Where gho-est (sorry) the trick-or-treater?
The commentary herein is based on no scientific evidence, merely observations, although a sociology major looking for a research paper could help get to something akin to the bottom of the question.
At least anecdotally, there are fewer and fewer actual trick-or-treaters – broadly defined as kids who dress up in spooky costumes and go door to door hoping to get some candy. (Even the trick part of the equation has disappeared, thankfully, in that we aren’t aware that anyone throws eggs at houses or shaving creams cars.)
Immediately, we are wondering how did Pine Bluff mess up this bit of shared culture that has been a part of life for generations.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Is it the crime? Perhaps. We did overhear one local mother of young children say that “people can’t be trusted anymore” as she described why going door to door wasn’t on the to-do list this year. That cuts across a pretty wide swath of life – untrustworthy people, that is. There are always a few. But enough to knock out a once-a-year evening out?
The woman’s comments, however, did remind us of the, again, unscientific survey taken in Pine Bluff a few years ago that returned some disturbing results. We recall that residents were asked to respond to survey questions probing what their personal experiences were in living in Pine Bluff. The disturbing part was that many said the fear of crime dictated their habits in that they tried to get home and locked inside before dark. On top of that result was the response from many who said they felt unsafe in their own homes.
So we suppose if that feeling is out there, at least in some quarters, then it stands to reason that one would also feel less safe outside after dark and that the idea of letting little ones traipse around under such circumstances would be unthinkable.
Could it be that there are more people in Pine Bluff in rental property than in homes they own and that those neighborhoods, perhaps being less well cared for, seem less safe? That would be the sociologist’s place to get busy.
The place to turn for answers seemed to be the internet, of course, and it appears the whole trick-or-treating thing has been diminishing over the years for a variety of reasons. Changing neighborhoods, lack of civic engagement, the expense of getting a costume and buying candy for the kiddies, the list is rather lengthy. A survey of thousands of residents, according to one site, revealed that many people said they saw only one trick-or-treater. So Pine Bluff is hardly alone.
Let’s pause then to say thank you to those entities that have stepped into the Halloween breach – churches, the Pine Bluff Police Department, the Taylor Field folks, in particular. While door-to-door activities seem to have fallen by the wayside, these adults have kept the magic of Halloween alive by providing safe alternatives for youngsters.
It may not be the same shared cultural experience as parents and grandparents had, but it is one, a new one, and that works, too.