Keller @ Large: Trick, Treat Or Trash?
BOSTON (CBS) - "Superheroes are always a big seller," says Amy Gibson, manager of the Garment District/Boston Costume store in Cambridge. "And this year we've sold a lot more Donald Trump wigs."
But there are certain costumes they don't carry at Gibson's store, including a Caitlyn Jenner outfit that some say mocks transgender people, a "sexy nurse" costume (complete with garter belt) that objectifies professional women, and a straitjacket that reads on the back: "Property of the county mental institution, approach with caution."
"We try to stay away from that type of costume for the most part because we don't want to be insensitive to any group," says Gibson.
And that's not the worst of it. For the little girl without proper adult supervision, there's a "fallen angel" costume, short and sexy, complete with black halo. And nothing says "Halloween fun" like mocking severe eating disorders with the "Anna Rexia" getup, a body suit with a skeleton superimposed on it.
Encouragingly, there's backlash against this stuff online and in the stores. But on both venues there's still plenty of opportunity to wallow in ethnic and racial stereotypes and belittling caricatures, despite the availability of countless appropriate alternatives.
The question is: who would want to?