D69 Halloween Ban Makes National News

Now that the Skokie-Morton Grove School District 69 school board has let stand Superintendent Quintin Shepherd's  decision to ban Halloween parades, parties, candy and celebrations, people around the country are talking about it.

Huffington Post Live sought out district parents and residents to talk about the ban, and what it means for district children, on a broadcast segment called "Trick or Treat" that aired nationally Thursday.

See the video.

Dr. Shepherd said the ban was

A Baltimore commenter said he didn't buy the economic argument, explaining that when he was a kid, children could simply raid their parents' closets for clothing and use their imaginations to make them into Halloween costumes. 

He also said creating a Halloween costume could be an exercise in creativity for kids; a Chicago mom agreed, saying she had heard of a school which asked kids to dress like characters from children's books, in order to reinforce the idea of reading.

Michael Lande, a parent in D69, said it was tough to tell his kids about the ban. He also said he'd be willing to donate costumes his family has collected over the years to others to minimize the costs involved.

Niles-Morton Grove Patch Editor Pam DeFiglio also participated in the discussion.

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