Not sure why this was downvoted. When I was a child (in Germany) blackface was common for chimney sweeper costumes (representing soot). I grew up in a city but

Not sure why this was downvoted. When I was a child (in Germany) blackface was common for chimney sweeper costumes (representing soot). I grew up in a city but there was only one black kid in our entire school -- and to be frank, it would have never occurred to me to shame him for his skin colour. I'm aware of the implications of blackface in the US (and of blackface used to actually imitate darker skin tones) but it's incredibly insulting to assume that the US is representative for all Western cultures.