By now, you've probably seen one of the many stories about the controversial 'illegal alien' costume that has drawn the ire of immigrant rights groups. The story has been covered in most major news outlets, including the Washington Post, USA Today, CNN, MSNBC, among others.
The costume is an orange jumpsuit with the words "ILLEGAL ALIEN" on the front, a space alien mask and a plastic green card. There is also an alternative mask of a space alien with a droopy black mustache.
Target was one of many retailers that pulled the costume from its website and apologized following complaints. The NC-based Americans for Legal Immigration PAC, which advocates for greater immigration enforcement, meanwhile called on supporters to go out and buy the costume as a statement to “stand up to censorship.”
Richard Zagone, a Chicago mask designer, told USA Today he was trying to be ironic when he and his brother came up with the idea. Little did he know the stir he’d create when people started complaining about the costumes being sold on major retailer websites like Walgreens, Amazon and others.
Most quit selling the costume after complaints by groups such as Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, whose director called the costume "distasteful, mean-spirited, and ignorant of social stigmas and current debate on immigration reform."
Joshua Thomas, a spokesman for Target, told the Associated Press, that the stores never intended to sell the outfit but included it in its online offerings by mistake, he said.
William Gheen, executive of ALIPAC, put a costume on eBay, according to USA Today. Bids went to $116 before eBay pulled it.
"This is a spooky Halloween because, apparently, I no longer live in a country of free markets, free speech or free political expression," Gheen said.
You can still pick up the costume in Charlotte. According to Fox Charlotte, Morris Costumes on Monroe Road has seen a surge of sales of the costume since controversy spread.
Owner Philip Morris told Fox he hasn’t had any negative feedback yet and continues to sell the illegal alien gear.
"It's all in a sense of humor, we're looking at our own selves and laughing," Morris said.
(AP Photo/J Pat Carter)
Posts
34 comments:
That is hilarious. I should have bought one.
I want one with a sombrero and a mustache!
And yet still nada on Tighty Whitey, which seems scads narrower in its cultural send-up.
Is Halloween, get over, I'm an Immigrant, nothing to be offended is just for fun
CHRIST! COULDN'T THEY FIND SOMEONE IN MIAMI THAT DIDN'T SPEAK IN HALFASS BROKEN ENGLISH? THE COSTUMES ARE FUNNY, UNLIKE THE ILLEGAL TRASH ALL OVER THE U.S. WHAT WE NEED NOW IS A SHERIFF JOE ARPIAO COSTUME TO GO WITH THE UGLY ILLEGAL!
Gotta coddle to that ever-growing Highspanic population! That's where the dinero is, yo!
Minorities need to get over themselves. Seriously.
Geez if you do0nt like the way the country is, leave
Some people might be a little uptight about it, but I think it's brilliant and funny. Heck, they have Obama masks and other silly stuff like the Mexican Ninja. These people that can't take a joke are probably the same people that give apples to kids on Halloween.
"Geez if you do0nt like the way the country is, leave"
Exactly right.
It is as though all these illegal aliens and their supporters think we owe them something extra, something special for breaking the law and invading the country.
I love the "those who invaded the country" comments..... does any one still think that we were invited to go to Iraq or Afheganistan??? Didn't we invade Mexico (aka Texas and California) in the past centuries? Come on give me a break... but the costume is a fun but bad taste joke, like Halloween itself.. so did not expect too much anyways
I love it .. Wish I could have got one.
I need to get over to Morris Costume and get one of these costumes. This was a great idea!! Too bad it didn't come with handcuffs and a deportation notice instead of green card.
To quote a movie,
Some people are "so tight, if you stuck a lump of coal up (their) ass, in two weeks you'd have a diamond."
"William Gheen, executive of ALIPAC, put a costume on eBay, according to USA Today. Bids went to $116 before eBay pulled it..."
William Gheen...gosh, I haven't seen that lowlife's name in several years. Somehow, I must have ended up on his email list...a few years ago, I was continuously getting spammed by him with the most disgusting, the most hateful, the most lie-filled emails I've ever received.
I demanded that he stop emailing his bogus crap to me, and he finally sent me some sort of petulant spoiled-brat response, but at least he took me off of his email list.
What a loser.
At the same time that there is divisive circus inside America, like these masks, angry mobs in town halls, insults against the president in Congress, there are Great Failures of Foreign Policy.
********************
********************
They caused a Big Tragedy, Can they solve the Wars ?? -- The Arrogance of Punditry in the Media - The Absurdity of Great Pundits and Sages - Failed and Botched Wars
This is topmost in absurdity. Some pundits in the Media were very enthusiastic about starting the Afghanistan and Iraq Wars. They were instrumental in promoting war and preparing the public to accept war. They were warMongers and War Promoters. The best Jingos.
Now we see a big tragedy, hundreds of thousands of people have died, perhaps more than a million according to some responsible sources. Several Millions of Refugees, including thousands of Iraqi Girls that work in prostitution in Damascus, the daughters of professionals and entrepreneurs of Iraq.
But this is not the end of the arrogance, turn on a TV Set and the same Pundits that animated the Wars, are the only sages that know the answers to the riddles of war.
The same newspapers, magazines, journalists, columnists, that animated the War, and applauded Mr Bush, Cheney, and Rumsfeld and their Geniurs, are now the best well informed critics and give new answers to the enigmas of Foreign Policy.
Some of their wisdom is so weird as to suggest new wars and attacks on Iran, North Korea, and perhaps some African Countries that may have some guys from Al-Qaeda.
Some of these pundits are rooting for Super Escalation, without any responsibility for "Collateral Damage", the killing of new millions of Civilians.
Can they solve the problem, if they created it ??
You read their newest articles and you get the impression that they are speaking the same blather and that they perhaps read a new book to see where Afghanistan or Iraq are located, and what is their History.
Because they were very ignorant when they advised War, and they continue being extremely ignorant today, recommending the most absurd solutions to the mess that they helped to create.
Here we see a Great Problem of Lack of Real Intelligence, Real Wisdom and Real Morality.
Some of these people may receive funds from a big corporation with economic interests in War, or may be in a Foundation that is funded by the Military Industrial Comples, or by contractors. In all cases they receive money, benefits and perks for their "Wisdom", "Knowledge" and "Intelligence".
Do people continue believing in those that have miserably failed in their assesments and predictions about the course of war ??
More Foreign Policy :
Prophesizing.com
Vicente Duque
Duque
your soap box has been catering to crickets long for even you to recognize the absurdity.
You can still buy it here:
http://www.buycostumes.com/Illegal-Alien-Adult-Costume/60504/ProductDetail.aspx
Rick needs to chill. Whatever he feels about Gheen does nothing to limit Gheen's rights. Halloween is a time for funny and silly costumes, and anyone who gets offended needs to remember the holiday and calm down.
"Geez if you do0nt like the way the country is, leave"
"Exactly right".
I agree!....What do `dont understand about Illegal? The costume spreads the word which is good....More "Liberal Cr@p to protect the ...ILLEGALS by banning the costume!
I am so sorry that few get a joke. The only ones who should be very upset are the illegal SPACE aliens that did not bother to stop at our embassy on Mars to get the proper visa before coming here.
All this ruckus is doing is pointing out how petty the pro-illegal amnesty groups can get. I also think the ruckus is an admission of knowing they support violating laws of this sovereign country.
Get a grip!
Rick, what a pathetic comment. William Gheen would probably welcome a debate, but calling someone a low-life for their opinion on a subject, an opinion which you apparently disagree with, is a pretty cheap shot.
So exactly what would be your opinion about this space alien costume--and please reply without disparaging people you do not know.
Vicente, I have to ask you what a Halloween costume has to do with the pundits spouting about foreign wars. Please explain, as it seems one cannot squeeze oranges and expect apple juice.
Okay, Americans invaded Mexican territory, and we ended up paying Mexico for the property. Read history.
We ended up with Florida, as Spain, not finding any riches let the English have it--the English gave it back. And it was finally ceded to this country as the Spaniards did not want to mess with an indefensible peninsula.
All be told, that above has absolutely nothing to do with a debate about a space alien costume.
Maybe I should just make my own Halloween Costumes like this!
No sense of humor is right, over 2 centuries of Americans being able to laugh at them selves and their families heritage and now he have so many people that want to turn OUR country into the one they are fleeing.
Think about it, it is the perfect opportunity for an illegal alien to dress up and come out of the shadows....now that would be funny!!LOL
It is no wonder Americans are fed up with people who come here and want to change our beloved country!
Racist Justice :
Video of CNN and Soledad O'Brien. "Latino in America" and the Mad Town of Shenandoah Pennsylvania. The apotheosis of Racism, Murder, Brutality, Cruelty, Terrorism and Bastardy !
Killing a dog carries a bigger penalty. The Coward Murderers are now scott free !
The Greatest Surprise is the Cowardice of the Six Perpetrators and the Cowardice of the Town with exceptions to admire and honor.
María de la Soledad Teresa O'Brien (born September 19, 1966) is an American television journalist. She is currently the host of CNN Special Investigations Unit on CNN, and is best known for anchoring the CNN marquee morning newscast American Morning from July 2003 to April 3, 2007, with Miles O'Brien.
October 22, 2009
Latino in America - Shenandoah - Luis Ramirez is massacred by high school boys who get off with 23 months in jail. Witness the closed-mindedness!
Latino in America - Shenandoah
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wmk9QrCtvRo
Raciality.com
Vicente Duque
You have got to be kidding me. Halloween is the time to make fun of and parody everything. Every year there's some joke regarding something in popular culture. Some in bad taste, some not. There is always a funny mask of the current or former president. I guess next, retailers will have to remove those, too. Especially those of Obama - because we all know that anyone who would wear an Obama mask would only do so because they are racist. And anyone who dresses up like a witch are obviously anti-witchimic. And don't even get me started on those people who make fun of clowns. You know Reid and Pelosi can't help it and will be offended.
This is a racist costume. I hope you George Bush loving ballantyne dwellers burn and rot in the pits of hell fire. Keep your sorry asses down at southpark and don't come to the metro area with your racism and eletist views.
WHERE IN HELL DOES IT STATE THAT THE UGLY LAW-BREAKING ALIEN IS FROM FABULOUS MEXICO? HISPANICS HAVE A BAD HABIT OF JUMPING THE GUN. AND I MIGHT ADD "JUMPING THE BORDER"! GOD BLESS SHERIFF JOE ARPAIO! A REAL AMERICAN.
Why is the Bible Belt a Republican Stronghold ??
The Deep South : Super Friends of God, but not of all human beings. They have a divided and divisive heart.
An Insect Interpretation of History and American Society :
The Deep South, somehow akin to the Bible Belt, is mosquito land .... This is the part of the United States with the highest population of mosquitoes and other plagues.
The Cockroach is native from Mexico and more tropical lands, and it had a barrier in the deserts of the South, so it couldn't cross to the USA. However cockroaches traveled easily and freely to the North inside vehicles and ships.
Cockroaches feel more comfortable in the Bible Belt or Deep South than in the North. However thanks to Artificial Heating systems, cockroaches can live comfortably in Boston, Chicago and even in Maine.
And even worse, The South is the land of Hanta Virus, transmitted by mice and their urine.
Haven't you thought that after the Civil War, the population of the Confederacy felt devastated, despised and ignored by the citizens of the North. ???
The Confederacy was "Third World" for the Yankees and that produced a horrible inferiority complex ..... A Psychology of LOSERS.
That is why people have to reenact the Civil War constantly and put the Confederacy flag everywhere outside and inside homes and even on kitchenware.
I guess that insects that plague human beings like fleas, ticks and flies that are vectors for disease are more popular in the Deep South than in Canada, due to the cold of Canada. And there is a cline correlated with an environmental or geographic transition to less abundance of the insects.
So the Northern States have less nasty bugs, and that makes people from the North more tolerant and nice ( well not always, just kidding ! )
Vicente Duque
Vicente Duque you are so OFF TOPIC!!!
Please find some other place to spew your blabber.
I agree with an earlier poster who commented that it is too bad the costume didn't come with handcuffs and deportation papers.
I don't feel that the costumes should be censored. Merchants that pulled the costumes under pressure from illegal immigrant supporters should be boycotted.
Anyone get the notion that duque is really Ordonez posting anonymously?
"It is as though all these illegal aliens and their supporters think we owe them something extra, something special for breaking the law and invading the country."
accurate statement
What's the big deal? If you're illegal you are not entitled to bitch. If you are legal, what are bitching about? If you support the illegals what are you bitching about? The costume does not depict Mexican, Hondurans, Chileans, Columbians, Philipino, Indian, Iranian, or anyother. Get the hell over it. This nation is starting to be full of pussies. Hard to believe we are a nation of pussies, run by pussies, for pussies. I'm going to buy 2. One for halloween and the other to give away to a trick or treater. possibly an alien.
Signed,
Ross Bain.
I watched this story unfold in the National Geographic Channel : a Happy Birthday, Multinational Birthday Party trough the Border Fence. Two worlds apart, and a cake is divided for the guests.
A robust and healthy Super Baby like three years old is in the United States.
Mommy is in Mexico, and they pass the birthday cake pieces, through a small hole in the border fence, with a wire net like what I have used for my hens, chicken and even for my pigs.
The Super Baby is happy healthy sturdy fatty, there are many reports that Latinos in the USA are healthier than the TRUE UNADULTERED PURE Americans. This has been researched by the most serious scientists in Public Health and is not BS ( see my MILENIALS.COM for the Latino Paradox of Public Health and many links of Scientists, this is not blather ! )
Is it that the lower human subspecies are very strong apes ??? ... Like Gorillas, Orangutans, Chimps, Bonobos ??
The Birthday Party is very happy with lots of singing and eating cake and ice cream, but Mommy weeps when she leaves the happy event.
She says that she doesn't want to live in the USA, too many risks in crossing and some tough, rough guys that give the UNWELCOME. She doesn't want to end her life with a bullet inside her head in the loneliness of the desert.
MEXICO LINDO Y QUERIDO is more peaceful ( she is not in the drug wars ), and life walks at a lower pace that in the running race of the USA, the lady says.
Better to sleep a beutiful siesta in Mexico, than meet the Coward Scoundrels, also called Minutemen in the USA.
But things are changing very fast, as fast as cells multiply inside bodies. And as Geraldo Rivera recently said : Latinos are going to transform American Society at the end of the 21 century.
Geraldo was not talking of the Spanish Language replacing the English Language, he is not an idiot like many foolish racists that live a life of Paranoia and Fear. Geraldo is a man of kindness and humanity for all. No need for scapegoats and underdogs, that is for LOSERS and FAILED LIVES.
I hope to get the birthday party in video, so that you can enjoy it, and shed a tear at the end.
More tender and beautiful stories and plenty of material to laugh and weep :
Raciality.com
Vicente Duque
Post a Comment