Happy Halloween!
I dress up as a reaction to the laws of Jim Crow-era Louisiana, which prohibited Black & 1st Nations people from wearing costumes to celebrate any holiday. Why? Because doing so could afford them temporary reprieve from racial segregation. Whites claimed to be so fearful that we'd seek admission to restaurants & other businesses that normally wouldn't serve us equally, if at all, that they made an entire law to keep us from enjoying ourselves at ALL in costume! Really & truly, however, the ancestors probably didn't want to eat next to any racists’ funky lil tails anyway. They probably genuinely just wanted to enjoy themselves, which bothered segregationists more than anything else in this world. For these reasons, I'm thrilled to share this tradition of dressing up with my own beautiful Black baby. If your wholesome joy bothers those who hate you for your appearance, then make 'em hurt.