# So a kid showed up at school today dressed as Hitler... **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 31, 2009, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795 "2009-10-31T00:56:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/21 "2009-10-31T02:03:45Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > I would have bounced him out of my classroom in a picosecond. Off to the Vice-Principal with a class suspension of 3 days, with a call for a school suspension of at least a week. Then a call to his parents for an ass-chewing. I’d laugh in your self-righteous face and ask the Principal if he would like to speak to my lawyer about that suspension. ---
**Author:** ![Quasimodem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Quasimodem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quasimodem)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/22 "2009-10-31T02:07:27Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > So what? Halloween is about dressing up as some kind demon. Hitler falls perfectly in that category. Hate to pick nits, but _“kind”_ or _"kind_ **of"**? 😉 Q ---
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/23 "2009-10-31T02:08:03Z")
I’d probably ask him why, and explain that it was a retarded idea. But unless I knew the kid had views that the costume amplifies, so to speak, I’d probably just roll my eyes. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Il\_Palazzo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Lord\_Il\_Palazzo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Il_Palazzo)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/24 "2009-10-31T02:10:49Z")
If he had dressed as Dracula, would he have been punished/sent home/sent to the principal/made to write an essay about the crimes of Vlad the Impaler? Hitler isn’t a great role model\* but then again neither are the majority of Halloween costumes. That doesn’t make the costumes inapropriate in those cases, so why should the mad dash for political correctness win out here? **Rack-a-Bones** , I’m not sure what your basis is for suspecting the parents of being white supremacists. Letting your kid dress up as someone or something doesn’t necessarily equate to voicing your support for that someone or something. (If it did, there would be millions of parents under investigation for their support of piracy on the high seas.) \*My entry in the understatement of the year contest. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/25 "2009-10-31T02:14:19Z")
> [@Quasimodem](#): > > Hate to pick nits, but _“kind”_ or _"kind_ **of"**? 😉 > > Q Wow what a waste both of our time your post was. ---
**Author:** ![statsman1982](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e79b87/32.png) [@statsman1982](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/statsman1982)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/26 "2009-10-31T02:16:16Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > Dressing up is just dressing up, isn’t it? Just because Hitler was an evil man still firmly remembered in living history doesn’t make him any less suitable for dress-up than Julius Caesar or Genghis Khan. It’s not like the kid’s going to invade Poland. I understand where you’re coming from, and I have been trying for the last few minutes to come up with a good reason why this bothers me when other scary Halloween stuff doesn’t. I’ve concluded that the distinction is that Caesar and Genghis Khan, or Atilla the Hun, Dracula (who is based on [Vlad the Impaler](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlad_the_impaler), a real nice guy), and other figures have been filtered through history to become more like characters than human beings. There hasn’t been anyone alive who was directly impacted by their actions for centuries. The effects of their actions are still felt today, but no one whose family was slaughtered by Atilla the Hun is alive to tell the tale. There are Holocaust survivors, and thousands more who fought in WWII against Hitler still alive today. For them, Hitler is more than a ghoul; he’s a very real, very evil man. Given many more generations, if civilization as we know it survives and Halloween is still a holiday, I can see some people dressing up as Hitler with no one batting an eye. But for us, little more than a decade out of the century that spawned this man, it’s still too soon. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/27 "2009-10-31T02:18:06Z")
> [@statsman1982](#): > > I understand where you’re coming from, and I have been trying for the last few minutes to come up with a good reason why this bothers me when other scary Halloween stuff doesn’t. I’ve concluded that the distinction is that Caesar and Genghis Khan, or Atilla the Hun, Dracula (who is based on [Vlad the Impaler](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlad_the_impaler), a real nice guy), and other figures have been filtered through history to become more like characters than human beings. There hasn’t been anyone alive who was directly impacted by their actions for centuries. The effects of their actions are still felt today, but no one whose family was slaughtered by Atilla the Hun is alive to tell the tale. There are Holocaust survivors, and thousands more who fought in WWII against Hitler still alive today. For them, Hitler is more than a ghoul; he’s a very real, very evil man. > > Given many more generations, if civilization as we know it survives and Halloween is still a holiday, I can see some people dressing up as Hitler with no one batting an eye. But for us, little more than a decade out of the century that spawned this man, it’s still too soon. They wouldn’t send someone home for dressing as Charlie Manson, Josef Stalin or Idi Amin either. This thread just shows why MORE people should be dressing as Hitler for Halloween not less. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/28 "2009-10-31T02:18:28Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > I would have bounced him out of my classroom in a picosecond. Off to the Vice-Principal with a class suspension of 3 days, with a call for a school suspension of at least a week. Then a call to his parents for an ass-chewing. What if the kid dressed as Torquemada or Stalin instead? ---
**Author:** ![Quasimodem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Quasimodem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quasimodem)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/29 "2009-10-31T02:20:54Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > Wow what a waste both of our time your post was. No offense was intended, **mswas**. **Absolutely** none. Forgive an old former English teacher for being a bit anal?🙂 Thanks Q ---
**Author:** ![Tarwater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9de0a6/32.png) [@Tarwater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tarwater)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/30 "2009-10-31T02:20:57Z")
No, dressing up as Hitler is fine. It’s certainly not going to make the other children uncomfortable, and it will be sure to provide many a festive, holiday laugh. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/31 "2009-10-31T02:22:14Z")
> [@Quasimodem](#): > > No offense was intended, **mswas**. **Absolutely** none. > > Forgive an old former English teacher for being a bit anal?🙂 > > Thanks > > Q You totally got whooshed by my riposte. ;p I left out an ‘of’ again. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Rack-a-Bones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rack-a-Bones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rack-a-Bones)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/32 "2009-10-31T02:22:16Z")
If I saw an adult dressed as Hitler at a private party it would raise my eyebrows but … meh… it’s a costume party. I would think the person was some kind of ass hat attention whore, but that’s just me. But a 14 yo wearing it to school? That is a completely different dynamic and is almost certain to cause problems up to the point of physical harm to the student. I can’t comprehend how anyone thinks Hitler is funny. Guess I’ll jump over to CS and see if I can be swayed. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/33 "2009-10-31T02:23:16Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > I’d laugh in your self-righteous face and ask the Principal if he would like to speak to my lawyer about that suspension. And were I the principal, I’d call your lawyer first to see if I could cut him a deal: I’d encourage you to call the lawyer if he’d cut me in for 10% of the take. Seriously, if you think there’d be a ghost of a court case here, you’re entirely unfamiliar with first-amendment-in-the-classroom cases. Halloween isn’t about dressing up as something scary, as anyone who’s thought about it knows: it’s about dressing up as something that’s not scary, like a ghost or a demon or a witch. The vast majority of supposedly scary costumes are fantasy costumes, costumes that help frame and diminish archetypal fears. For pity’s sake, the main way we celebrate the holiday is by having small children dress up to get candy. A school that explicitly allows Halloween costumes may still forbid certain ones on the basis of Tinker v. Des Moines, namely ruling that the costume is disruptive to the school environment. Yes, of course a zombie costume will be slightly disruptive, but the school may make room for such relatively minor disruptions. That doesn’t mean they’re forbidden to forbid more serious disruptions. Those people who would allow it, how far would you go in terms of bad taste costumes you’d allow? Would you allow a Date Rapist costume? A guy in blackface? A guy wearing a “Kill the Jews” T-shirt? As a principal, I don’t think I’d suspend the kid. Teenagers are stupid in a way different from how adults are stupid. I’d call him in, explain to him that this costume isn’t so much scary as it is offensive and wound-opening, and tell him he needed to change out of the costume or else leave campus with an unexcused absence. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/34 "2009-10-31T02:23:31Z")
> [@Tarwater](#): > > No, dressing up as Hitler is fine. It’s certainly not going to make the other children uncomfortable, and it will be sure to provide many a festive, holiday laugh. It’s got nothing to do with how it makes other kids feel. A kid is more likely to get squicked out by a particularly gorey costume than a historical figure that they know very little about yet because the school system has failed them too thoroughly to really get why they should be offended. It’s more about the faculty and their delicate sensibilities. He should come as a different mass murderer like Che Guevara. ---
**Author:** ![statsman1982](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e79b87/32.png) [@statsman1982](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/statsman1982)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/35 "2009-10-31T02:28:52Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > They wouldn’t send someone home for dressing as Charlie Manson, Josef Stalin or Idi Amin either. > > This thread just shows why MORE people should be dressing as Hitler for Halloween not less. Really? I feel the same way about someone dressing up as these guys. The only reason I think no one has said anything about them is that they aren’t as easily recognized as old Adolph (with the exception of Manson; the swastika in his forehead is a dead giveaway). ---
**Author:** ![Quasimodem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Quasimodem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quasimodem)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/36 "2009-10-31T02:29:30Z")
> [@mswas](#): > > You totally got whooshed by my riposte. ;p I left out an ‘of’ again. 😉 Well, what else is there to say but, _Touche’_?🙂 Quasi PS: Another word for my “Doper Dictionary” : **squicked** 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/37 "2009-10-31T02:31:39Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > And were I the principal, I’d call your lawyer first to see if I could cut him a deal: I’d encourage you to call the lawyer if he’d cut me in for 10% of the take. > > Seriously, if you think there’d be a ghost of a court case here, you’re entirely unfamiliar with first-amendment-in-the-classroom cases. You’re probably right. I’d make it clear to the Principal that I was taking time off to take the kid on some kind of adventure, go to a movie or something. > [@](#): > > Halloween isn’t about dressing up as something scary, as anyone who’s thought about it knows: it’s about dressing up as something that’s not scary, like a ghost or a demon or a witch. The vast majority of supposedly scary costumes are fantasy costumes, costumes that help frame and diminish archetypal fears. For pity’s sake, the main way we celebrate the holiday is by having small children dress up to get candy. As anyone who’s thought about it knows? That’s the most complete and total life is a meaningless sequence of events answer I’ve ever heard. Halloween is specifically about exorcising demons. You can dress like a bunny or a pussy if you want, but don’t try to piss on my head and tell me that it’s raining. Back in the day when symbols actually had meaning and we weren’t so terrified of actually portraying meaning in our lives ghosts and goblins were considered scary, and that’s how they became traditional elements. The candy is a later addition in the endless corporate quest to suck our lives of any meaning possible in order to ply us with things that we can eat even though we don’t need to eat them in order to enhance shareholder value. That’s the opinion of someone who has ACTUALLY thought about it, and not pretended to. > [@](#): > > A school that explicitly allows Halloween costumes may still forbid certain ones on the basis of Tinker v. Des Moines, namely ruling that the costume is disruptive to the school environment. Yes, of course a zombie costume will be slightly disruptive, but the school may make room for such relatively minor disruptions. That doesn’t mean they’re forbidden to forbid more serious disruptions. Sure, your point is well taken, and my wife reminded me of this. As I was scandalized by all the chickenshit I saw flying around, I forgot school dress code rules. > [@](#): > > Those people who would allow it, how far would you go in terms of bad taste costumes you’d allow? Would you allow a Date Rapist costume? A guy in blackface? A guy wearing a “Kill the Jews” T-shirt? ‘Kill the Jews’ isn’t a costume. You go to school dressed as a date-rapist every day, they look like everyone else. People do dress in blackface for Halloween. > [@](#): > > As a principal, I don’t think I’d suspend the kid. Teenagers are stupid in a way different from how adults are stupid. I’d call him in, explain to him that this costume isn’t so much scary as it is offensive and wound-opening, and tell him he needed to change out of the costume or else leave campus with an unexcused absence. Fair enough, I’d come pick up my kid in his Hitler costume. To be honest I’d probably kowtow to social pressure beforehand and explain to him that most people actually hate Halloween and that it’s only for dressing like a whore, not for dressing as someone that might actually scare people. ---
**Author:** ![Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hypnagogic_jerk/32/4252_2.png) [@Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypnagogic_Jerk)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/38 "2009-10-31T02:32:03Z")
> [@statsman1982](#): > > […] Dracula (who is based on [Vlad the Impaler](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlad_the_impaler), a real nice guy) […] Though apparently still revered as a national hero by Romanians today. One man’s monster is another man’s hero. But I understand your point: the problem with Hitler is that he’s a too recent evil. Some of us know people who’ve suffered because of him. Though: > [@mswas](#): > > They wouldn’t send someone home for dressing as Charlie Manson, Josef Stalin or Idi Amin either. Someone like Stalin caused just as much suffering as Hitler, and just as recently. But yes, people wouldn’t react to a Stalin costume the way they’d react to a Hitler costume. Why is this? Is it that Hitler’s atrocities were more publicized, and seemed to be more purposefully evil? ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/39 "2009-10-31T02:33:17Z")
I grew up with such wondrous takes on WWII as _Dad’s Army_, _It Ain’t Half Hot Mum_, and _'Allo 'Allo_ (and _Raiders of the Lost Ark_). Hitler and the Nazis have long been presented as comedic figures to be ridiculed. Maybe that wasn’t completely appropriate even at the time, but I don’t think it should be considered completely off limits either. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795/40 "2009-10-31T02:34:11Z")
> [@statsman1982](#): > > Really? I feel the same way about someone dressing up as these guys. The only reason I think no one has said anything about them is that they aren’t as easily recognized as old Adolph (with the exception of Manson; the swastika in his forehead is a dead giveaway). I think Stalin is just as recognizable as Hitler. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-a-kid-showed-up-at-school-today-dressed-as-hitler/515795.md?page=3)