I noticed a phenomenon where parents are posting on social media and in their communities the "best" places to trick or treat. So, a lot of neighborhoods will be empty, while those neighborhoods are packed. Makes me feel bad for the houses on both sides where one wants visitors and one doesn't.

Wow! That's crazy. Scaring the old people with kid costumes definitely sounds like a lazy alibi 😆 I imagine, if that happened in the US, kids would just be incentivized to be rebellious, maybe even just ending up terrorizing the neighborhoods with pranks.

Wow. That sounds rough. What was the rationale behind calling it illegal?

That's awesome. Always lucky to have those households that would go the extra mile to make Halloween more memorable.

Did they ever make the house a haunted house? We had neighbors that did that for the kids. Now, I'd imagine it's less popular since parents would want to screen every activity for safety and age-restriction.

Yes. The idea of latchkey kids and the need to operate independently was definitely part of the norm and the cultural zeitgeist at the time. Nowadays, kids are expected to have 24-hour supervision.

That's awesome. Your dad is like Batman.

Did it seem safer back then?

Same here! Siblings and all our collective friends would go as a group without parental supervision. It was thrilling for us as kids.

Haha. It seems it's a mixed bag between kids still having that independence vs. parental supervision.

Lol. That sounds less fun for sure. It's one step away from just going to the local store and buying candy.

That's crrrazy! Glad you made it through unharmed. It seems to be the consensus that our childhood was definitely a more dangerous time. It's just that awareness of these types of events were typically relegated to milk carton photos.

Now that globalization and the internet provide access to information, the world is safer and more paranoid at the same time.

Though, I will say it was quite a thrill to scour the neighborhood with full autonomy and impunity, knowing that we were at the whims of our small coalitions of grade school trick or treaters 👻

Well played, good sir. Take my upvote. Given the nature of ecstasy these days, it probably wouldn't be as good now anyway 👻

Loloool! Glad you're okay! Yeah, I've been so tempted to either take acid or mushrooms one of these Halloweens. I'm just worried that would make me the "irresponsible" parent 😆

😆

West coast here. This has been the hottest October on record. 103 today as a matter of fact. Crazy times...

2024 is way safer for kids than the 70s and 80s.

Right. Crime is down, but global awareness is up. I think that's what makes parents more cautious and prone to supervise.

For me, I remember excitedly going off to trick or treat with friends without supervision. Looking back, we're lucky none of us ended up on milk cartons.

Based on a lot of comments here, I'd say it's with the advent of the internet and more global awareness on the dangers of the holiday. Ironically, crime is down from our generation.

Gen X was definitely prime with latchkey kids!

I miss those adventures we had as kids!

Lol. Halloween is the holiday for kids getting rich on their own terms.

It's crazy that some of us in this thread don't believe anything like that ever happened. But, yet it did and most of us survived unscathed!

Yup. As a parent, I do that too! Sometimes we get caught up in parent conversations until the kids drag us away.

Glad to hear. All's well that ends well :) That said, I hope you have a fun Halloween this year!

It is the one holiday where kids really get to be kids. For me, making or putting together a costume was half the fun!

I agree that parenting is a 24/7 job these days. And, yes, it was definitely a generational shift over time. I do miss the days, even if just due to ignorance, where we as kids could play without said supervision. But, that also means we were kinda lucky to make it through unscathed.

I'm sorry you had to deal with abusers. But, to propel your love of school does seem like a silver lining. For me, my parents were pretty nurturing, but I still didn't care for school. Maybe I watched The Breakfast Club one too many times 😆

Wow. Golf carts must be a new addition to parenting. I've never seen that before. Though, I'm guessing that's largely dependent on the neighborhood.

Haha. I remember double dipping too! Good times!

Lol @ "erupted with kids"!

Lol. How did that feel for you at the time?

Lol. Your dad celebrated a different kind of Halloween. I did what you did. It was all about getting together with friends and the excitement of not having parental supervision.

Genius, and completely relevant to this generation.

I'm guessing Halloween was much safer in Canada 😆

Same here :)

Whoa! Where did you live where people handed out ecstasy? That's crazy!

Yes! And, the advent of the internet for that massive dissemination of paranoia 😆

Someone else posted in this sub: a bit over 1 in 1 million went missing in the 70s. In 2024, it's less than 1 in 1 million. We're living in safer times now.

Lol.

What's that?

Wooow! That looks like pure awesome. I can only imagine the energy going trick or treating there. It could also double as rave night! 😆 Thanks for sharing, and Happy Halloween! 👻

I agree that it's safer. I think it's just a perception that the world is more dangerous.

Again, it's not disingenuous since it's based on my personal experience. If you project your beliefs onto others like this, it's no wonder you're a disgruntled ahole. ...try harder

Milk carton kids... It's a good thing that type of crime is down these days.

Lol. You can say that again. Having grown up in the suburbs myself, I can only imagine inner city Halloween.

Haha. It's a good thing for sure. But, it also ratchets up the protectiveness.

Haha. For those of us who made it here unscathed, yes :)

Whether or not it was a good idea, it was definitely more mainstream then.

Haha. We're already there. At least it's validating to know there's a generational progression 😉

Wow! That sounds like a Halloween paradise. Can I ask where that is? Around my area, it's generally a matter of social media dictating which neighborhoods are good. Those neighborhoods are usually packed within a few miles.

I wish I could say I took it. I actually generated it with AI.

Milk carton kids, yup.

Yeah, the bullying was on full display in some neighborhoods where I grew up. Egging and TPing were the worst.

Wow. Where was that? It sounds like Lord of the Flies.

That's right! I do remember when sensational news like that used to dictate a change in holiday operating procedures. Sure enough, life was more dangerous then. We just weren't as aware or parents were okay rolling the dice.

Lol. And, when every bully was named "Billy" 😆 Building those survival skills as a gen X kid was definitely relevant!

Yup. Crime was definitely more rampant then. But, I guess it was all the parents kinda rolling the dice or being unaware of said crime.

Right. I think it was just a relatively lower awareness back then :) Now, awareness (and paranoia) are much higher- for better and worse!

Lol. I see this phenomenon where parents will post to social media and parenting groups the neighborhoods that are best for trick or treating. That's why certain other neighborhoods are basically dead. Based on preference, I'd rather be out with the kids trick or treating as a parent than having to stay home and open the door a million times! 😆

Oh, yeah. The milk carton kids. That kinda makes it seem like life was a little more dangerous for kids back then.

Strong words with even stronger assumptions. I do have kids, and we go out collectively with other parents. But, I also grew up when kids could go off on their own without supervision. It's kinda why I made this post.

So, again, if you don't want to give oxygen to this completely valid sentiment, that's your perogative. But, unless this post breaks guidelines, you can take your criticism elsewhere. Happy Halloween!

Totally agree. Internet has raised awareness and paranoia. It's probably a blessing more than it is a curse.

Totally agree. I think the internet, in general, has raised both awareness and paranoia.

Traveling in packs was key!

I don't believe it was necessarily safer. But it did seem like parents were more willing to let kids trick or treat without adult supervision.

Where did you live?

It's the opposite actually. I recognize that our culture has shifted along with parenting and safety. Of course there was danger and crime back then too, but I feel that parents have become a lot more wary these days.

If you read through the comments, you can see that I'm not alone in that mindset.

Why do you think parenting changed?

What do you think started that trend?

We're done here.

It seems you're the one who's misinformed. Crime is down. Awareness, however, is up.

Don't know what to tell ya. I'm not a boomer, yet I still feel this sentiment is relevant. And, if you read through the comments, I'm not the only one.

If you don't like these posts, you can report it or just skip it. I'm not going to stop, so long as I feel it's relevant to the sub.

Sounds like you had an exceptional childhood though. Good for you.

The world had become a much more dangerous place. At least that's what's perceived in the media. It reminds me of movies like The Black Phone.