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Thoughts on "black face" costumes this Halloween

I'm seeing a few posts here and elsewhere about what the blackface wearer's 'intention' is. I find it absolutely ludicrous that an adult in this country could possibly think there's nothing offensive about wearing blackface for a costume. They know what they are doing.
 
The fact of the matter is for many years the minstrel shows had white actors that painted their faces black to belittle black people and make them appear to be dimwitted. So there is and ever will be a negative connotation to putting on black face. The swastika was a well-known and largely respected symbol until Hitler and the Nazi's perverted it forever (similar to the "Hitler Mustache"--That dude seriously ruined an awesome fashion statement for everyone :) ). So we need to be smart enough to know what is offensive out of the gate. A little common sense goes a long way.

That said, I also recall a few years ago that young white kid (maybe four or five) was ostracized for wearing an Obama mask and a suit on Halloween, because he truly idolized and loved the President. Many people were accusing this kid of blackface and there was backlash against the parents as well. If you can't wear a mask of the President, I guess you can't do anything without offending. Which offends me.
 
One Brow said:
Is that the left half or the right half (the right half gets all the social advantages)?

You started out saying "... this is even a thing is because the PC groupies are making it a thing", but this is a thing because there is an entire history that is being brought into play. No one will require you to be offended, but that doesn't mean anyone else's being offended is illegitimate.
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I can understand that for sure, for instance, "Is that the left half or the right half" is a very racist thing to say in the context that you wrote it. I think the idea of "Blackface" as you have presented it is racist, but I also think that kids dressing up as their favorite characters, even if that means painting their faces, etc, is not racist. I think these are two different things with two very different meanings. The act that I am saying is not racist, is kids dressing up as the characters they adore/admire, not some punk teens or 20-somethings or whoever is doing the "Blackface" you describe and thinking they are being funny by shaming an entire race.
 
One Brow said:
Since I have had two different posters insult my mental state in the last week, and I don't recall The Thriller ever offering direct insults like that, I disagree.
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He's only aggressive to those whose opinions differ.
 
JAZZGASM said:
The fact of the matter is for many years the minstrel shows had white actors that painted their faces black to belittle black people and make them appear to be dimwitted. So there is and ever will be a negative connotation to putting on black face. The swastika was a well-known and largely respected symbol until Hitler and the Nazi's perverted it forever (similar to the "Hitler Mustache"--That dude seriously ruined an awesome fashion statement for everyone :) ). So we need to be smart enough to know what is offensive out of the gate. A little common sense goes a long way.

That said, I also recall a few years ago that young white kid (maybe four or five) was ostracized for wearing an Obama mask and a suit on Halloween, because he truly idolized and loved the President. Many people were accusing this kid of blackface and there was backlash against the parents as well. If you can't wear a mask of the President, I guess you can't do anything without offending. Which offends me.
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Exactly my thoughts.
 
DasJazz said:
I can understand that for sure, for instance, "Is that the left half or the right half" is a very racist thing to say in the context that you wrote it.
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I apologize, then. I won't do that again.

However, the concept of "half-black" seems misguided to me, because race is about how society sees and treats you, not your ancestry. My brother and his wife have a white son and a black daughter, even though they have the same parents. It's possible to be white in some locations/contexts and black in other locations/contexts, but there are very few contexts where you get treated as both, to my understanding.

DasJazz said:
I think the idea of "Blackface" as you have presented it is racist, but I also think that kids dressing up as their favorite characters, even if that means painting their faces, etc, is not racist. I think these are two different things with two very different meanings. The act that I am saying is not racist, is kids dressing up as the characters they adore/admire, not some punk teens or 20-somethings or whoever is doing the "Blackface" you describe and thinking they are being funny by shaming an entire race.
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You can't divorce a culture from it's recent history. In 200 years (perhaps less, perhaps more), maybe, white people putting on black make-up will not carry the weight it does now.
 
One Brow said:
I apologize, then. I won't do that again.

However, the concept of "half-black" seems misguided to me, because race is about how society sees and treats you, not your ancestry. My brother and his wife have a white son and a black daughter, even though they have the same parents. It's possible to be white in some locations/contexts and black in other locations/contexts, but there are very few contexts where you get treated as both, to my understanding.



You can't divorce a culture from it's recent history. In 200 years (perhaps less, perhaps more), maybe, white people putting on black make-up will not carry the weight it does now.
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I hear ya, I have been mistreated more for my pale skin than I have witnessed darker skinned relatives in the area that I grew up. But I absolutely have seen concrete racism out in public locations for my family and extended family like cousins.

To be honest, I think we both agree on context of the whole black face thing. I was not looking at it directly from your perspective and I don't think those who have chosen to dispute my points really understood (probably my fault for being lost in communication via typing) the point I was making. I was only really referring to children dressing up as their favorite heroes and characters, etc and I don't believe that to be racist even with face painting. I absolutely understand where everyone else is coming from as well but to me they are two different distinct actions and reasoning for those actions. That's why I have repeatedly said what is the point of the person doing it, what is their intent? Someone earlier referenced the little kid that dressed like President Obama and had the mask and was raked through the coals for that. That was just an innocent kid admiring someone and wanting to be exactly like him, it was not meant to be racist in nature and that is the situation type that I have been defending.
 
DasJazz said:
I admire people because of their contributions to society among other things. I think we are simply misunderstanding each other's point of view. For the record, I'm half black.
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Which half?
 
I never saw the Jimmy Kimmel one so I checked youtube. I found it pretty offensive, tbh. Here is the video. Other than blackface it is SFW and stuff.

 
DasJazz said:
"Is that the left half or the right half" is a very racist thing to say in the context that you wrote it.
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See, I took it as a very clever Star Trek reference.

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