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RIP Trick-Or-Treating: LA Cancels Halloween
A fan cheers during a game between the Arizona Cardinals and the San Francisco 49ers on October 31, 2019. (Norm Hall/Getty Images)
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Forget the treats, 2020 is all tricks.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health recently released its 2020 Halloween guidelines and the restrictions are grim. Necessary but grim.
After initially banning trick-or-treating, county officials ammended their guidelines. Trick-or-treating is no longer forbidden but it's not recommended. (This story has been updated to reflect those changes.)
The Great Jack O'Lantern Blaze, South Riverside Avenue. (Sudan Ouyang/ Unsplash)
NOT PERMITTED HALLOWEEN ACTIVITES
- Carnivals
- Festivals
- Haunted houses
- Gatherings or parties with people outside your household, even if the events are held outdoors.
NOT RECOMMENDED HALLOWEEN ACTIVITES
- Door-to-door trick or treating
- "Trunk or treat" events
So how can you celebrate Halloween during this pandemic?
RECOMMENDED HALLOWEEN ACTIVITES
- See spooky movies at drive-in theaters
- Participate in drive-by parades and costume contests
- Check out Halloween-themed installations at outdoor museums
- Dress up your home and yard with Halloween decorations
- Wear a Halloween costume
- Attend online Halloween parties and contests wearing aforementioned costume
Hey, if online Halloween goes as well as online school, it's bound to be a hit!
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COVID-19 has temporarily ruined the best secular holiday of the year, but given that so many people still can't figure out how not to wear racist or offensive Halloween costumes and we're living in a fire-strewn hellscape, maybe being faux-scared on All Hallows' Eve has lost some of its fun.
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