Halloween Do’s And Don’ts: Can My Kid Dress Up Like Moana Or Black Panther?

By Meha Ahmad
Virginia governor Ralph Northam’s medical school yearbook page, showing a photo of a man in blackface and another man in a Klu Klux Klan costume.
Virginia governor Ralph Northam's medical school yearbook page, showing a photo of a man in blackface and another man in a Klu Klux Klan costume.
Virginia governor Ralph Northam’s medical school yearbook page, showing a photo of a man in blackface and another man in a Klu Klux Klan costume.
Virginia governor Ralph Northam's medical school yearbook page, showing a photo of a man in blackface and another man in a Klu Klux Klan costume.

Halloween Do’s And Don’ts: Can My Kid Dress Up Like Moana Or Black Panther?

By Meha Ahmad
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It’s that time of year again. You know what I’m talking about. The pumpkin patch. The pumpkin spice lattes. The creepy lawn decorations. And people talking about how they’ll dress themselves, or their kids, for Halloween.

Unfortunately, it’s also the time to remind folks that blackface—whether or not it’s for a Halloween costume—is not OK. 

But it’s not just blackface. Even the well-intentioned have trouble figuring out where the line is between a costume and causing offense.

To talk this through, Reset sits down with Karlyn Meyer, president of the Chicago Nerd Social Club; Jill Hopkins, host of the Morning Amp on WBEZ’s sister station Vocalo, and Reset producer and Meha Ahmad.