Halloween brings out an American favorite that has been celebrated for generations: trick-or-treating. For many years now, the tradition of trick-or-treating has united kids to dress up on Halloween night and get candy. But recently, this event has been slowly replaced by trunk-or-treating. While the traditional trick-or-treating experience involves going door to door in neighborhoods on Halloween night, trunk-or-treating involves going from car trunk to car trunk, usually in a parking lot or community area. Oftentimes, these events happen anytime around Halloween, and might not necessarily be on October 31. But do these two events cause conflict with one another?
Many people have strong opinions on which they prefer, with a heavy majority of Herrin students preferring trick-or-treating over trunk-or-treating. Of 145 respondents, 128 said they preferred trick-or-treating over trunk-or-treating, leaving only 17 who preferred trunk-or-treating. From that same poll, there was a very close split, with 81 kids saying that trunk-or-treating has not ruined the traditional experience. With that said, 64 respondents felt that it had ruined trick or treating, which, while not a majority, is still a significant portion.
One major concern respondents had with trunk or treating is that they feel it inhibits the traditions of Halloween and ruins the community aspect of going house to house. In the poll, many mentioned that they’ve noticed the number of trick-or-treaters on Halloween has dropped drastically over the last few years, with no end in sight. But the interest in Halloween as a whole hasn’t diminished; instead, they’ve switched to trunk or treating.
Those who prefer trunk-or-treating gave different reasons for their preference. One respondent feels it is safer than going from door-to-door and also personally believes trunk-or-treat events are nicer and more organized. Another respondent said they think it is more fun to see the setups in people’s cars at trunk-or-treat events. One respondent even said that they have never been trick-or-treating and have only ever participated in trunk-or-treating.
Outside of the poll, teachers were asked what they preferred. Science teacher Mrs. Lach shared that she prefers the new trunk-or-treat events, but added that “I do take my kids trick-or-treating. We usually enjoy going to Pumpkins in the Park the most, but we also try to stop by to see my sister and my mom!” She also shared that trunk-or-treating is a much safer option nowadays, which was a common opinion among many respondents.
Although many students can speculate on the future of trick-or-treating and whether or not it will be permanently replaced, only time will tell. Ultimately, the trick-or-treat experience will most likely live on for many more years.
