It's an unfortunate, inescapable sign of the times we live in that anything and everything can be hypersexualized into a skimpy, revealing, "sexy" version to sell to women as a Halloween costume.
Though almost nothing is off limits when it comes to these costumes - sexy corn on the cob, sexy Mr. Peanut, sexy goldfish, and a sexy minion actually exist - sometimes with enough social pushback, costumes can be taken out of circulation.
Related | The Handmaid's Tale and the History & Future of Queer Oppression
Such was the situation faced by the site Yandy which, until very recently, was selling a "Brave Red Maiden" costume that, to anyone with eyes, was a sexualized version of the uniform women are forced to wear in the acclaimed Hulu series The Handmaid's Tale.
"An upsetting future has emerged where women no longer have a say," read the items description. "However, we say be bold and speak your mind in this exclusive Brave Red Maiden costume."
Twitter users were quick to point out the morbid and contradictory nature of the costume.
For their part, Yandy released a statement coupled with the costume's removal.
"Yandy always has stood, and will continue to stand, at the forefront of encouraging our customers to 'Own Your Sexy'. We support our customers being comfortable in their skin, regardless of who they are or what they choose to wear. Our corporate ideology is rooted in female empowerment, and gender empowerment overall. Over the last few hours, it has become obvious that our 'Yandy Brave Red Maiden Costume' is being seen as a symbol of women's oppression, rather than an expression of women's empowerment. This is unfortunate, as it was not our intention on any level. Our initial inspiration to create the piece was through witnessing its use in recent months as a powerful protest image. Given the sincere, heartfelt response, supported by numerous personal stories we've received, we are removing the costume from our site."
The third season of The Handmaid's Tale is expected to drop during the spring of 2019.
