Breaking the tradition of sexualized violence
On Oct. 16, two anti-racism groups visited a Spirit Halloween store in Regina and attached warning labels to racist costumes.
“Warning: the items contained in this package are offensive and promote the sexualisation of Indigenous women and peoples,” read the labels. “Please avoid contact with these dangerous materials.”
On the other side of each label was a brief note on the national inquiry into missing or murdered indigenous women and a link to the Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC) fact sheet, “Missing and Murdered Aboriginal Women and Girls.”
“Warning: the items contained in this package are offensive and promote the sexualisation of Indigenous women and peoples…”
The Saskatchewan-based group Colonialism No More came to fruition in front of Regina’s Indigenous and Northern Affairs (INAC) office, through a protest regarding the Attawapiskat suicide crisis earlier this year. It turned out to be a 126-day protest.
The Saskatchewan Coalition Against Racism (SCAR) fights all types of discrimination, be it race, ethnicity, class, gender, or other factors.
“United we can fight the systems and institutions of discrimination and exploitation,” reads the SCAR website.
In this particular case, the combined group attached 60 labels to costumes they believed to be promoting a discriminatory depiction of Indigenous peoples.
“United we can fight the systems and institutions of discrimination and exploitation…”
But what does a “sexy” Halloween costume have to do with a national inquiry?
At face value, they’re talking about racism and stereotyping; at another, they’re pointing to a tradition of sexualized violence.
The trope of the young, beautiful “Indian” princess has been prominent in North American literature and culture since, well, North America was colonized by Europeans. This fixation on sexual exploitation has a long, racially charged history.
So when costumes like “Pocahottie” and “Reservation Royalty” are hung on store racks to this day, it’s no surprise people are voicing their frustrations. It’s the feathered headdresses and fringed suede halter tops, the fake hatchets and made-in-China beaded belts that really drive the point home—not much has changed.
“We do not tolerate the act of defacing our products regardless of the theme or culture represented,” said a spokesperson for Spirit Halloween to Vice News.
“So when costumes like “Pocahottie” and “Reservation Royalty” are hung on store racks to this day, it’s no surprise people are voicing their frustrations.”
“While we respect the opinion of those who are opposed to the sale of any cultural or historical costumes, we are proud of our costume selection for men, women and children,” the spokesperson continued.
The problem with “cultural or historical costumes,” though, is that they present a very specific version of culture or history. Spirit Halloween has over 1,000 stores in North America, and they profit from these costumes each Halloween season.
The NWAC fact sheet states that in almost 90 per cent of the cases now being investigated, the women were mothers. The intergenerational impacts of these unresolved cases, then, have an even more significant impact on how Indigenous history and culture is transmitted from one generation to another.
These insensitive Indigenous depictions aren’t the only misconstrued costumes available in the stores.
Although not all culturally themed costumes are racist, some definitely are. This Halloween, when you don your costume, think critically about what those clothes represent.
Photo courtesy of Clker Free Vetor Images CC02.0