Leopard Costume Pulled From WalMart Shelves

[Linda7NJ]

I'm assuming there was an picture on the packaging of a child wearing it?

So... Say I'm a shopper going down the isle looking for a cute costume for my 3 year old little girl. I see this really cute costume. I toss it it my cart, pay for it, take it home, toss the the packaging. Frankly, I don't care what the packaging says... I look at size, what's included, price and the photo.

Please explain the harm of the word "naughty" in the above situation. Who's getting all worked up? Over what exactly? I'm completely confused. A piece of trash packaging...? Whose being sexualized?



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[oh_gal]

Right. But that puts you in a position where you might not notice things that might greatly offend other people.Remember that Starbucks ad released VERY shortly after 911? It had this dragonfly headed directly for two cups of starbucks coffee. To me, and many others it looked like a graphic of the plane hitting the first tower. They had to pull the ad and run a big mea culpa campaign that they didn't do it on purpose. It was so obvious to me what it looked like it was hard to think they didn't do it on purpose, or at any rate, what in the world were their editors doing not noticing that?

I believe them, actually, that it was a pure oversight and the person doing the ad just didn't see things the way most of their consuming public does.

(bbm)
Maybe. But I was highly bothered by the whole "swapportunity" Yoplait commercial (because of what I felt it was implying), and the majority of the posters here didn't see my point. They said, (kind of like what I'm saying now), "what's the big deal?"

So I guess I can understand both sides.

Which probably makes me gifted.

 

[JeannaT]

I think it may mean that your perceptions are different from the mainstream, actually. Which is certainly fine, everyone has a right to how they perceive things. That's what makes the world go 'round.

 

[Myvice]

I'm not sure I understand how someone that is upset about using the word naughty in a Halloween costume packaging description could allow their kids to go Trick or Treating in the first place.

The whole idea of you give me candy or I'll do something naughty isn't just written on a throw away package. MOO

 

[oh_gal]

I finally clicked on the link. I think the costume is adorable. It's too bad they put the word "Naughty" in there -- because so many find it offensive. However, I'd be willing to be it was someone who didn't speak English as their primary language that did it. (It probably wasn't made in America.) I would buy it, if I had a little girl who wanted to wear it. With that costume, a girl would be more covered up than what many of the girls wear today, and consider "mainstream." No one is going to know that the packaging said, "Naughty" on it, unless you cut it out and stick it on her back, so be offended, if you must, but it will be lost on most who have no clue of the costume's packaging.

However, I now see that a boy wouldn't wear it.

 

[JeannaT]

I'm not sure I understand how someone that is upset about using the word naughty in a Halloween costume packaging description could allow their kids to go Trick or Treating in the first place.

The whole idea of you give me candy or I'll do something naughty isn't just written on a throw away package. MOO

This isn't about egging someone's house or something of that kind.

I think maybe the difference here is that not everyone has spent a lot of time in the costume aisle of Walmart or Party City or Michael's, etc.

If you're interested in how people perceive this version of what "naughty" means, go down the costume aisle. You can't get away from the Devil, Librarian, Nurse, etc., stripper outfits that are for sale there under the term "naughty". It means soft *advertiser censored* on the costume aisle.

Which is a very different concept from the "trick or treat" idea of give me candy or I'll do something that will irritate you.

 

[JeannaT]

I finally clicked on the link. I think the costume is adorable. It's too bad they put the word "Naughty" in there -- because so many find it offensive. However, I'd be willing to be it was someone who didn't speak English as their primary language that did it. (It probably wasn't made in America.) I would buy it, if I had a little girl who wanted to wear it. With that costume, a girl would be more covered up than what many of the girls wear today, and consider "mainstream." No one is going to know that the packaging said, "Naughty" on it, unless you cut it out and stick it on her back, so be offended, if you must, but it will be lost on most who have no clue of the costume's packaging.

However, I now see that a boy wouldn't wear it.

I agree the costume itself is very cute, and appropriate for a child.

You have to take a stand somewhere, I believe. Although no one would actually know what the costume packaging said, it did indeed say that. And if we don't draw the line in the sand somewhere with sexualizing our girls, it will get even more out of hand than it already is.

Fairly recently a department store was selling a couch that had the color tag "******". Although it was clearly a typo from the spanish word for brown, "niger", they had to pull the item and tag. People who market consumer products need to know that someone with two eyes and a brain need to look at their products before they hit the showrooms.

 

[Myvice]

I will say that I buy the majority of the clothes that my 12 grandkids wear (Yes, I'm a shopaholic when it comes to them, LOL) and I agree about the sexualizing of young kids. I detest it!! That's why I'm glad to have a say in our purchases.

I just think this isn't worth worrying about. High heels for 6 yr olds is a different story.

My late FIL always said "Pick your battles if you want to win the war". This isn't a battle I would pick, But I certainly won't buy a lot of the clothing on the market for kids these days.

 

[lisser]

There are obviously two differing schools of thought here, with some believing it's really no big deal and that people are too overly sensitive, and some believing that it was an inappropriate choice of wording to describe a child's costume.

Riddle me this though...(I understand it may be hard to do this now that we've seen the costume)...if you had not clicked the link to view the actual costume, what would you have pictured in your head from the name "naughty leopard"? Be honest.

 

[Karmady]

There are obviously two differing schools of thought here, with some believing it's really no big deal and that people are too overly sensitive, and some believing that it was an inappropriate choice of wording to describe a child's costume.

Riddle me this though...(I understand it may be hard to do this now that we've seen the costume)...if you had not clicked the link to view the actual costume, what would you have pictured in your head from the name "naughty leopard"? Be honest.

I really can't do that now since I saw the headline before I saw the actual costume, so I assumed that naughty must have been used in the "naughty nurse" context or else why all the hubbub. I was surprised when I saw the costume, but only because of the controversy -- not because of the name. I THINK, if I had simply heard that there was a toddler costume called naughty leopard I would have assumed naughty was meant in the naughty child sense. Then I would have seen the costume and ::::shrugged:::: that there was nothing naughty about it in ANY sense.

eta: actually. If there was no preexisting controversy, I probably wouldn't have thought about it much either way. But sense you asked

 

[oh_gal]

There are obviously two differing schools of thought here, with some believing it's really no big deal and that people are too overly sensitive, and some believing that it was an inappropriate choice of wording to describe a child's costume.

Riddle me this though...(I understand it may be hard to do this now that we've seen the costume)...if you had not clicked the link to view the actual costume, what would you have pictured in your head from the name "naughty leopard"? Be honest.

Honestly? From the "upset level" over this? I thought it had to be skin-tight leather, cat'o'nine tails; high-heeled thigh-high boots; whips; chains; see-through slits, with a full "Toddlers and Tiaras" makeup kit included.

 

[lisser]

Honestly? From the "upset level" over this? I thought it had to be skin-tight leather, cat'o'nine tails; high-heeled thigh-high boots; whips; chains; see-through slits, with a full "Toddlers and Tiaras" makeup kit included.

Not from the upset level. From your own perception of what a costume titled "naughty leopard" would look like. If there was no story and you were asked to describe what a "naughty leopard" costume would look like in your mind, what would you see?

For me, what would have been pictured in my mind would have been something skimpy and sexualized. Which Is why I think the whole name of it has become an issue. The costume on its own was perfectly fine, but it was named a word that in today's society has sexual connotations attached to it, no matter what the real meaning of the word is.

It really should have been simple for the person in charge of merchandising the costumes at Walmart to realize that there would likely be a section of the population who would take issue with a toddler costume with that name, and to ask the manufacturer to change the wording before they stocked the costume. Probably would have saved them a whole bunch of money.

 

[oh_gal]

Not from the upset level. From your own perception of what a costume titled "naughty leopard" would look like. If there was no story and you were asked to describe what a "naughty leopard" costume would look like in your mind, what would you see?

For me, what would have been pictured in my mind would have been something skimpy and sexualized. Which Is why I think the whole name of it has become an issue. The costume on its own was perfectly fine, but it was named a word that in today's society has sexual connotations attached to it, no matter what the real meaning of the word is.

It really should have been simple for the person in charge of merchandising the costumes at Walmart to realize that there would likely be a section of the population who would take issue with a toddler costume with that name, and to ask the manufacturer to change the wording before they stocked the costume. Probably would have saved them a whole bunch of money.

For a child? Just a fun leopard costume -- naughty meaning nothing sexual.
For an adult? Kinky.

I was at Walmart last night, looking at the costumes...I really think this is a case of people whose first language is not English producing them, including the packaging. There was a cat one, and it had an odd name, too. I can't think of it offhand, it wasn't sexual in nature....just "odd".

At the least, I suppose, WalMart should keep a tighter rein on their suppliers.

 

[LinasK]

For a child? Just a fun leopard costume -- naughty meaning nothing sexual.
For an adult? Kinky.

I was at Walmart last night, looking at the costumes...I really think this is a case of people whose first language is not English producing them, including the packaging. There was a cat one, and it had an odd name, too. I can't think of it offhand, it wasn't sexual in nature....just "odd".

At the least, I suppose, WalMart should keep a tighter rein on their suppliers.

Yeah, if you look at the costume first. If you see the name first, you have a whole different image. Poor choice in marketing this costume. And my daughter was a purple leopard when she was 9. mo old for her first Halloween...