Petition to create National Trick-or-Treat Day

(ABC 6 News) – There are many Halloween events happening in Rochester this weekend, but it’s Monday night when kids will be flooding the streets with trick-or-treating.

Now people are saying trick-or-treating is for the weekends only.

The Halloween & Costume Association has petitioned every year since 2018 to move the day of trick-or-treating to the last Saturday of October.

This year’s petition would create a national trick-or-treat day to be an additional day of celebrating Halloween, with the hopes of promoting safety, daytime trick-or-treating, and events.

In a statement sent to ABC 6 News by the Halloween & Costume Association, “a Saturday celebration offers up a safer alternative to nighttime trick-or-treating, reduces absenteeism in schools, and gives families more opportunities to create Halloween memories and spend time with the people they love most.”

Nearly 160,000 people have signed the petition.

Some supporters say it would also allow more parents who work during weekdays a chance to participate and spent more time with their kids.

ABC 6 News spoke with some Rochester parents about how they feel about the petition.

“I think it would be a great idea because then children can enjoy it more and not have to worry about going to school the next day and they could just have more fun,” says grandmother Linda Smith. “This year, with it being on Monday, I really won’t have any trick-or-treaters. I think it should be on an off day during the week.”

“I think the variety of Halloween on different days is fine,” says mother Priscilla Campbell. “It makes me a little bit more organized not knowing it’s not on the same day all the time. Although, it’s probably hard on a school night for students.”

There is not an official trick-or-treat day in Rochester this year, with most families going out on Monday evening.