Moms worry trick-or-treating as 'Moana' is 'cultural appropriation'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Moms are worried their daughters won't be politically correct for Halloween. (Reuters)
The scariest thing this Halloween for New York moms isn’t zombies or ghouls — it’s politically incorrect costumes.
An article on raceconscious.org by Sachi Feris has been making the rounds on mommy Facebook groups. Feris writes that her 5-year-old daughter declared she wanted to be Polynesian Disney character Moana, which she worried would be “cultural appropriation.”
Her daughter’s other choice: Scandinavian Queen Elsa from the Disney movie “Frozen.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“I had some reservations regarding both costume choices … about cultural appropriation and the power/privilege carried by Whiteness, and about Whiteness and standards of beauty,” she wrote.
Feris went on to describe a series of conversations with her daughter, particularly focusing on the ethics of dressing as Moana, who as a teen sets out on a treacherous sea journey to save her family’s island from famine and destruction — and succeeds.
In the end, Feris’s daughter decided to dress as Elsa — though Feris was concerned it might teach her short-haired brunette daughter that one must be white, blue-eyed and have long flaxen hair to be a “beautiful” princess.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}But she nixed the Moana costume for Mickey Mouse, because, as Ferris wrote, “we don’t have to worry about making fun of anyone or dressing up as a culture different from our own because Mickey Mouse is a pretend mouse!
“One thing is for sure, our discussions around appropriate and inappropriate Halloween costumes will continue,” concluded Feris.
Her blog was almost universally praised by commenters. Yvette Brown, wrote: “I admire your perseverance in interacting with your daughter. … You also have given her essential values along with guidelines so she has the opportunity to grow, be creative, learn and find her way in the world.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}But another commenter named Amanda expressed reservations. “This feels murky,” she wrote. “I recognize the need to be sensitive, I’m just wondering how you parse the nuances for a child.”
Meanwhile, a New York mom of one daughter told The Post: “I think it’s silly to take children’s Halloween costumes so seriously. They’re kids, can’t they just be kids and not involved with the whole political correctness thing?
“Parents need to chill out a little bit.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}This article originally appeared on the New York Post.