My son would like to have a Percy Jackson themed party. As a tradition, I order t shirts for all the guests as favors. I found adorable shirts online that are perfect and a good price. Here is my concern... If you have read the books or seen the movies, you know that the main character is a demigod. He goes to a camp with other demigods. The shirts I found look like camp shirts for demigod camp. The camp is called Camp Half Blood. If I give out shirts that say Camp Half Blood, do you think anyone would find that insensitive or inappropriate? I know that the books are mostly for slightly older kids, but I have been reading them to both boys and the six year old is really into them. I thought maybe just a triton, but that symbol has lots of other meanings too, and the camp shirts are just perfect. Thanks for your thoughts!
Thanks so much for the feedback! The party is for my (soon to be) six year old. He has a history of choosing off-beat party themes! Last year, for five, the theme was zombies! We passed out "zombie tie dye" shirts that were tie dyed dark green and brown. I am thinking that I will make the invites Camp Half Blood hero training in very clear letters. That way, if anyone might get offended they will know up front and just not come, or I will have the opportunity to explain where it comes from if necessary. All of the parents I know would likely either not have a problem or ask. We have some new kids in his class and I really want to invite them, but have never met their parents, so no clue if they would object. And yes, my primary concern was that it could be misconstrued as racially insensitive, I had not even thought of the religious or age-appropriate angles!
Maybe Google, "Percy Jackson quotes" and have a cool one put on a shirt. Here's one I found: “If my life is going to mean anything, I have to live it myself.”
― Rick Riordan, The Lightning Thief
If the kids at the party will all be 6ish, I vote no. I'm not offended in the least - my older kid and his friends loved this book around age 8-9. But most 6 year olds will be clueless. It won't mean anything to them.
i doubt i'll be too helpful, but i'm pretty tired of people looking for reasons to be offended. i'm all about diversity and sensitivity, but sensitivity has been taken to ridiculous depths.
i think your t-shirts are fine.
i doubt one single solitary 6 year old would think twice about it.
their mamas might. those mamas can go have a snooty sensitive tea party while you lot have fun.
khairete
S.
Here's a pretty fascinating essay by the Percy Jackson author.
http://rickriordan.com/2009/06/does-age-appropriateness-s...
It's quite sensible. He loves that kids are reading, he loves that families read together, and he loves that parents are deciding whether his own series is appropriate for them.
It sounds as though you have made a well-considered decision that your family enjoys Percy Jackson together, and that is just fine. It's your right, and you're reading together, not just handing your kids books where you are completely unfamiliar with the subject matter.
However, as the author himself says, the books are intended for more of the tweens and early teens.
So, in my opinion, the problem is that you might be instilling or prompting a too-early interest in these books that other parents are not prepared for. Other parents might not have the common sense or the ability or the knowledge or the commitment or the interest to determine whether they want their 6 or 8 year old kids reading these books, but now their kids have the t shirt and have been to the party and are interested.
If it were me, I'd have a private family Percy Jackson party and go all out - the whole family wearing t shirts. But for your son's pals, I'd choose a more neutral subject like a sports theme or computers or another video game that is for your son's age range. Or, I'd only invite a few kids whose families enjoy Percy Jackson books too. The problem would be introducing this subject matter without prior warning to a birthday guest, since the recommended age range, as stated by the author himself, is not the age range of your guests.
Hope your son has a very happy birthday!
I think it would depend on your child's friends. My kids don't like hanging out with the chronically offended so those shirts wouldn't be a problem. The kids would just tell their parents about the books, and moving on.
If you live in a different community, and I think you would know, then I would stay away from the shirts.
So, is the party for your six year-old or another, older child?
While I am not personally offended by Percy Jackson and the theme of the stories, and wouldn't be offended or concerned if you handed these t-shirts out at the party, you have to know YOUR audience. What do the parents of your child's birthday party guests think/feel about this theme or series of books? That's what you need to answer.
Many years ago, I knew a mom who would not let her children read or have any association with Harry Potter because of the wizardry. She believed that the content was in direct opposition to her religious beliefs. She was always nice about it but was sure to communicate that to others in a very polite way when it came to her kids. She also did not allow them to participate in Halloween parties or trick-or-treat.
So, even if one of the children's parents on your invited guest list is not open to this, I would not get the shirts. There are so many other favors you could get. I wouldn't let the idea of this "perfect party favor" cloud any judgement about the potential for making one of your guests feel uncomfortable. Just my two cents on that. Plus, if you really like the shirt, you can always order one for your son.
That said, I would not change your son's theme if that is what he has his heart set on. It's his party. Invited guests will receive the invitation and can choose whether or not to come if they have any issue with the theme, but they wouldn't know about the t-shirts ahead of time.
If you find out that there is no concern or opposition regarding this theme from any of your guests, then you've got your party favors all figured out!
Hope he has a great party!
If your party theme is upfront then the parents have the chance to familiarize themselves with Percy Jackson before they accept or decline. I would assume that all attendees are good with the topic. And if not...that isn't my problem.
When my kids get gifts, we just say thank you and if they aren't into them, they don't use them.
I don't know if mine would get it or be into it - if they were and wanted to wear, I'd be fine. If it was something I found offensive, I would just put it away.
My friend did a spa party and one of the kids' moms removed the nail polish as soon as it was over. Her prerogative.
Yes, I would be nervous. Seems that many people are super sensitive.
If the kids will be around 6 in age, it's possible, maybe even likely that most of them won't understand the picture..perhaps you could ask the moms.
I wouldn't. My daughter is a Percy fan and has one. In an ironic twist, she is half Mexican! Anyone who knows the books would have no problem with it.
Yeah, probably best to avoid the shirts.
I don't know about anyone else but my first thought was it sounds like it's from Harry Potter, you know half blood prince lol. It doesn't seem offensive to me, if anything it would provoke questions and the kid would just explain it was from Percy Jackson.
I really think it depends on your group of friends. I would be ok with my kids wearing something like that and know that most of my friends would also be fine, but it's hard to say what your group of friends is like.
I just found an image online. If the ones you're looking at have the name of the camp and the pegasus image, I think those are totally fine. There are even tons of images of groups of kids wearing the shirts and looking happy.
My daughter (5) loves those movies. She would be thrilled with a shirt like that.
HOWEVER, there are a lot of people out there who would be offended. Because everything offends them.
So...in my own opinion...this is a party for your son. I say, get the shirts. People don't like them they can donate them.
I don't know the book, so I'd just say to ask yourself these questions:
1) How old are the kids? You mention a 6 year old. Are the birthday kids all going to be around 6?
2) Do you think most kids know the books, characters and references? Even if they haven't read the books, are they familiar with the characters and terms? If so, go with the shirts. If not, what's the point? If a kid gets a Harry Potter or Star Wars shirt, he's likely to say "COOL!" whether he's read the books/seen the movies or not, because he's heard about them. Do you think most kids will know this about your theme? If it's a very small group and your child has been talking about Percy Jackson all the time, that's one thing. If the kids will be bewildered, that's another. But the book series is geared to much older kids (middle school) - so if you are talking about 6 year olds, it may be beyond them.
3) What's your concern about the characters? You mention the demigod - is that what you're worried about, that religious people will be offended? Or is it the "Half Blood" reference? I guess I would ask you to ask yourself, will kids be able to wear these shirts someplace else after your party is over? Is it the "blood" that is the issue, in this culture of violence that has a lot of people upset? Or is it the connotation that "half blood" implies "half breed" which is a historically offensive term? I can see that people don't want to go around explaining their shirts to the world, and I don't know if your school system would allow these shirts - a lot of schools have dress codes that limit things that can be misconstrued or which are outright inappropriate. If your guests are going to face a backlash in any way, I guess you don't want that on your shoulders.
4) Are you and your kids more into this than the guests would be? If so, I'd get fewer shirts and wear them for a family dinner at which you give the birthday child more themed items or books (if there are some he doesn't have yet), and do something else for the party that meets everyone's needs. The fact that you find the shirts cute because you totally understand them, and the fact that they are affordable, are secondary to the comfort of your guests.
I guess I'd discuss this with your child and see if he can move beyond what he thinks is awesome and put himself in the shoes of his friends. Then you make the ultimate decision.
i wouldn't be offended but i probably wouldn't ahve my kid wearing it so it would be a waste of money.
i vote that you find a better shirt
My son has read the books. He's a teen though. I wouldn't give a tee to 6yr olds. I don't even think I would let my son wear it at his age now.
Some people are offended by nerf guns, some buy dollar store items, and so many other things. Most party favors get thrown out regardless of offending, but because they are extra clutter around the house.
If you like the party favor and it works with your theme and budget, then I so go for it.
I would side on not getting the shirts because of the ages. If your son was going to be older I'd have no problem with it. But the contents of the book may not be appropriate for kids that age. Like someone else mentioned, the author himself says the books are for teens.
