Is it offensive or am I being silly?

[CocaColaaa]

Just a quick one but NC for this as I guess its outing.

My childrens school are doing world book day and the “theme” is peter pan, its given some suggestions of characters you can dress up as and one is tigerlilly. I was thinking of chosing that one for DD as I hate all of the tinkerbell dresses but ive heard its offensive to dress up as certain things. Native americans being on of them. Is it offensive or am I being silly? Why oh why do they have to do themes and not just let people pick their favourite book characters 😩

Oh come on!
I really don’t think a Peter Pan themed book day is a crime!
It’s a classic over 100yrs old
As pp said if we start picking at literature that could be construed as offensive where would it end?!
Guarantee there will be any number of kids with feathers and face paint
I say let your daughter go as TigerLily, she certainly won’t be the only one

Barricading as we speak

Nana diesn’t die!!!

In celebration of World Book Day, could people actually READ THE BOOK. Not the Disney cartoon. Not the live action film. Not Hook. The book. In which TigerLily is NOT a negative stereotype.

And Sambo and Quasha are Indian. And brave and kind and resourceful.

I have read the book and it is full of stereotypes of Native Americans,

And again stereotypical characters with positive traits are still stereotypes and still harmful.

One example of a harmful seemingly positive stereotype is Asians as the model minority. www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2017/04/19/524571669/model-minority-myth-again-used-as-a-racial-wedge-between-asians-and-blacks

The thing is, children aren't racist until they are taught to be.

True. And what are we teaching them if we encourage them to dress as racial stereotypes?

"On the trail of the pirates, stealing noiselessly down the war-path, which is not visible to inexperienced eyes, come the redskins, every one of them with his eyes peeled. They carry tomahawks and knives, and their naked bodies gleam with paint and oil. Strung around them are scalps, of boys as well as of pirates, for these are the Piccaninny tribe, and not to be confused with the softer-hearted Delawares or the Hurons. In the van, on all fours, is Great Big Little Panther, a brave of so many scalps that in his present position they somewhat impede his progress. Bringing up the rear, the place of greatest danger, comes Tiger Lily, proudly erect, a princess in her own right. She is the most beautiful of dusky Dianas [Diana = goddess of the woods] and the belle of the Piccaninnies, coquettish [flirting], cold and amorous [loving] by turns; there is not a brave who would not have the wayward thing to wife, but she staves off the altar with a hatchet. Observe how they pass over fallen twigs without making the slightest noise. The only sound to be heard is their somewhat heavy breathing. The fact is that they are all a little fat just now after the heavy gorging, but in time they will work this off. For the moment, however, it constitutes their chief danger.

I see no stereotypes here...

And yes, I know that it was written in 1904 but regardless I don't see how it can be denied that it doesn't stereotype Native Americans.

Lovingbenidorm not a crime, but a bloody stupid idea all things considered.

Does.

I loved Sambo, I had never met a black child but I would have would have been pleased to do so. And sorry, full disclosure, I also had a black baby doll. I don't remember loving them in a racist patronising manner though. My baby doll was called Boko, named after the survivor of Nigerian conjoined twins who were born in 1953 and obviously quite celebrated at the time.
I agree with previous posters who redirect us to the original book of Peter Pan. A lot of half-baked opinion on this thread.

Peter Pan again. No stereotypes to be seen in this chapter either...

"One important result of the brush [with the pirates] on the lagoon was that it made the redskins their friends. Peter had saved Tiger Lily from a dreadful fate, and now there was nothing she and her braves would not do for him. All night they sat above, keeping watch over the home under the ground and awaiting the big attack by the pirates which obviously could not be much longer delayed. Even by day they hung about, smoking the pipe of peace, and looking almost as if they wanted tit-bits to eat.
They called Peter the Great White Father, prostrating themselves [lying down] before him; and he liked this tremendously, so that it was not really good for him.
“The great white father,” he would say to them in a very lordly manner, as they grovelled at his feet, “is glad to see the Piccaninny warriors protecting his wigwam from the pirates.”
“Me Tiger Lily,” that lovely creature would reply. “Peter Pan save me, me his velly nice friend. Me no let pirates hurt him.”
She was far too pretty to cringe in this way, but Peter thought it his due, and he would answer condescendingly, “It is good. Peter Pan has spoken.”

There are many novels that have been considered inappropriate for various reasons over the years
The Catcher in the Rye
The Grapes of Wrath
To Kill a Mockingbird
The Colour Purple
Ulysses
Lord of the Flies
1984
Lolita
Of Mice and Men
Animal Farm
I could go on but you get my point.
If you look hard enough you can find many examples of ‘offensive’ literature.
Surely we should use these as teaching tools? Not to be scrubbed out but discussed and used as a mirror to our beliefs and behaviour today?

I have absolutely no problem with novels being used as teaching tools and being studied and enjoy as great works of literature but I do have a problem with people insisting that they contain no harmful and derogatory stereotypes when it is clear that they do as in the case of Peter Pan. These issues must also be discussed, not dismissed and ignored.

And certainly not perpetuated by having Non a Native Americans dressed as an offensive stereotype.

Just dress her up as one of the mermaids and be done with it

The world was a very different place 115 yrs ago.
How are these books harmful if they are used to highlight the appalling attitudes that prevailed?

Also, if we’re avoiding ‘stereotypes ‘ tell me,
What is an acceptable costume?

@CocaColaaa
There are mermaids in Peter Pan? That's another idea? Mermaids are very "in" right now so you'd have no trouble finding a costume I'm sure.

Not going to weigh in on the racism issue.

LovingBenidorm. You're talking about appalling attitudes yet you're seemingly happy to continue them as you told the OP to let her daughter go dressed as a Native American stereotype as she won't be the only one. If we're going to use these books as mirrors it should be to improve and reflect not to persist with to those 'appalling attitudes and give them life once more.

Sorry, I still maintain that dressing as TigerLily is acceptable

Seriously Pickled please tell me which characters from literature you would find acceptable

Looks at bookshelf... How long have you got?

If you can't think of any book characters that don't involve racist stereotypes what the hell have you been reading?