’s important to consider all aspects before deciding on a costume.

“In this day and age of political correctness we are seeing less of the really inappropriate costumes,” Patrick said. “This is perhaps why when we do have offensive costumes people are really upset. We should know better by now.”

Department chair and graduate adviser of Chicana and Chicano Studies Norma Iglesias-Prieto said people need to be aware of the culture they represent when dressing up as a different nationality or ethnicity. She said these types of costumes can perpetuate stereotypes.

“A stereotype is the oversimplification of the reality; it’s creating a simple representation of a complex culture,” Iglesias-Prieto said. “How are you going to create a fit that represents all of these people?”

Iglesias-Prieto said knowing the culture and representing it respectfully can help make the costume more appropriate.

“It’s important to respect the context,” Iglesias-Prieto said. “Young people don’t realize what the problem is—the problem is in your representation. A joke about minorities accepts the stereotype as a norm. Through your actions, like the way you dress, you reproduce criteria of oppression and injustice.”

However, costumes don’t just pose problems when they attempt to represent an ethnic group.

Iglesias-Prieto said women are also stricken by this issue. When a man dresses as a woman, the outfit will most likely be sexy—if not hypersexualized—representing women as “an object of desire,” she said.

“These are archetypes,” Iglesias-Prieto said. “You don’t even question it, and that’s how stereotypes work.”

Activate Search
San Diego State University’s Independent Student Newspaper Since 1913
Costumes spoof identities, spark controversy