HALLOWEEN BAN IS OVERKILL, AND UNFAIR

Is Halloween really all that bad for Seth Boyden School?

Apparently so as the school has decided to ban the usual Halloween celebration and parade in costume.

As we reported first last week, Principal Mark Quilies, claiming 20% of students do not participate, chose to cancel it entirely.

I have been a parent and resident in Maplewood for 15 years and I find the decision not to allow students at Seth Boyden to participate in the traditional Halloween events at school to be overkill.

My children have never attended Seth Boyden, enjoying their past time at Tuscan and currently at Columbia High School and Maplewood Middle School.

But when we first heard of this ban, concerns from parents were hard to ignore. Several said they had gone through this last year when Quiles sought to bar the usual costumes, parties and parades. At that time, you may recall, acting superintendent James Memoli reversed the ban.

This year, however, Superintendent John Ramos sought to support it. This has drawn opposition from many who have reached out to Maplewoodian.com.

It has also gotten attention from several area news outlets, including The Star-Ledger and several television news websites.

In his letter of explanation, Mr. Quiles stated that about 20% of students did not participate in the events, that leaves another 80% who did. These percentages indicate more students want to celebrate Halloween in school than do not.

When I was a youngster and I assume when many of you were, many other events were celebrated in school that are not today. Christmas, and Easter and Hanukkah come to mind.

It is understandable that such religious days not be observed. However they are taken as school holidays, along with Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.

South Orange Maplewood also has an infamous ban on religious music in its holiday concerts. This is overkill of a different sort, but somewhat understandable as it was imposed via a court order that if fought would likely be lost and cost the district legal fees.

But for Halloween to be barred with evidence that only 20% oppose seems unfair to the other 80%. I had no part in the deliberations and have no child at Seth Boyden. Perhaps this is not a major loss for most of the students. But with the responses I have received it seems at least something of a problem.

It is also representative of minority control over the majority and more homogenizing of children’s learning these days.

Seth Boyden Co-PTA Presdient Amelia Riekenberg stated in a column that the decision did not even come as a result of parent requests or complaints: "I have never received a single complaint from the families of children who 'opt out' of the Halloween celebration." 

Then what's the problem?

She adds that, "On the other hand, I have escorted children out of a classroom getting ready to celebrate Halloween (with candy and other fun items) and I have witnessed quite sad faces."

What about potential sad faces of more kids who are banned from having the celebration they were allowed to be in?

Maplewood, as we know, is also a major center of Halloween activities. We have more decorations around town than many other towns, along with a great downtown party and numerous trick-or-treators at night, many from other towns.

Mr. Quiles mentioned in his letter that students have the chance to trick or treat on Halloween night and take part in the Maplewood Village party on Friday afternoon. However, it is over by 5 p.m. and many students will not be able to attend much of it when school lets out at 3:15 p.m. and they have to get home, change in to costumes and head to the Village.

But Halloween is not the only thing being over controlled these days at school.

At some schools, there are bans on playing certain games, such as tag and not leaving any students out.

Even in the classroom, a PC approach has versions of classics such as Huckleberry Finn removing the N-word from the nickname of the famed lead character’s riverboat pal of color in other districts in the country.

I’m not for racial slurs, but historic use in literature is how such slurs are remembered for why they are bad. 

My daughter is set to read Things Fall Apart in her 9^th grade English class this year, a great book that I still recall was part of my learning at her age. But it's also considered offensive by some for its references to female genital mutilation. What if 20% of parents did not want it to be assigned due to its graphic nature? Do we toss it off the curriculum?

Halloween is not part of the curriculum, I understand. But it is still a great lesson in tradition and a teaching opportunity for those who may not understand its roots and heritage as an American event.

If you want to ban events that include only 80% of students, let’s do away with school productions, athletic teams, musical assemblies and after-school clubs.

Many parents have also mentioned to me Valentine’s Day activities. Should those be banned as well? Some already require that students give Valentines to all classmates. This inclusion is very nice, but it is another forced approach.

As for Halloween, give it a second thought. Don't be spooked by overkill.