A New Jersey school district has canceled all on-campus Halloween celebrations.
Officials say the move is a diversity, equity, and inclusion effort aimed to support families that may not have the means to participate with costumes.
The South Orange & Maplewood School District superintendent, Ronald G. Taylor, sent a letter to the families within the area on Oct. 6 to share the news about the change in tradition. He said the district has been committed to DEI initiatives that promote meaningful changes, particularly how “schools observe and celebrate holidays and special events.”
The celebration of Halloween has been an issue for many schools for years, prompting SOMSD to step in and answer some essential questions about the inclusive nature of the holiday.
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“Is promoting school-sponsored Halloween activities creating indirect and unintentional financial hardships for students and families?” is one question the district reviewed. Another question was whether school-sponsored Halloween activities “violate the dignity of some of our students and families, either culturally or religiously?”
The last of the questions asked was, “Does the promotion of school-sponsored Halloween activities create tensions with the equity and access values of SOMSD?”
Taylor says he and his team conducted “internal research,” which helped them decide not to have “any Halloween-themed events” during school hours. This will include mandating that no students should wear “costumes” while attending school.
Faculties are not flat-out prohibited from doing anything. According to the superintendent, “Schools can partner with PTAs, HSAs, or other outside organizations to do themed events after school hours.”
“We try to give our School Leaders creative freedom to run their buildings within our expectations,” he wrote. “After discussing this important topic with them, we anticipate that all SOMSD elementary schools will eventually have a Fall/Harvest Festival event or themed activities that can occur during school time and can be held on October 31st.”
Many people took to the X platform to criticize the effort, questioning why “diversity” and ‘inclusion” seem to mean the district should just cancel people’s fun.
“Hey, guys, everyone doesn’t have exactly the same amount of money, so we’re canceling everything that is fun,” one person tweeted.
“I bet they are going to remove Touchdowns in Football because it doesn’t allow the Defense to feel included in the celebration. Let the kids have some fun on October 31st,” another wrote.
One person said that perhaps this is an opportunity to help those in need and not penalize those who have disposable income.
“It has to do with the lack of resources for some families who can’t afford to partake in the celebrations during school,” the person wrote. “So they decide to penalize the entire student body? Maybe, instead of getting rid of it, they should be working toward helping those families partake.”
People’s ability to purchase costumes is not the only reason why the district is prohibiting Halloween gatherings. Some families believe the holiday violates their religious values.
“The elementary school that I worked at years ago canceled it several years before I left. The Muslim students wouldn’t even come to school that day. It became the “Fall Festival,’” one person wrote, acknowledging the move as an effort to connect all students.
