100+ Years of Halloween Costumes: A History

Hello loves, Happy Early Halloween. Hope you enjoy this little video ❤️

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MENTIONED VIDEOS:
Our Thoughts on Megyn Kelly’s Comments on Blackface
Native Americans Try On "Indian" Halloween Costumes


RESOURCES:

BOOKS/ARTICLES
Halloween. A History. By Lesley Bannatyne
Halloween in America: Contemporary Customs and Performances by Jack Santino in Western Folklore, vol. 42, no. 1 (Jan 1983)
Death Makes a Holiday: A Cultural History of Halloween by David J. Skal
Halloween: From Pagan Ritual to Party Night by Nicholas Rogers
Weird Old Figures and a New Twist:
Cultural Functions of Halloween at the Turn of the 20th Century by Rebecca J. Williams
What to Wear at Fancy Balls (1887)
Newspaper Archives

WEBSITES:






EXTRA RESOURCES RELATING TO OFFENSIVE COSTUMES:
What is Cultural Appropriation?
Blackface: A cultural history of a racist art form
A Tribe Called Red Want White Fans to 'Please Stop' Wearing Redface 'Indian' Costumes to Show
Culture and Imperialism by Edward Said
Burnt Cork: Traditions and Legacies of Blackface Minstrelsy, edited by Stephen Johnson

SCRIPTED SEGMENT ON OFFENSIVE COSTUMES:
When it comes to costumes like Blackface, Redface, Brownface, and Yellowface: these costumes are all about establishing white supremacy through making fun of people of color. These depictions were only funny to white audiences, and were harmful, demeaning, and insulting to the victims.

In the early 20th century, minstrel shows were incredibly popular, so it unfortunately was not surprising that Blackface would be used as a popular Halloween costume as well.

Clip of Loni Love speaking on The Real Daytime Show:
"Back then, Blackface was something of a caricature for Black people. They exaggerated our features, it mocked us, things like that. It's a really sad time in American History, and that's the reason why when people say, "Well, I wanna be Diana Ross!" You can be Diana Ross, you just don't have to be the brown Diana Ross. You the white Diana Ross."

Redface is still upsettingly popular for Halloween today. Redface dates back to the Boston Tea Party in 1773, when protesters dressed as Mohawks. And because of white supremacy and colonialism, Redface continues to be popular for centuries after.

Clip of Jenny Marlowe:
"You're not dressing up as a Viking or an Ancient Roman. Those people aren't around anymore. This is still very real to us."

Clip of Sheila Chalakee:
"Because it's so inaccurate, it almost feels like a joke. Like someone's making fun of me and all the things that my people fought and died to hold on to."

Of course, back in the 1930s, racism was a lot more mainstream and ethnic costumes were not viewed as a problem among the white community. I came across tons of newspaper clippings that had lists similar to this, with offensive costume ideas such as “Aunt Jemima" and "Chinese Princess”

If you want to read more about offensive costuming, I'm going to leave a couple resources in the description box. I'm just not qualified nor do I have enough time in this video to really, fully give this topic the full coverage that it deserves.