The dark side of Halloween

Photo by freestocks on Unsplash

If you live in a country where Halloween is a relatively recent cultural import rather than a longstanding tradition, you might think of it as nothing more than a cute commercial celebration for kids, but carving Jack-o-Lanterns and going trick-or-treating are only part of this holiday. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that Halloween is like Christmas - it’s not just fun and games and cheer. Halloween has a dark side, too. Halloween is a holiday associated with demons, devils, and troublesome spirits, and so it is also a time for people to misbehave, a time for mischief, violence, and dark deeds. If the worst you see are some drunken teenagers stumbling around your neighbourhood, count yourself lucky, because it could be much, much worse.

Mischief: I have experienced Halloween in many cities in North America, and I’ve been fortunate to see nothing worse than some common Halloween pranks. Annoying as these pranks are, most of the “victims” will just shake their heads and say “kids will be kids.” On Halloween night, after the younger children have finished trick-or-treating, the older, naughtier kids get down to business, throwing eggs at houses, wrapping trees and cars in toilet paper (TPing), and smashing Jack-o-Lanterns. In one small town where I lived as a child, the adults got in on the pranks, too, and every Halloween night, after everyone had gone to bed, they somehow lifted a tractor onto the roof of the bank. Every. Single. Year.

Violence: With so many parties to attend and other activities to distract people during Halloween these days, the holiday is not nearly as violent as it used to be, but back in the mid-1900s, it was a time of riots, arson (burning down buildings), burglaries, vandalism (like smashing street lights), street fights, discrimination against minority groups, and even murder. In many communities, even today, Halloween is possibly the most dangerous night of the year because some people think it’s the perfect time to commit a crime, especially during the witching hour (typically between midnight and 3:00 AM).

Dark deeds: While some see Halloween as an excuse to commit petty crimes, others have even darker things on their minds. Halloween is, of course, associated with things like black magic, witchcraft, and the Devil, and a few people take the practice of such things quite seriously. Fortunately, these people tend to keep their activities secret, but it is possible to come across some bizarre things on Halloween night, such as seances (meetings at which people try to contact the dead) or strange rituals in graveyards. Unless you fall in with the wrong crowd, though, you’re not likely to see any demon worship or ritual sacrifices these days unless you’re watching a horror movie on Halloween night!