One of the biggest Halloween retailers in the country, Spirit Halloween, has confirmed the company will be selling Caitlyn Jenner costumes at its pop-up shops throughout the nation this year, according to NY Daily News.
"Caitlyn Jenner has proven to be the most important real-life superhero of the year, and Spirit Halloween is proud to carry the costume that celebrates her," Trisha Lombardo, Spirit Halloween PR and marketing head, told Daily News.
News that the image of one of the most visible transgender celebrities is being packaged as gear for the gruesome holiday season has many claiming the company's decision is not only insensitive, but transphobic. Nevertheless, Lombardo insisted Spirit Halloween's decision to carry the costume shouldn't be viewed any differently than other products the nationwide chain carries sporting the visage of other famous faces.
"At Spirit Halloween, we create a wide range of costumes that are often based upon celebrities, public figures, heroes and superheroes. We feel that Caitlyn Jenner is all of the above and that she should be celebrated. The Caitlyn Jenner costume reflects just that," she wrote in a statement to the Huffington Post.
Vincent Villano of the National Center for Transgender Equality disagrees: "There's no tasteful way to 'celebrate' Caitlyn Jenner or respect transgender people this way on the one night of the year when people use their most twisted imaginations to pretend to be villains and monsters," he told Huffington Post on Friday.
Details about the look and items included in the Caitlyn Jenner prepackaged costume are not available at this time, but will reportedly be released once the item goes on sale in approximately four to six weeks.
Jenner's rep, Alan Nierob, has declined to comment at this time.