Can I be Jewish for Halloween?

[Revoltingest]

Hey dust1n, it's been a while. How's life?
My suggestion is to not do it. The reason is that Halloween costume parties, if I understand it well, are about scary/evil/horror/weird costumes somewhere between the lines. I think getting dressed in Jewish outfit could hurt the feelings of some members of the Jewish community, depending on the understanding of what Halloween stands for.
An Arab traditional outfit with a turban and a broad sword would be a better choice to freak people out. Just make sure of the heavy beard and angry face

Halloween (these days) is about whatever costume one wants.
Often, they're greatly admired characters.....

 

[Smart_Guy]

Halloween (these days) is about whatever costume one wants.
Often, they're greatly admired characters.....

So you're saying Halloween lost its spirit and sanity (looking at that one in the middle)?

 

[Revoltingest]

So you're saying Halloween lost its spirit and sanity (looking at that one in the middle)?

Halloween is my favorite holliday.
- No presents to buy.
- No family dinners.
- Get to wear costumes.

 

[Smart_Guy]

Halloween is my favorite holliday.
- No presents to buy.
- No family dinners.
- Get to wear costumes.

I see you're looking forward to wearing that maid dress!
I always knew you had a thing for wearing skirts.

 

[Revoltingest]

I see you're looking forward to wearing that maid dress!
I always knew you had a thing for wearing skirts.

 

[Smart_Guy]

Shoot!
That maid looks tougher than me!

No wait, hold on a sec...

 

[gnostic]

Just out of my American obsession of race, if someone were to show up to your costume party in such a way, you wouldn't think much of it? I mean, I realize you don't care what I personally do.

Do you think any black American would find it offensive or not, if pretended to a black guy, by painting your face black?

 

[Aquitaine]

In Judaism, there is less distinction between religion and belief and none between religion and race.

Why is that?

 

[dust1n]

Do you think any black American would find it offensive or not, if pretended to a black guy, by painting your face black?

I'd assume so.

 

[dust1n]

Hey dust1n, it's been a while. How's life?

My suggestion is to not do it. The reason is that Halloween costume parties, if I understand it well, are about scary/evil/horror/weird costumes somewhere between the lines. I think getting dressed in Jewish outfit could hurt the feelings of some members of the Jewish community, depending on the understanding of what Halloween stands for.

An Arab traditional outfit with a turban and a broad sword would be a better choice to freak people out. Just make sure of the heavy beard and angry face

It used be scary costumes. For the most part, costumes are just pretty much anything on Halloween now. At least for older populations who are just going to socialize and not actually take kids to get candy and so fourth.

Sometimes I wear my keffiyeh hiking or going swimming in the summer. It helps with the heat and being hit with so much sunlight. My friend got as a gift from his trip the UAE. I wouldn't wear though as a Arab costume though. At least it would be correct headdress.

 

[Etritonakin]

People dressed as Bigfoot have been run over, shot, etc. -so bring your "I'm not really a Jew" paperwork with you if you go out and about -might be some Jew-haters in the area.

 

[Father Heathen]

My answer is: Dear America, get another hobby other than your obsession about race.

So when someone converts to Judaism, it rewrites their genetic code?

 

[Flankerl]

So when someone converts to Judaism, it rewrites their genetic code?

Ugh. That's really bad bait.

 

[TheSounding]

Hello. I'm wondering if it would be acceptable to wear a tztizit and yalmulke to some of the parties I'm going to this year for Halloween. I'm mostly asking Jews here, but I don't mind if other people wanna say something.

Only if you go with someone dressed as an anti-Semite. Then if someone has issue with you, point to that guy.

 

[rosends]

Why is that?

Because what unites us as Jews is the issue of religion which is passed by birth (primarily). So it doesn't matter what color your mother was, or what continent she was from. Jewish is Jewish. It also doesn't matter whether or not the aforesaid Jewish person is a believer -- under Jewish law, he is bound by Jewish law regardless of his personal faith.

 

[rosends]

Imagine you approach a man at a Halloween party and notice him wearing a yarmulke. You ask where his costume is and he touches the yarmulke. You then ask, "what are you supposed to be?"
He responds, "a Jewish person."
You then say, "do you think that costume represents ME?"
He responds, "no, of course not. Not all Jewish people are the same, I am sorry you feel they are."

Why would my pointing out that he doesn't represent me reflect my thinking that all Jews are the same. Unless the person in costume claims to be dressing as a particular and singular Jew, his touching a kippah and saying that that makes his costume that of a generic Jew is the one claiming that all Jews can be represented by that costume. If he says that "not all Jewish people are the same" then how does his costume reflect dressing as "a Jewish person" in anything more than a specific way?

 

[Curious George]

Why would my pointing out that he doesn't represent me reflect my thinking that all Jews are the same. Unless the person in costume claims to be dressing as a particular and singular Jew, his touching a kippah and saying that that makes his costume that of a generic Jew is the one claiming that all Jews can be represented by that costume. If he says that "not all Jewish people are the same" then how does his costume reflect dressing as "a Jewish person" in anything more than a specific way?

Because Jewish people do wear yarmulkes some of the time. If I saw a person wearing a yarmulke I would think that person is most likely Jewish, wouldn't you? That said, thinking a person is trying to represent you simply because they wear a yarmulke presumes that you could be represented by someone appearing Jewish. That is a silly thought based on stereotypes.

 

[Father Heathen]

Ugh. That's really bad bait.

Bait? My point was that it's silly to make everything about "race" when it's not necessarily relevant. "Race" is genetically inherited physical/superficial traits whereas religion and culture is just **** humans made up, so it's nonsensical to arbitrarily conflate such things.

 

[dogfishparisi]

I am not Jewish, but my opinion is that it wouldn't be appropriate and possibly offensive to some people. You can still do it of course, It is legal...

 

[rosends]

Because Jewish people do wear yarmulkes some of the time. If I saw a person wearing a yarmulke I would think that person is most likely Jewish, wouldn't you? That said, thinking a person is trying to represent you simply because they wear a yarmulke presumes that you could be represented by someone appearing Jewish. That is a silly thought based on stereotypes.

No, that is stating that the other person is relying on stereotypes, ones which I reject. If that person is NOT trying to represent me, and I am Jewish, then his costume's claim to "being a Jew" in a generic sense fails. If I saw someone wearing a kippah, my first thought would be that that person IS Jewish, because that's not a costume. And if a person walks into a halloween party wearing a kippah and I know he isn't Jewish, then I look at him and wonder why he thinks that this IS a costume and which specific Jew he is pretending to be.