An alternative of trick-or-treating called “Trunk-or-treat,” which originally started around 1994, is making drastic changes to Halloween. People aren’t sure how to feel about this alternative. Most trick-or-treaters are upset about trunk-or-treating and think it isn’t necessary for Halloween, while others argue it’s better for safety and helps in the long run.
Trunk or treat is an alternative to trick-or-treating where instead of going door-to-door, trick-or-treaters go car-to-car with trusted adults in charge.
Cars line up in parks, neighborhoods, churches, and schools. Children gather around as trusted adults hand out candy from the trunks of their cars.
“Trunk-or-treating is an alternative to trick-or-treating, in which parents and guardians gather their vehicles in one spot, typically a parking lot, open their trunks and give out candy as children walk from car to car.” An NPR article by journalist Ayana Archie said.
Trunk-or-treating first started happening around 1994, when an adult handed their children candy from their vehicle’s trunk. Around 2010, trunk-or-treating started rising in popularity and soon became the go-to alternative to trick-or-treating.
“Schools, churches, and neighborhood organizations have been putting together ‘Trunk-o-ween’ events in recent years throughout U.S. parking lots, and parents say they think these formal trunk-or-treat events are safer than going door-to-door.” A Fox News Article by journalist Courtney D. Moore stated.
Adults thought it was a nicer alternative for safety concerns and helped kids learn not to trust strangers. They also thought it was still fun in its own way and provided structure for others. Some trunk-or-treaters even go all out with their decorations and events, bringing fun to it.
Eventually, trunk-or-treating started being pushed. Some places are even forcing trunk-or-treating, or adults are forcing their kids to go trunk-or-treating instead. Due to this, there are less and less trick-or-treaters, so some have stopped handing out candy at doors or aren’t even bothered to care. Many streets are even empty during Halloween, doing trunk-or-treating instead.
In turn, the remaining trick-or-treaters are upset about it. They feel it’s not really fun if no one contributes to trick-or-treating. They want trunk-or-treating gone and out of their hair because it’s lame and assumes it’s ruining Halloween.
“I think it’s lame,” one freshman from Pahrump Valley High School named Ruth Schott said.
Many kids think trunk-or-treating is lame and boring, including many high schoolers, like freshmen. They feel it’s way better to go door-to-door than car-to-car and that trunk-or-treating is just a bad alternative to trick-or-treating that shouldn’t even exist. Plus, it’s aiming towards younger children and families, leaving out slightly older kids with independence.
Halloween is about creating new memories and meeting new people, and trick-or-treaters feel that trunk-or-treating is changing that, so they can’t accept trunk-or-treating. This isn’t the first time we haven’t accepted change, either
Americans spend an estimated $3.1 billion on candy for Halloween, which still hasn’t lowered much despite trunk-or-treating.
