The COVID alarmists are still stuck in permanent panic mode.
It’s Halloween, a time for families to delight in spooky fun and kids to gorge on candy. But amid the “pandemic,” some cities aren’t having any festivities on their watch. They’ve flat-out banned trick-or-treating this year—a move in violation of our constitutionally protected rights.
One of those cities is Beverly Hills, California, where an ordinance prohibiting trick-or-treating was enacted by the city council earlier this month. The measure even bans car-to-car trick-or-treating.
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“While I know this is disappointing news, especially to our children, we believe this is the responsible approach to protect the health of the community,” Mayor Lester Friedman said in a statement. The city vowed that anyone found in violation those restrictions would be cited.
In pursuance of its crack-down on Halloween, Beverly Hills is closing several streets to non-resident pedestrians and vehicles from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. on October 31. Parking restrictions will also be enforced in the northeast portion of the city.
The California Department of Public Health released guidance on how to “safely” celebrate Halloween and Dia de los Muertos during the coronavirus outbreak.
“To protect yourself and your community, you should not go trick-or-treating or mix with others outside allowed private gatherings this Halloween season,” the guidance says. And California HHS Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly asserts, “The whole act of going door to door in groups, ringing doorbells, digging into buckets of delicious candy, creates a risk of spreading COVID-19.”
The golden state instead recommends holding an online costume party or pumpkin carving.
Los Angeles County in California also banned Halloween but later backtracked, although the local government still recommends against participating in it.
The city of El Paso and Hidalgo County in Texas have also clamped down on All Hallows’ Eve. “We don’t want door-to-door trick or treating. Period,” El Paso Mayor Dee Margo said during a news conference earlier this month.
The state’s largest counties, including Harris, Dallas, Bexar and Tarrant, have not enforced any Halloween orders but are highly encouraging residents to avoid traditional Halloween gatherings in line with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s guidelines.
Then there’s Springfield, Massachusetts, which determined all the way back in September that trick-or-treating will not be allowed this year.
Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno explained in a statement:
“We have all worked so hard to continue to defeat this COVID-19 Coronavirus pandemic by currently being designated a ‘green zone’, we just don’t want to go backwards. We must continue to be smart and safe in order to continue to build public, consumer, and business confidence.”
Not only is trick-or-treating off-limits in Springfield, so are Halloween parties (even if conducted outdoors). Carnivals, festivals, haunted houses, and live entertainment are “not recommended.”
Many other jurisdictions throughout America have taken similar action against Halloween. While the backlash against such governments appears to be limited, likely because Halloween is not celebrated as a religious holiday, the ramifications of the government restricting citizens’ festivities are far-reaching. If they can tell us how to celebrate or not celebrate Halloween, they can do the same for Christmas or Easter or Hanukkah — which without question would be a violation of freedom of religion.
The Pacific Legal Foundation, a libertarian group, made a case against these Halloween bans.
“The decision to crack down on trick-or-treating is legally dubious. The First Amendment protects the right to go door-to-door for expressive purposes,” the Pacific Legal Foundation wrote in a blog post. “Halloween costumes have always had a particularly strong expressive component, and that is no less true in 2020.”
The group added: “This year, for instance, Dr. Anthony Fauci may be a popular costume choice, as might costumes related to ongoing Black Lives Matter protests and the upcoming presidential election. The government has no business banning this kind of expression.”
Notably, door-to-door canvassing, especially for political purposes, has been protected under the First Amendment.
“This type of ban also simply makes no sense. Governments should trust parents to encourage safe behaviors, rather than immediately turning to bans and restrictions,” the blog post continued. “And the sad thing is that these restrictions will also likely have the inverse impact. Rather than discouraging Halloween festivities, they will drive more people indoors and into less socially distance-friendly parties and gatherings. They will also generate more outrage and unwillingness to comply with health guidance in the future.”
The Left loves to refer to constitutionalists, conservatives, and patriots as “Nazis.” But, as demonstrated in coronavirus lockdowns, it’s the Left that is all too eager to create a totalitarian America in which even trick-or-treating is a crime against the state.
