To find this disturbing for a number of reasons....

[Tinlegs]

Photograph, posted on Facebook (and, therefore, in my eyes, endorsed) by a teacher of a group of people dressed up for Halloween. One person, "blacked up" (face mask, brownish make up on neck etc) one person "whitened up" (face mask, White make up) and a third person, also made up but in a brown colour. "Black man" wearing track suit, trainers and lots and lots of jewellery. "White woman" in curlers, Primark hoodie, track suit bottoms, heels. "Brown person" (an adult) in a child's buggy with a bottle, dummy and carrying what looks like a lunch box.

AIBU to think that this is racist and stereotyping of the worst kind. That they are dressed as a mixed race "chav" (not a word I would use but...) low income family who bottle feeds their baby, dresses badly and pushes a very old child around, who are all overweight etc.

Now I know these people. The area we live in is NOT at all multi cultural so there is unlikely to have been anyone offended at the party. But I am offended.

FWIW at least one of these people works with children on a daily basis.

Mumsnet, over to you.

Freudian I expect some people will think you're just oversensitive...

Heartbroken I can't find it either.

Blacking up in particular is racist because of the history of minstrels. It is using the stereotyped features of a person of colour for the fun of white people.

Yes, it's very dangerous for white people to be offended on our behalf

Are you for real?

Look, I get that if you were dressing up as a specific person, who happens to be 'black', you might think it seems logical to colour your skin like theirs. (I'm leaving out the stereotyping/sneering/ridiculing aspect of things.)

It falls down, though, if you also suppose a lot of differently-coloured people are going to the same "Dress up as a sleb" event. Those with dark skin, who choose to go as light-skinned characters, do you expect them to white up? Because this is something I have never, ever seen ... it'd look ridiculous, I reckon. Pointless and idiotic.

So unless something directly affects person they can't care about it? That's absurd!

So basically Heartbroken and Freudian you think its mockery. Just because someone blacks up as for example as Michael Jackson does not mean they would ever in a million years spit at a black/asian person or think they should go home.

Black/mixed race people are proud of their skin. Quite rightly so. In dressing in a costume whether it fancy dress or for a play at the theatre and blacking up does not mean 'us whites' are belittling you. Or in anyway think you are inferior. Its absolute rubbish to think that. Why would we think you are below us because of the colour of your skin. There our people out there that are racist. Terribly so, but I think dressing up in a costume should not be taken as offensive. By the way I think Barack Obama is gorgeous (not that that has anything to do with this thread)

well yes

especially as i am only talking about half my family if all my family and myself i guess i would have a chip on my shoulder, on no that is wrong that is if you are black silly me, i would just need to lighten up

Ok -fair enough..if not Kardashian/Wests masks ....
If it was I don't think it would enter my head that it was offensive if I was matching a mask - just more that it looked 'right' - I wouldn't think of it as 'blacking up' -things like the Black & White minstrels wouldn't come into my head - if you know what I mean...it would just be about making a costume more convincing ...and I could see myself getting carried away ...
Once when my DD was a witch - I thought her just having a green face looked odd - so I gave her a green neck and green ears - big mistake - I didn't have enough 'good' face paint -so did her neck and ears in cheap face paint and nothing would shift it (I resorted to nail varnish remover to shift the worst - poor thing had a definite green tinge for a week or so ) ...DD2 as devil this Halloween - with a red face (the good face paints) had her normal flesh coloured ears and neck - never ever again...

What's all this 'us and you' nonsense? Where did that come from?

It's not the costume that's offensive, it's the facial makeup. Why aren't you getting that? And it's not just us who find it offensive, it's millions of people worldwide - how can you argue that everyone else (bar you and your EDL friends) is wrong and you're right?

Whether you think it's offensive is not the point. It has been decided by many, many people that it is offensive. You don't get to choose whether it is or it isn't.

And again, who called you a cunt?

Unlucky - but there are no green and red-skinned races to take offense at your children, so what does that have to do with anything

Ahh didn't say it - not that I think giving someone a green face is the same as trying to be a different race - just more an eg of trying to make something look 'right'...

because you have said over and over again some people should not take offence as none is intended, who are you to make that decision

i think other people are intelligent enough regardless of their skin colour to know their own mind. and once again the history behind the blackface it is not nice everyone knows that so why carry it on unless you just do not care who you offend. to me that is a sign of choosing not to want to understand and where does that come from ... it is not hard to work out have seen your posts before you choose to be ignorant it is a choice and you seem happy with that choice

Unlucky - I know what you mean about face paint though. DS went to a birthday party when he was 5 - he and three of his friends had their faces painted as Sonic the Hedgehog characters - they all had slightly blue and red faces at school the next day. Very amusing

The issue is blacking up legitimises for racist people that it's ok! that a lot of people have no respect for black people. It is cumulative and all
The small things add up to us living in a racist culture where the bnp and ukip are taken seriously, major newspapers spout overtly racist hate speech and the EDL are pervasive and violently assault people on our streets.

Some fucker along the way did. Heartbroken people are making it into a 'us and you' situation. When there is not one. I understanding its the facial make up. If black people are so proud of their skin why are they not proud that someone would want to look/dress like them in an outfit.

^Utter bollox

No, mylovelyboy, no on called you a cunt. I've been back through the thread and no one has called you that. You, however, have had a post deleted for calling someone a cunt. Yet, you're not offensive, everyone is just oversensitive.

And as for this: black people are so proud of their skin why are they not proud that someone would want to look/dress like them in an outfit.

We are not talking about outfits, we are talking about blacking up. It has been explained to you again and again that the vast majority of black people do not find this flattering, and you are being purposefully ignorant in your continued pretention that is is flattery. It's not. It's mockery. It has roots in racism. It has history in racism. You can't decide that it's not racist just to suit your behaviour.

mylovely don't rise to it -

I would like somebody to actually give me a definition of the term 'racist' - anybody??

MrsDeVere thank you for pointing that out. I will take note

YANBU, Tin.

That's In very poor taste. And, ignorance.

Unlucky, Mumsnet taught me why witches are supposed to be green, with bumps & broken noses ... no doubt this will piss people off, too, but here goes. It's certainly altered my view of witch costume. In the Middle Ages, when accusing a woman of witchcraft was an easy way to get her killed, accused women were kept locked up for 'interrogation' before being led through the streets to their deaths. During their incarceration, which could last months, they were beaten, raped and tortured by men who seemed to enjoy their jobs too much. Obviously they were not given any medical treatment between batterings. By the time they were forced to parade in irons to the fire, every bone in their body was broken. They were covered in bruises, open wounds and would have been very ill with starvation and blood poisoning. That's why they were green, bent, had crooked noses and lumpy faces :(

Some fucker along the way did

Again, where did anyone actually call you a cunt?