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 😩

Troysmammy, I wasn't referring to your post at all. I agree with you that a dog or crocodile costume would be a good alternative.

I meant posts like this one: The crocodile community is very hot on cultural appropriation before anyone suggests going down that route. Not at all funny IMO and simply trivialises a genuinely important issue.

Can’t she be a girl pirate then? No one said there wasn’t any.

True. Although unfortunately I think that some will never understand.

Im not sure why the school put it as a suggestion in the newsletter then if its offensive?

I think sometimes schools don’t really think these things through. There was another World Book Day thread where someone said their child’s class had been given “The Boy in Striped Pyjamas” as a dress up theme, and that’s a book set in and around a concentration camp in World War 2.

I would have thought it impossible to find an inoffensive costume to fit that theme. It’s a terriblely insensitive dressing up theme.

Oh oh - Peter Pan is usually played by a woman on stage aren’t they?

@msgiggles30 Pocahontas was a real person. Was there a particular reason you dressed up as her for world book day?

I'm not convinced that the stuffy English class characters in the book are stereotypes. My stuffy upper / middle class grandfather was very much of that mold, and he had to call his dad sir.

I'm sure the stiff upper class stereotype is harmful, but it's also useful. It might be mocked, but generally it's respected, it has power and normally comes with a tonne of money.

I'm stunned people can't (or claim they can't) see a difference between our relationship with Germany and native Americans relationship with us. Yes the second world war still impacts lives somewhat but we don't have to live in reservations to protect the remnants of our culture.

I thought we were talking about the offensiveness of stereotyping?

We were, but then you tried to derail the thread by suggesting that the English upper class was oppressed.

There are no lost girls. Only boys run away for adventures. Girls are just there to be rescued or to do the mothering.

Who chooses these books?

Well, DD is just going as a rabbit - it's what she chose, then found a book to work it with!
Tiger lily is a character from a specific book that has been set by the school, and there are very few girl characters- my DD is also 'girlie' and wouldn't want to dress up as a 'boy' character - there's nothing wrong with that, just as there wouldn't be if she only wanted to be a 'boy' character:
In the film 'Hook', tiger lily is not stereotypical Native American, and how many children (or adults) have even read the original book?

ITT: MNers enjoying being very angry.

DotForShort ok.

Some MNers once again showing their ignorant arses when it comes to racial matters? Quelle surprise.

Native American cultures are not a costume for anyone to put on when they feel like it. Unless you're willing to take the oppression that people still suffer to this day, too. I can't believe someone compared it to dressing up as Mary Poppins, a fictional fucking character.

Only boys run away for adventures - as a very small child (pre-school age) I was called Houdini as I used to sneak off for adventures and was usually brought home from the other side of town. Or bang on the first door and announce that I was tired and count the call my mum.

Then my parents got some serious fences and walls built around the garden.

Looking back I’m amazed I wasn’t found dead in a ditch.

I wouldn't dress my daughter as Tiger Lilly, even though we have native American ancestry . It is a caricature and offensive.

She could go as a female pirate, or Wendy, or Tigerlilly, but obviously not with the dark make up, just as herself.

Or Peter Pan even.

Why don’t you just put a nightdress on her and let her go as Wendy?🤷‍♀️🤔

Im not sure why the school put it as a suggestion in the newsletter then if its offensive?

Ignorance, perhaps?

I think sometimes schools don’t really think these things through. There was another World Book Day thread where someone said their child’s class had been given “The Boy in Striped Pyjamas” as a dress up theme, and that’s a book set in and around a concentration camp in World War 2.

Oh weird I didnt see the thread but I actually heard some women talking about that on the bus a few days ago, probably the same school. I remember thinking “well it could be worse” about my DDs school choice of peter pan, as I wasnt impressed when they handed me the letter. But I thought the PJ one sounded worse.

So would dressing as pocahontas be offensive? as you can find that dress in the disney store, george asda etc.

When (inevitably white people from privileged groups / countries) come on to threads like this
I find the outrage of the professionally offended equally funny and ridiculous. Laughing at the assumption that I am white and from a privileged group!

there’s no chance you’re going to cause any offence dressing her as Wendy.
a girl, in the role of a mini "mother" wearing night garment, serious and threatened by a fairy? The whole womanhood is offended by Wendy

Native American cultures are not a costume for anyone to put on when they feel like it. Unless you're willing to take the oppression that people still suffer to this day, too

Ridiculous.
Why does it have to be viewed negatively? Why can't dressing up as a native American be viewed as a celebration of that culture?
The oppression wasn't about how they dressed. The oppression was about one culture trying to destroy another.

Someone else criticised choosing that book because the girls were there to be rescued or to mother?....Well that's how it used to be. Are we supposed to now ban books and condemn them because they are not PC today?
Are people so stupid they will not know it was then and we don't condone those stereotypes now?

the whole point of 'acting' is to pretend to be something you aren't.

A straight man pretending to be gay (Imitation Game)
A middle aged man pretending to be old or young (Benjamin Button)
A 22yo gal with low self-esteem pretending to be a 16yo ultimate survivor (JLawrence in Hunger games)
A (anything modern) heritage person pretending to be a 16th century European, probably English (Shakespeare).

I sure hope we can all recover what make-believe & acting is, one day soon.

I find the outrage of the professionally offended equally funny and ridiculous. Laughing at the assumption that I am white and from a privileged group!

So you'd get your kid to dress up as Little Black Sambo, then?

The crocodile community is very hot on cultural appropriation before anyone suggests going down that route.

brilliant