Thread: Is Halloween Still 'Halloween' In Your Town?

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When I was a kid, we'd rush home from school, throw our costumes on, bne out the door by 5 or 6 at the latest. We would run from door to door of our neighborhood, through dried leaves, past tombstones and scarecrows, begging loudly "Trick-or-Treat!" If we got home before 10pm it was early. The streets were crowded, and that was a "country road" (i.e. no sidewalks).

Now it seems like everywhere I've looked, trick-or-treating is actively discouraged. Kids come home from school, put on a 'nice' costume (no ghouls or monsters), and go to an indoor, school-sanctioned "fall festival" where they would walk around a cafeteria from table to table collecting sugar-free suckers and non-toxic crayons. They're home by 6, before it's even dark. The streets are left barren.

Some townships have gone so far as to restrict trick-or-treating to 2 hours, before sunset, or in some places, ban it altogether. There are statutes against 'horriffic' decorations or lighted displays. Halloween is being selectively banished from existence.

Is it like this in your neighborhood?

Does it feel like there's a "War On Halloween?"

Actually...I don't know who to blame.

Kids aren't safe outside in many or most towns, anymore. When I was a kid we would ride all over town on our bikes and our parents may not see or hear from us from dawn to dusk. That included going to the pool! (The horror!)

People don't look out for other people now. In the old days, you knew your neighbors, now you are lucky to know 1 person in your neighborhood. Perhaps it's our mobile lifestyles, tv, video games, whatever... people just aren't as friendly overall.

Both of you have valid points and outlooks on how halloween and society has drastically CHANGED!

I am 26 and I was born and raised in Canada we used to LOVE halloween as kids and I look at kids here in Canada even they are only out for a hour max these days, hardly any variety in costumes, not many people decorate their houses and so forth. I believe in conjunction with times evolving as mentioned above for instance in today's society it seems predators are on the prowl(sick people in our world, due to the internet boom and more hidden means of communication), the baby boomers from our generation our now older resulting in a depleted celebration and theres technology keeping many in doors watching movies on hdtvs, playing videos that are amazing keeping the youth in doors more often.

I remember as a kid we would be allowed to go out but our parents would follow us in their car as a safety precaution, and we would also be out from light to dusk playing on regular days.

Times have definately changed and society cannot put their trust into the world anymore we have change since the 80s and 90s some say for the better is say for the worst and some for the better.

Those memories will never die though dressing up as ninja turtles, freedy, jason what was your favortie costumes guys?

Halloween parties are still amazing though at my age

You're right, Hallowe'en ain't what it used to be, and that's a shame, Childhood Memories are precious. All the more reason for us Haunters to keep the flame.

If the parents in our subdivision could agree to police the entrance to allow only local traffic and let kids have a real trick or treat night?

There is only one entrance, and eventually we will have 70 homes here, all upper middle class. Feasible....maybe.

Here Here to Keeping the Flame Burning!

I agree!

I decorated every year with or without TOT's and I'm thrilled that I'm finally in a new neighborhood that lets their kids do this. First year here I had 132 kids, last year I was thrilled to death with a 140. Made me want to do more decorating to get them excited as well as myself!!

When I was a kid we too rushed home from school and got in those costumes and waited for sunset, then we were out till 9 pm and hit house after house. Nice part now is how the houses decorate...its great....and I do feel its gets others pumped up! Last year the houses on both sides of me did more Halloween and more Christmas. I mean they got a ways to go to catch me but still it keeps the spirit alive and flowin which it what its all about. I try to get them excited and its been workin.

Someone has to corral these folks and convince them that the memories we baby boomers all have from our childhoods can be recreated for our kids but its up to us. People just don't socialize like they use too, nobody MAKES TIME!

I use to do huge get togethers for the community at my diner in rural Nebraska, it was a way to bring everybody together more frequently. I've already made some notes and think I'm gonna try next year and do an annual Halloween outdoor party here for our little community, have games for the kids, potluck style and we'll buy and roast a pig.

Still jottin notes down, we can have hayrides here and at least spend sometime together as a community. Heck I been here 2 years and only know a couple of neighbors, but last Halloween I met a lot of folks who came w/ their kids TOT and thanked me for the way my house was decorated. Makes it all worthwhile!!

I Love Halloween!!
Mistress Muffy
p.s. wait till they see what we are gonna do to the yard next year!!!hehehehe

Keep at it, people, these things tend to grow exponentially. We topped out in Vancouver at 1,200 -1,400 visitors over two nights in the early nineties. TV crews, Newspaper coverage, the whole works. What I enjoyed the most was the way mutual acquaintances, some who had not seen each other in years, met again, in my driveway, on Hallowe'en Night. With their kids. How do you top that?

Wolfman you used to reside in Vancouver, Canada?? If so tell a fellow Canadian how is it where you reside now?(if you didnt live in canada dont worry lol).

Back on course, Halloween I think in the 80's and 90's was far by the best due to the fact costumes became more creative, halloween shops popped up more and more year after year, when we were kids we would trick or treat for up to 3 hours on end, and people were still in touch with the world. I believe part of the reason parents do not send their kids out is because we live in that isolated information super highway age and read about crazy stories of nut jobs that are in our society and with work, school , careers etc we don't have time to find out who and who is not to be trusted in our neighbourhood!

Halloween is a fun time of the year none the less for us in our 20's we are now older cannot trick or treat but can take our little cousins out, neices, nephews etc as said above just keep the spirit alive for a calender day a lot of us love.

I think we won't see halloween exceed our expectations anytime soon, due mainly in part that we all need to come out of our nests, find more time aside from work, college and so forth to catch up with our neighbours, find out who is who in our city and build up a rapport so we feel more comfortable with the youth on their own. But i truely believe until there is more law enforcement beefed up, community watch programs stepped up it will never been safe for this generation of youth compared to how safe we had it as kids(or at least it seemed). I do remember though being out riding bikes, playing war and enjoying hours of Halloween without any problems society has really changed since the year 2000 hit.

Hopefully things will change though because nobody wants to see hallows eve die!

Excellent observations. I, too, think the advent of technology has made people less freindly and more reclusive. Perhaps all we need is to get more people involved in the traditions and they will see for themselves that it is all about fun and not about raising demons from the grave.

well considering I grew up in CA where halloween was always at night on the 31st and we were out TOT for hours, I would have to say "No".

However.......

I now live in New Hampshire and for many years TOT was always held on the last sunday of Oct. from 1-4 pm in my town and elsewhere around the state.
several years ago enough parents were able to get the town councilers to agree to a change. TOT is now back to it's proper day and even though the kids are only allowed out between the hours of 6-8 pm I am certainly not about to complain (ok, so i do but not loudly).

It may not be the halloween i remember but its better than it was around here.

ironmaiden