15 Halloween Costumes from the Past That Wouldn’t Fly Today
These Halloween costumes from the past show just how easily a night of make-believe can slip into mockery and harm.
- Alyana Aguja
- 5 min read
Halloween has always encouraged disguise and fantasy, but not all costumes are created equal. Many popular getups from decades past drew on racist, sexist, classist, or ableist stereotypes that dehumanized real communities. As society evolves, so does our sense of responsibility — not to erase fun, but to ensure it doesn’t come at someone else’s expense.
1. “Gypsy” Fortune Teller
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For decades, dressing up as a “gypsy” with jangly jewelry, headscarves, and crystal balls was a Halloween staple. However, the term is a slur against the Romani people, and the costume reduces a marginalized ethnic group to a mystical stereotype. Romani communities have long faced persecution, so turning their identity into a costume is deeply insensitive.
2. Blackface Characters
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In the early 20th century, it wasn’t uncommon to see people darken their skin to portray characters like “Aunt Jemima” or “minstrels.” These racist caricatures were meant to entertain white audiences at the expense of Black dignity. Today, there’s widespread awareness that blackface isn’t just outdated — it’s offensive and violent in its mockery.
3. Native American “Indian Princess” or “Warrior”
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Feathers, faux buckskin, and war paint were once sold as “fun” costume sets for kids and adults alike. But Native regalia has deep cultural and spiritual significance, and these costumes flatten thousands of tribal identities into a single trope. Indigenous activists have spoken out for decades against this kind of cultural appropriation.
4. “Geisha” or “Oriental Doll”
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These costumes often involved heavy white face paint, kimonos, and exaggerated eyeliner. What might’ve once seemed like “exotic beauty” is now recognized as fetishization and stereotyping of East Asian women. The worst part? These costumes often leaned into submissive, hypersexualized imagery.
5. “Arab Sheik” or “Terrorist” Outfits
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Post-9/11, these costumes surged in popularity, with people donning robes, fake beards, and even toy bombs. While meant as “jokes,” they reinforced damaging Islamophobic tropes. Dressing as a “terrorist” for Halloween trivializes real trauma and stigmatizes entire communities.
6. “Insane Asylum Patient” or “Straightjacket Psycho”
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In the early 2000s, mental illness was treated more like a punchline than a reality. Costumes included fake blood, tattered hospital gowns, and even rubber straitjackets. Today, there’s a greater understanding that mocking mental health struggles fuels stigma and undermines empathy.
7. Homeless Person
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Believe it or not, in the ‘80s and ‘90s, dressing up as a “hobo” or “bum” was seen as quirky or funny. These costumes often featured ragged clothes, soot-smudged faces, and bindle sticks. However, mocking poverty as entertainment is not just tone-deaf — it ignores the very real crisis of homelessness.
8. Transphobic “Man in a Dress” Gags
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This old trope was common in comedy skits and Halloween costumes alike. The joke always relied on mocking femininity when displayed by someone perceived as male, reinforcing harmful stereotypes about trans and gender non-conforming people. What’s played for laughs can end up punching down on people just trying to live authentically.
9. Sumo Wrestler Costumes
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These padded outfits were popular for their shock value, but they turned a revered Japanese sport into a fat joke. Along with the disrespect to the sport’s heritage, they often perpetuated Asian caricatures. It’s a double whammy of body shaming and racial stereotyping.
10. Mexican “Bandito”
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Sombreros, fake mustaches, and bullet sashes made for a popular “south of the border” look. But it reduced Mexican identity to a cartoonish outlaw stereotype. In a country grappling with immigration rhetoric and racism, it’s no longer a harmless joke.
11. Fat Suits
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Used for characters like “Fat Bastard” or “Sumo Guy,” these inflatable or padded costumes turn plus-sized bodies into punchlines. Fat suits contribute to the dehumanization of larger people and make body size the butt of the joke. With rising awareness about fatphobia, these costumes are being rightfully called out.
12. Holocaust Victim or Nazi Uniforms
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Yes, people have actually worn concentration camp inmate outfits or Nazi soldier costumes. Even if meant to shock, there’s nothing clever about invoking genocide for Halloween. The Holocaust is not a costume — it’s a human tragedy that still echoes today.
13. Child “Pimp” or “Sexy” Costumes
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There was a time when stores sold Halloween costumes labeled “pimp” for children, complete with canes and fake bling. Worse still were hypersexualized costumes for young girls, complete with fishnets and short skirts. Thankfully, there’s growing pushback against dressing kids in ways that promote exploitation or adult themes.
14. “Chinese Coolie” or “Chinaman” Costumes
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In the mid-20th century, Halloween stores sold rice-paddy hats, buck teeth, and slanted-eye glasses as part of so-called “Oriental” costumes. These were direct continuations of yellowface minstrel traditions. Today, people recognize how these costumes demeaned and ridiculed Asian identities.
15. “Slave” or “Confederate” Costumes
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There have been actual cases of people dressing as slaves in chains or Confederate soldiers for Halloween parties. These choices are not only racially insensitive but dangerously revisionist. Celebrating or trivializing America’s legacy of slavery isn’t edgy; it’s abhorrent.