Nothing in 2020 has been the same – and Halloween won’t be an exception. The spooky holiday is a month away, and already scores of cities have canceled popular events to avoid large gatherings that can contribute to the spread of the novel coronavirus.
24/7 Tempo has reviewed dozens of national and local news sources to compile a list of cities that have called off annual Halloween events.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has released holiday guidelines, including for Halloween. Health experts advise people to avoid high-risk activities such as hayrides, traditional trick-or-treating, and indoor costume parties, and instead participate in low-risk activities such as decorating one’s house, having a Halloween costume contest online, and decorating pumpkins outside.
Local officials across the country have been working to adjust to the new guidelines by changing community events or canceling them altogether.
In some states, Halloween parades and trick-or-treating events have been canceled due to local gathering limits imposed after a resurgence of new cases of COVID-19. Some cities even tried issuing an outright ban on trick-or-treating because social distancing would be near impossible if hundreds of children took to the streets at the same time.
