It's not that I've ever been a huge fan of Halloween, but to remove typical celebrations from schools in an effort to be more "inclusive" and less "offensive" to others feelings? REALLY?
At least one school in Ontario has opted to ban your average annual Halloween costume celebrations - no doubt more schools will follow suit everywhere - because the occasion doesn't sit well with some who hold different beliefs.
So there you have it - good bye Halloween - HELLO "Spirit Day! "Instead of showing up as vampires, ghosts or other ghoulish characters, students are invited to wear black and orange clothing - the selected "Spirit Day" colors.
Administrators justify the change by giving a range of explanations from Halloween being offensive to some cultures, to it being unaffordable for some families. Without a costume party every child can be involved they justify. I can see the point of wanting every child to have the opportunity to be involved BUT (and this is coming from the child who scrounged from whatever was on hand in the house to create a costume, there was no such thing as a new store bought costume in my household) is this really going to ensure all are a part of the day? What about the kids who don't own black or orange? Throwing a Halloween costume together can be as simple as cutting up an old sheet or playing with makeup, it can be about creativity, not necessarily expense. In fact, some of the very best costumes come about this way.
I can also see there may be a fear of some masked wacko walking in to the school and going unnoticed until it's too late, but we're talking about a Grade three ban.
Unless we implement uniforms, take away cell phones, games and fancy lunches, students will never be on the same playing ground. It's just the way life seems to work. Calling Halloween Spirit Day will not stop this from happening.
And with all that said, it's really not so much about Halloween per se, but in my opinion we're carrying things too far in the grand quest to accommodate the masses. This IS Canada. We celebrate Halloween, we eat Turkey at Thanksgiving and we say MERRY CHRISTMAS when December 25 rolls around. If all of that offends you, maybe it's time for YOU to change YOUR tolerance levels.
