Trayvon Martin Halloween costumes are popular in 2013 with white guys wearing blackface.
As previously reported by The Inquisitr , Trayvon Martin’s parents went to Washington to protest Stand Your Ground laws .
The usage of blackface, which is makeup intended to paint skin a darker tone, is considered inherently racist by some people. For example, actress Julianne Hough was criticized for wearing blackface during a Halloween party in order to portray a character played by Uzo Aduba from the show Orange is the New Black .
Uzo Aduba, for her part, pointed out that wearing blackface ignores the history behind the paint. Over 150 years ago traveling shows with white actors would portray black people by wearing blackface. According to Jake Austen, co-author of Darkest America: Black Minstrelsy from Slavery to Hip-Hop , says at the time A frican Americans wearing blackface were considered more “authentic” somehow:
“When everybody is agreeing that black people are better at the most popular thing in America than white people are, there’s a sense of pride.”
Obviously, that’s no longer the case with blackface, which is about as politically incorrect as you can get nowadays.
The most infamous case to make the news so far is when two Florida men had their Trayvon Martin and George Zimmerman Halloween costumes posted on social media. William Filene wore blackface and a bloodstained hoodie to depict Trayvon Martin. His friend, George Cimeno, wore a “Neighborhood Watch” T-shirt to make himself out to be George Zimmerman.
To this day there still rages a debate over whether Trayvon Martin was an innocent teenager or a thug who waited in the bushes only to beat George Zimmerman after giving up looking for Martin. Reports say “campus security officers found 12 pieces of women’s jewelry, a watch and a screwdriver that they felt could be used as a burglary tool” along with a baggie with traces of drugs. Some people claim a cover up of Trayvon Martin’s criminal past and alleged School Resource Officers were ordered to use school discipline in place of criminal justice in order to reduce the number of criminal behavior reports of young black males. Other allegations include marijuana dealing and buying and selling guns based upon Trayvon Martin’s cell phone records.
So on one side you have people remembering Trayvon Martin fondly and using him as a symbol for gun control laws and racial tolerance. Schools have even attempted to hold Trayvon Martin days . On the other side you have people calling Trayvon Martin a criminal who was artificially propped up and defended as innocent in order to make a political point and to make Trayvon Martin’s parents rich .
The ironic part is that the man wearing the Trayvon Martin Halloween costume actually has a criminal record according to the Smoking Gun :
“Filene was arrested in June for felony auto theft. His rap sheet also included collars for loitering/prowling and failing to register an automobile. In a plea deal, Filene copped to the auto theft charge during an August hearing in Lee County Circuit Court. He was sentenced to 18 months probation, and now has his own page on the Florida Department of Corrections web site.”
What do you think about the Trayvon Martin Halloween costume and wearing blackface in general?