Kmart removes "beyond inappropriate" costume after backlash

[NotUrsula]

Isn’t it funny how the actual Southerners on the board have no knowledge of these Halloween hating, child bride marrying churches? Please NotUrsula, please advise us where they are, so we don’t inadvertently visit one some Sunday.

FWIW, I *am* a native Southerner, and also have worked in archives that collect materials on extremism in many forms. I'm not blowing smoke on this one. I did not say that there was a deliberate connection between the two topics; it's a venn diagram, if you will.

There are certain influential "preachers" who advocate this type of courtship practice. These men have more followers in the the rural South than elsewhere in the US. It isn't a big movement, but it exists; probably about 100 marriages per year in the US.

I would repeat that in the West, a "child bride" means a minor; the definition is not limited to an actual prepubescent child. The most common situation is a girl of 15-17 who is encouraged by her parents to marry a man in his mid-20's.

 

[Summer2018]

I find both the bride costume and the pumpkins ridiculous.

But this one I'm torn on.

https://people.com/food/massachusetts-mcdonalds-removes-halloween-decoration-person-hanging-tree/
I don't have a problem with that sticker being on the market for sale. But I feel like Halloween decorations at McDonald's should be more family friendly. With the sticker being on the front of the counter it right it the line of sight for 2-5 year olds. Even if it doesn't scare them, it could prompt questions parents don't want to deal with.

I'm not torn. Whether it is depicting lynching or suicide, it is horrible and makes me want to throw up.

 

[Hikergirl]

I'm not torn. Whether it is depicting lynching or suicide, it is horrible and makes me want to throw up.

How about if it’s just depicting a regular old hanging?

 

[Ariel Wanna-be]

Am I the only one who opened this thread expecting the offending costume to be something along the lines of "slutty Big Bird"? I'm so disappointed.

A couple of weeks ago I was searching for costume ideas, and there is a company that is selling "Sexy Mr. Rogers" and "Sexy Bob Ross" costumes.

 

[ronandannette]

How I miss the good ole days where people didn't twist everything to be sinister and other people caved because of it.

Agreed. You had to know this one wouldn't stand a chance:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova...s-accusations-mocking-black-culture-1.5340054Funny thing is, my oldest brother was a teen in the late '60's/early '70's. We were raised in a remote, rural location in Northern Canada. He had the biggest, funkiest, 'fro imaginable and probably more than one shirt that looked like the one in the picture. That look was a trend all over the western world and not the slightest bit about race.

A couple of weeks ago I was searching for costume ideas, and there is a company that is selling "Sexy Mr. Rogers" and "Sexy Bob Ross" costumes.

I'll be the judge of that. (Pictures please!)

 

[DisLiss]

I think people would be apt to say I'm fairly "PC", but I see no problem with a child wearing a bride costume if they want to do so. Just because I let my kid dress as a bride doesn't mean I'm looking to marry them off at that age, nor am I trying to be insensitive to countries where this is a truly horrible issue. Likewise if my kid dresses up as a construction worker it doesn't mean I'm making my small child toil out on the highway all day, nor does it mean I'm insensitive to the fact that there are places where child labor is still a very sad, very real issue.

 

[L&Lfan]

I definitely wouldn’t think black with that costume ; I’d think ‘70s or hippie. That’s my high school era.

 

[ronandannette]

I definitely wouldn’t think black with that costume ; I’d think ‘70s or hippie. That’s my high school era.

I wasn't actually born until '66 so I don't remember first-hand but I've seen tons of pictures of my brother and our cousins that were his age during that era. The girls all wore long, straight hair (my DMom told me they flattened it with a clothes iron ) with a little headband and bell-bottom jeans. I inherited a pair of the bell-bottoms as a hand-me-down in the '80's when I was a teen and thought they were the neatest retro look ever!

 

[Disneyland1084]

When my two daughters made their First Holy Communion, they were both in dresses that looked like a wedding dress. This country is filled with too many snowflakes.

 

[Hikergirl]

I definitely wouldn’t think black with that costume ; I’d think ‘70s or hippie. That’s my high school era.

That looks just like my uncle, he had the same hair and dressed like a hippie back when I was a kid. Even had those sandals
The real problem with that costume is that it cost $60

 

[EMom]

A couple of weeks ago I was searching for costume ideas, and there is a company that is selling "Sexy Mr. Rogers" and "Sexy Bob Ross" costumes.

Is it possible or those two men to even BE sexy?

 

[ronandannette]

Is it possible or those two men to even BE sexy?

Before seeing @RedAngie 's picture above, wouldn't you have asked the same question about Big Bird?

 

[RedAngie]

 

[ronandannette]

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Sorry, no. None of those ping my sexy meter. And I think we're already established Bob Ross's 'fro is entirely unacceptable to young, black women college students in Atlantic Canada.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

FWIW, I *am* a native Southerner, and also have worked in archives that collect materials on extremism in many forms. I'm not blowing smoke on this one. I did not say that there was a deliberate connection between the two topics; it's a venn diagram, if you will.

There are certain influential "preachers" who advocate this type of courtship practice. These men have more followers in the the rural South than elsewhere in the US. It isn't a big movement, but it exists; probably about 100 marriages per year in the US.

I would repeat that in the West, a "child bride" means a minor; the definition is not limited to an actual prepubescent child. The most common situation is a girl of 15-17 who is encouraged by her parents to marry a man in his mid-20's.

Where do these people live in the south?

 

[NotUrsula]

Where do these people live in the south?

Not in a compound, AFAIK.

(It wasn't my intention to create an in-depth discussion of religion, so that's it on this topic from me.)

 

[NotUrsula]

.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

Not in a compound, AFAIK.

(It wasn't my intention to create an in-depth discussion of religion, so that's it on this topic from me.)

I wasn't looking for a religious discussion. I've lived my entire life in three southern states & have never heard of anyone arranging marriages or forcing children to marry. I'm genuinely curious where these people live.

 

[luvsJack]

Not in a compound, AFAIK.

(It wasn't my intention to create an in-depth discussion of religion, so that's it on this topic from me.)

Honestly it seems more like a regional discussion to me. No one wants to know anything about the churches or faith you are talking about. We are just trying to figure out WHERE they are.

 

[NotUrsula]

All right, one last note. I was trying to prevent the thread from veering too far into the realms of religion and/or politics, so I didn't want to start getting into specifics and inviting further questions here.

However, if you are interested in the topic of Americans marrying young (from whatever motivation), I can recommend Googling the work of Nicholas Syrett. He is on the Faculty of the University of Kansas, and probably the most knowledgeable authority on this subject working in the US today.