Stereotyping people can be hurtful.

Recently, while perusing online sites for Halloween costumes, I saw the obvious ones: short skirt Cinderella, the sexy hot-dog, sexy nurse and the sexy-but-cute cat. And while a discussion about over-sexualized attire would certainly be appropriate, what caught my attention was  the number of costumes that riffed on cultural stereotypes.

You know the type: Geisha girl, Native American (complete with feather headdress and skimpy faux buckskin bikini), Dia de los Muertos skeleton and Bollywood Harem Girl Belly Dancer.

I don’t know when it became okay for Halloween to be a time when the culturally incorrect side in everyone shows its hideous colors. It’s not.

Halloween does not justify a person deciding it’s okay to slip on a wife beater undershirt, a flannel shirt buttoned only at the neck and a bandana around the forehead with a fake teardrop tattoo underneath the eye.

Additionally, a smattering of the words “homes” and “ese” just rounds out the unfortunate costume of a “cholo.”

The thing I don’t understand is why Halloween should be an excuse for people to dress up in costumes that are not only culturally offensive and possibly racist, but aren’t even accurate. Dia de los Muertos sugar skull makeup is beautiful, but the tradition is not “Mexican Halloween.” It’s a cultural celebration that isn’t related to Halloween—do some research.

That “Cherokee” costume of barely-there buckskin fringe and fur that only covers the important parts on your body?

It’s perpetuating a stereotype of Native American women being “sexy” and “exotic”, and according to the United States Department of Justice website, “American Indians are 2.5 percent more likely to experience sexual assault crimes compared to all other races, and one in three Indian women reports having been raped in her lifetime.” So yeah, it’s a little offensive.

Another thing I want to mention—face paint. It’s cool if the Incredible Hulk or Star Fire is your favorite comic book character, and you want to wear green or orange paint all over your body.

However, don’t try to emulate Nick Fury and use brown face paint if you’re of a lighter complexion. Not a good idea. It conjures offensive, old-timey minstrel show blackface entertainers and it’s just wrong.

Some people argue—lighten up, it’s funny. I, for one, am not laughing. Nor are the groups of individuals you’re mocking.

I found a few videos on BuzzFeed about this exact topic. In one, Japanese people dress up in ‘Sexy Geisha’ costumes and recorded their reactions to what they’re wearing. Most were offended before they could even put the costumes on.

In another, several American Indians try on ‘Native American Princess’ costumes, and they registered their disgust not only with the historical and cultural inaccuracies, but also with what poor taste the costumes exhibit.

While some may think it’s funny or ironic, there are people who are offended. Halloween is about having fun, so do it tastefully and without starting a debate on what’s politically correct or not.

The point of all of this is to ask folks to think about what they are going to wear this Halloween before they step out of the house. Put yourself in the shoes of the people your costume is stereotyping, and think about how you would feel if they wore something that mocked your family or your culture.