Thread: Racial Tension over Halloween Prop...

Tweet

Well, I'm a bit upset and wonder what members of the board think.

Very excited about our home haunt this year. I've been working for months and have added motorized props etc. for the first time. Major props to all board members who have answered questions, provided inspiration, tutorials, etc.

Love this community.

One of the things my kids and I did this year was build a seven foot "lifelike" zombie. He looks amazingly real. My kids paper mached his hands, etc. and we used the following realistic looking mask for his head:

Terrifying Rotted Zombie Corpse Halloween Mask Or Prop - eBay (item 370264610569 end time Sep-30-09 12:03:49 PDT)

The mask is awesome and looks amazing!

So, it's October 1st and my daughter and I were outside putting up one of our props when a lady of color walks by and asks us "is this stuff all yours?"

We've already had a number of compliments and people drive by and park, enjoying the assembly of our home haunt, so I'm ready for yet another expression of appreciation.

Instead, she says with anger,

"You're going to want to rethink this one here, because he looks like a black man hiding in the bush.

"I know that's not what you were going for but that's what people are going to think.

"I live down the street and I've already seen people do several double takes."

I WAS IN SHOCK! That's the last thing that would have ever entered my mind. I've had the mask for several years and have never thought that it looked like a black man.

My problem is that I'm actually extremely sensitive towards racial issues and as a result I'm seriously considering taking him down. Halloween is all about fun, and the last thing I want to do is make someone in my neighborhood feel bad.

On the other hand, we worked really hard on the prop, my kids painted his hands to match the mask, etc. and we've had a number of compliments. In many ways, he's my favorite prop.

If it's just one lady being an idiot, taking a Halloween prop in a direction no one else ever would, I may simply choose to ignore her and let her go sulking over our bad taste.

What to do?! I don't know. Either way, this sucks!

Your thoughts?

That sucks. Do you have a picture of the setup?

I would think that if most people are giving you compliments and you don't agree that it looks as she has described, I'd leave it or maybe change the placement to avoid confusion.

The only thing I would be concerned about is if you had a "black man" on a noose or something like that. However if someone were to get that impression and complain let them have a closer look at it and show them what it really is. You and your kids know what it is dont let one person influence you. If you are still concerned post a pic of the full prop in its postition and others on here will surely give you some good advice.

I'd write it off as "a little bit out there comment" and go about your business as usual. Just my opinion. You could even add that he's Irish if you want to be a little out there yourself! That would be a fun comment to make right back, gotta be a quick thinker!

a wise once said ( i dont know the secret to success but i know the secret to failure - PLEASE EVERYBODY ) hope this helps

That sounds pretty absurd to me. I would pay no mind to her. Amidst a bunch of other Halloween props/decoration, I don't see how anyone else would draw that same conclusion personally.

I am though also of the opinion that Political correctness frequently goes WAY overboard.

i agree 100% with rev...

Don't worry about it... you can never please everyone and to be honest she sounded like a busy-body... You can always do what a friend of mine is doing this year and he is black and can not wait to dress up like an old voodoo witch doctor to act in our haunt... is it stereotypical, of course it is, but its all in fun... thats the problem with our country today no one can poke fun at themselves anymore without getting someones panties in a wad... Again, your fine... have fun and be safe!

Sounds like you have it right... it's one lady being an idiot. Don't worry about it.

I'm going to post a picture of him so you guys can see. But I'm starting to rethink this in terms of "So what if he's a zombie of color!" Since when does a zombie always have to be white? I have never thought of him in terms of color and/or race. But if I did, I'm not opposed to thinking of my favorite prop as a black man. I like black, white, purple, green, yellow, red, and even blue people.