One third of Americans think that blackface is acceptable on Halloween, according to a new poll.
The survey, conducted by YouGov between October 11 and 14, asked 1,106 U.S. adult citizens what they thought about a white person dressing up as a Black character on Halloween and wearing "black-face makeup." 33 percent of respondents said it was acceptable.
Blackface can be tracked back to the minstrel shows of the early 19th century, where white performers would portray stereotypes of Black people often in the South and working on plantations.
Blackface: The Birth of An American Stereotype, an article from the Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture, says that these performances characterized Black people as "lazy, ignorant, superstitious, hypersexual, and prone to thievery and cowardice."
The article also says that, "Minstrelsy, comedic performances of 'blackness' by whites in exaggerated costumes and make-up, cannot be separated fully from the racial derision and stereotyping at its core."
Although minstrel shows no longer exist, several high-profile politicians and celebrities have drawn backlash from wearing blackface in the past.
Virginia Governor Ralph Northam faced heat after first apologizing for, and then denying, appearing in high school yearbook photos that allegedly showed a person in blackface makeup. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also apologized after photos emerged of him in "brownface" at an Arabian Nights themed party in 2001.
Megyn Kelly drew severe backlash in 2018 when she defended wearing blackface, saying it was "was OK when I was a kid, as long as you were dressing like a character" in reference to the Real Housewives of New York Luann de Lesseps appearing to darken her skin when dressing as Diana Ross on the show.
When asked about other costumes, 52 percent of respondents see it as acceptable on Halloween for a non-Native American person to dress up as a Native American person, and 39 percent think it is acceptable for a person who is not transgender to dress up as a transgender person, and 34 percent of respondents are OK with someone wearing a costume with a realistic-looking gun or other weapon.
According to Google's "Freitgiest," a website that shows the most searched-for Halloween costumes in the US, the top five most popular Halloween costumes for 2024 are Shrunken Head Bob from Beetlejuice, Raygun the Australian breakdancer, Catnap a popular kids cartoon, Delores from Beetlejuice, and Pomni a character from The Amazing Digital Circus. None of these people or characters are Black.
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