Nobody would think this is racist would they?

[Splishsplashsplooshsplosh]

DC wants to be an oompa loompa for Halloween. Green hair, white dungarees, orange face. I thought it was a good idea, DH is worried people might come across racist if we change DCs face colour. It won't will it? Since nobody has orange skin? (Other than Donald Trump obviously but I'm not worried about offending him) if it is offensive I guess we could just not do the face paint but I reckon he's worrying about nothing.

Oompa Loompas are a bit problematic actually. They were originally depicted as African pygmies that Wonka enslaved in his factory...the description/illustrations changed in later publications and then obviously they were portrayed as orange in the film.

Name change fail OP?

I hate replying to a thread in good faith

Fireisland · Today 14:52

Splishsplashsplooshsplosh · Today 14:49

Oompa Loompas aren't people of colour, op. They're not real. He must know this?! 😂 I hope he does
Name change fail OP?

I hate replying to a thread in good faith

Eh?

@Fireisland I think you're confusing me with someone else? I quoted someone and accidentally didn't show their user name. Maybe thats why. But no I haven't changed user name in ages 🤷

Sorry, it's because you didn't actually quote them - it looked like you were calling yourself OP ie a failed name change on a potentially goady thread.

inews.co.uk/inews-lifestyle/people/halloween-costumes-dwarfism-dressing-oompa-loompas-1270011

Yup this writer agrees!

😂

No. It was a quote fail.

Hope your DCs have fun OP, with their orange faces and green hair. I do think you will regret it next morning when you see their pillowcases 😂

YABU - it's very offensive to all the people whose spray tans have gone wrong/those who have chosen to be orange and its not just trump. and you know how trump holds a grudge... not to mention that he will probably be POTUS again

I've never encountered a race with orange skin and green hair

Ha! Good point

It’s a frigging Umpa-Loompa

it’s fine

I think he will have heard that originally the Roald Dahl characters were 'natives' ie POC. Dahl changed the text of the book in the Seventies because he realised/was forced to accept the fact that it was racist. He was also very anti-semitic.

My daughter has typical Gen Z worldview and she would definitely avoid anything to do with Oompa Loompas. They are definitely constructed as 'Other' and therefore even if they aren't literally black any more, they definitely referred to blackness as it were.

@Sugarfree23 I take it you've never been to Essex....?

Exactly. Everybody taking the piss out of the OP's DH but he has a point if you want to avoid offence.

I hate 2023 what have we become

Overthinking snowflakes.

So don't blackface your kids. Job done.

Yep

Just don't knock on the door of the chocolate factory, the oompa loompas within might get upset and send him the same way as Verucca Salt!

Overthinking? Sure. But I'd rather be married to a "snowflake" than a racist so I'm ok with that 🤷

@Splishsplashsplooshsplosh

It's massively racist. The original characters in the books were meant to be pygmies but the later editions got revised.

But the level of overthinking in imagining this might be racist is huge 🤷🏻‍♀️

So, not racist then. As he's be a film Oompa Loompa, which is not at race, not a colour, and not racist.

@Splishsplashsplooshsplosh

OP, there has been some controversy over Oompah Loompas around the appropriation of dwarfism and the author's original characterisations. I'm with your DH on this and wouldn't feel easy about it.