OPINION: Halloween season is here, and as much fun as it is to dress with the trends, don’t be a dick by dressing up as Netflix’s latest exploitation of the whole Jeffery Dahmer series.
‘Dahmer - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story’ focuses on the life of Dahmer, who horrifically murdered and dismembered 17 men and boys between 1978 and 1991.
Since the release of the series, a new generation of females has been introduced to Dahmer and have taken to Twitter to thirst over the 'evil' serial Killer. One Twitter user said that they "would let Jeffery Dahmer eat my heart". If that's not alarming, idk what is!
There's also the fact that Netflix as a streaming giant has completely disregarded any respect for the victim's families, especially Rita Isbell (sister of Errol Lindsey, one of Jeffrey Dahmer's victims.) whose "family found out when everyone else did,” about the series and the very realistic reenactment of her very emotional trauma in court.
Check out the Talking Out The Trash podcast discussing the sensationalisation of serial killers here:
There’s no denying there have been some shockingly tone-deaf Halloween costumes floating around online for years, I mean, don't even get me started on anyone who has ever dressed as a Nazi (looking at you, Prince Harry - the internet never forgets)
But in 2022, surely we’re all smart enough to take the precautions to protect a real-life tragedy that is still affecting the victim's families to this day.
Shirley Hughes‘ the mother of Tony Hughes - a deaf, non-verbal POC who was killed by Dahmer, spoke to Pedestrian about the controversial costume idea that is now being sold online throughout the US.
SOURCE: Etsy
She explained how seeing all the paraphernalia and money that has come from her son’s murder “hurts”, especially when having to relive her trauma all over again. Which she says wouldn’t be the case if the series hadn’t been released.
Halloween costumes, including Dahmer’s signature wire-rimmed glasses, blonde wigs and button-down shirts, have popped up in the build-up to October 31st and Shirley continued to accuse those selling these costumes of exploiting the victims of Dahmer and re-traumatising their families.
Since its launch in September, the series has risen to become Netflix’s second-most-watched show of all time, and of course, it includes one of the most popular male actors at the moment, so it was always likely that the series would be successful.
Listen to more of the Jeffery Dhamer series drama on the Talking Out The Trash podcast:
Look, I get it, it’s hot to thirst over the IT boy of the moment – I, for one, am guilty of taking the whole Miles Teller in ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ thirst to the extreme, but that was FICTIONAL!
This Dahmer series is a TRUE crime series, meaning that the countless lives Dahmer ruined were real. They endured real pain and real heartbreak and, of course, have continued to have their trauma resurface in the name of entertainment.
So please, for the love of god, take note: EVAN PETERS IS NOT JEFFERY DAHMER!!!
At the end of the day, there are endless options of non-controversial costumes for you to take your pick from, let’s not add to the pain and suffering of the families that have already had their trauma resurface without prior warning.
