As the largest purveyors of Halloween Costumes, what you sell determines what Americans buy. This year, your websites host over 500 Native-themed costumes with over 10,000 reviews across these products. People and Cultures should never be costumes (aka mascots)! Not only is this blatantly and fundamentally wrong and cultural appropriation, but the sale of these costumes is insidiously harmful to Native and non-Native peoples.

It is past time that the your company cease the sale of racist "costumes" and other accessories that claim to represent Native peoples. These clothing and accessory items are often used on Halloween and by sports fans or anyone wishing to appropriate Native culture throughout the year.

You must commit to your words of ending racism in your company by ending the practice of profiting off of racist tropes and portrayals of Native peoples through the sale of costumes, jewelry, headdresses, and any other artifacts which can be worn that portray Native culture. People and cultures are never for sale, especially in the United States which has a history of rape, genocide, and violence against Native Americans.

We ask that you: (1) immediately cease the sale of these items on your website, and (2) donate any proceeds from the sale of these items this year to Native-led organizations working to increase the visibility of Indigenous peoples.

Academic studies continue to show that the mascots and costumes of Native peoples do not "honor" Native Americans; to the contrary, they lead to “lower self-esteem, lower community worth, less capacity to generate achievement-related possible selves, and greater levels of negative effect” amongst Native American youth, perpetuating a cycle of poverty and oppression. Theses costumes, often contemptuous or dehumanizing in nature (especially "sexy" costumes which glorify the objectification of women and minorities), further build gaps between native and non-native peoples, contributing to intergenerational trauma and continued racism. Leaders, historians, psychologists, and social scientists have concluded that “Native [costumes] are part of a much larger web of phenomena that contribute to oppression faced by Native Americans and thus it seems clear that these mascots should be eliminated.” While it should be clear, many people seem to be unwilling to see the continued consequences.

Beyond Halloween, these "costumes" are purchased by fans of teams which still use Native mascots, perpetuating the harm far beyond one holiday. While many sports organizations have ceased using this racist appropriation as their mascots (such as the Washington Football Team), many continue this racist practice. This is despite the fact that not only are "costumes" and caricatures of Native peoples used as mascots harmful, but the vast majority of Native peoples strongly oppose their use, and the sale of Native-themed "costumes."

It’s 2020; Native people are not your costume, and you must end the sale of Native-themed costumes and the stolen land you sell them on!