Can I be Jewish for Halloween?

[Midnight Rain]

Sure:
there is no dressing up like “a Jew”. I would also hope that you would not think that I, as a Jew, would not know the origins of Chassidic clothing. Though the differences between a long coat and a furry hat and actual Jewish clothing are so great I no longer view them as even the same thing but two totally different things that happen to be stereotypically associated with the same concept. The coat/hat costume is a bastardization of a bastardization of a bastardization of the original clothing and really nothing of meaning is left. There is no meaning in "dressing like a Jew". Not anymore if there ever was.

And I agree with you on that. But if a little girl (or boy) walks up to me wearing a black robe and a pointy black hat holding a broom I will know that they are dressed up in a costume as a "witch". Even though that is just a Hollywood representation of a Demonized concept created by the Christians to crucify paganism. But I would still see it and recognize it as a "witch costume". Similarly with the situation at hand. Do you reject this?

 

[rosends]

And I agree with you on that. But if a little girl (or boy) walks up to me wearing a black robe and a pointy black hat holding a broom I will know that they are dressed up in a costume as a "witch". Even though that is just a Hollywood representation of a Demonized concept created by the Christians to crucify paganism. But I would still see it and recognize it as a "witch costume". Similarly with the situation at hand. Do you reject this?

What I would recognize and what I would personally condone, or let pass without comment are two very different things. I would recognize all sorts of simplistic, stereotypical or potentially offensive costumes for what they are pointing to. I also know what someone means when he uses certain derogatory words. That doesn't mean that I let it go at that and let him continue to use the phrase or words.

 

[dust1n]

It's worth noting that the OP is producing precisely what it hoped to produce. Feeding it is enabling.

Actually, I was asking because someone thought it was weird I assumed showing up to a costume party in a tzitzit would be offensive, or more, if it was more reasonable consider that person a douche on first sight. This was related to wearing an native American headdress to a party. I've already got my answer from this thread.

 

[Revoltingest]

That is going to confuse at least one guy in this picture...

I don't understand, but I like the picture!

 

[Curious George]

who determines that it is mockery? What is the difference between race and religious beliefs in terms of someone else's using it as a costume?

You cannot tell the difference between a drawing of a person with a yarmulke and a Jewish caricature from 1930's Germany? There is a line where simething is obviously mockery and something is not. When something is questionable, it takes thought to determine which side of the line the portrayal falls upon. That is the process in which we are engaged.

 

[Revoltingest]

Here is a toddler version. Here is an adult version. Of course, there's nothing necessarily distinctive about it. But if you are going as a rabbi, it seems functionally equivalent, to me, as going as a priest or other religious leader.

If I could find a Herschel Krustofski mask, & perfect my Jackie Mason impression, then I'd had this coming Halloween's costume!

 

[Curious George]

It's worth noting that the OP is producing precisely what it hoped to produce. Feeding it is enabling.

Thought and discussion? I don't think thought and discussion is something bad to feed.

 

[rosends]

I don't understand, but I like the picture!

Look at the two chief rabbis. Neither looks like the rabbi costume. These are the chief rabbis of Israel, not just some guy in his dining room playing on the interwebz.

 

[rosends]

You cannot tell the difference between a drawing of a person with a yarmulke and a Jewish caricature from 1930's Germany? There is a line where simething is obviously mockery and something is not. When something is questionable, it takes thought to determine which side of the line the portrayal falls upon. That is the process in which we are engaged.

And the line will be subjective and personal. Some will look at a picture of Mohammed and say "what's the problem?" Others will chafe at the Washington Redskins. The line of mockery is hard to pin down.

 

[Revoltingest]

Look at the two chief rabbis. Neither looks like the rabbi costume. These are the chief rabbis of Israel, not just some guy in his dining room playing on the interwebz.

This presents a bewildering array of costume options.
I think I'll just go as this Jew....

Hey! Hey, kids!

 

[gsa]

Well, speaking as a rabbi who works with lots of other rabbis, I don't know why they think that that is a particularly rabbinic costume. The fact that they label it as such does nothing but fan the flames of ignorance and stereotypes. And I wouldn't dress as another religious functionary because the fact is, I see dressing up as a form of fantasy -- I dress up as that to which I aspire. If my kid is a princess it is because she fancies herself a princess (or was it a ballerina, or Superman?) Dressing up as something you don't aspire to, or at least hold in high regard seems strange, unless that thing has no value in the real world (a mummy for example, which also is connected to the supposed supernatural angle of the season).

Oh I don't know. With adults, I think that they often choose costumes that represent things that they do not aspire to. Even as a kid, I never wanted to go as something I aspired to as much as, say, something that was scary. Dinosaur, vampire, warlock, Pennywise the Clown, scary demon mask known as "Fatal Fantasy," a poor boy's version of Freddy Krueger, etc.

 

[rosends]

This presents a bewildering array of costume options.
I think I'll just go as this Jew....

Hey! Hey, kids!

Krusty is always a good choice.

 

[rosends]

Oh I don't know. With adults, I think that they often choose costumes that represent things that they do not aspire to. Even as a kid, I never wanted to go as something I aspired to as much as, say, something that was scary. Dinosaur, vampire, warlock, Pennywise the Clown, scary demon mask known as "Fatal Fantasy," a poor boy's version of Freddy Krueger, etc.

And those are examples of what I called "thing[s that have] no value in the real world"

 

[gsa]

And those are examples of what I called "thing[s that have] no value in the real world"

Why no value? That's a kind of unusual description. You mean, perhaps, no correspondence to existing things?

 

[rosends]

Why no value? That's a kind of unusual description. You mean, perhaps, no correspondence to existing things?

That's the idea I was going for, yes. By value I meant corresponding thing of extant value.

 

[roger1440]

So you wanna dress up as a Jew. Them Jews are not all alike. You would be amazed with the amount of customs or costumes they wear. They are not all alike. It was a generation ago when I followed a pillar of smoke, across the river, guided by the fire and blood. As I sat 10th row center in this tabernacle I learned firsthand about customs/ costumes. At the time I didn’t know he was Jewish.

 

[roger1440]

Them Jews

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

Actually, I was asking because someone thought it was weird I assumed showing up to a costume party in a tzitzit would be offensive, ...

And you chose not to frame it as a respectful question in the Judaism DIR because ... ?

 

[gsa]

And you chose not to frame it as a respectful question in the Judaism DIR because ... ?

If you want the opinions of Jews and Gentiles, you can't really put it in the DIR. In any event, the DIR seems rather limited in its capacity to respond to questions from outsiders. The only DIRs that seem to be relatively open are the non-Abrahamic minority positions, based on my experience.

 

[Tumah]

I think that going as a member of an ethnic group (or ethnoreligious group in this case) is kind of odd. This Gawker article addresses the dos and don'ts of racial, ethnic and national costuming for Halloween, but gives no guidance on Jewish costumes.

These costumes can only work if you are engaged in stereotyping on some level. You really couldn't really dress up as a Jew for Halloween, because what in the hell looks like a Jew? So you use some other indicator, like a kippah.

On the other hand, I suppose that there are rabbi costumes available. While probably more offensive to observant Jews, I would consider it less offensive by secular standards. Equivalent to a priest or nun costume.

A rabbi costume?

Let
Let's play "Spot the Rabbi!" Which one is wearing the Rabbi garb?