To dress as an African woman or not for halloween
“So what are you coming dressed as?” my colleague asks. I had just accepted his invite to a halloween party. In the 7 years that I’ve been in the US, this will be the first halloween party I’m accepting an invite to. I don’t feel the excitement around halloween and my Nigerian self thinks it’s ridiculous. While I was in Nigeria, every now and then, a column will appear in the paper describing this strange and curious celebrations in which Americans indulge. In fact, I recall a story I heard from someone about an American lady who had just been appointed the principal of a secondary school (think middle school/high school) in Nigeria. On halloween, she decided to throw the students a treat and had people (perhaps teachers and members of staff) dressed in costume. While students were at their daily morning assembly, the costumed individuals trooped out. But instead of excitement from the students, a stampede ensued as everyone ran for their lives. Well, I wonder why nobody warned the Principal that this might would happen.
“What are you coming dressed as?”, my colleague asked again.
“I could come dressed as a pedestrian.”
Disappointed look.
“I don’t have any costume…I don’t dress for halloween…In fact I’ve never been to a halloween party…I don’t think I want to dress up…” I let out a string of excuses.
“How about you wear your African dress? You can come dressed as an African woman. That would be great”, the excitement was building up.
“I don’t know…”
“It will be excellent. Do it.”
One part of me is thinking, “Not a bad idea. That way I don’t have to wear something I feel ridiculous in and it is an opportunity to show off my culture”. But the other part of me is hesitant…I wasn’t sure why, so I thought about it some more. And I realize why. From my perspective, halloween costumes are ridiculous or bizzare or based on fictional concepts, and at the very least, they are not things we would wear at any other time (unless you’re in a drama production). Wearing my ‘African dress’ as a halloween costume would imply that my attire fell in the same category. Which it does not. So, no, I’m not doing it.
I plan to outfit my kids in appropriate costumes while I stick to my original plan of dressing as a pedestrian. As for hubby, he’s happy to have a reason to decline - study.
