Homeowner From Rich Neighborhood Gets Accused Of Ruining Halloween After She Urged The Community To Screen Trick Or Treaters From The Other Town
Boo! Show me your ID.
Halloween is an annual event anticipated by people of all ages. But let's be honest, nobody loves Halloween as much as kids do; they enjoy dressing up in all sorts of costumes, and most of all, they love trick-or-treating.
Kids learn which houses and neighborhoods are the most generous to visit. A Redditor lives in a neighborhood that kids love during Halloween.
OP (original poster) lives in a wealthy neighborhood of about 90 houses that receives a lot of visitors during the festivities. They're so popular that they used to have around 700 to 1,000 trick-or-treaters annually.
OP loved this because her kids are no longer at the trick-or-treating age. However, in the past few years, the number of people visiting their neighborhood during Halloween has become overwhelming.
The neighboring town, with a population of 30,000, brings their kids to OP's neighborhood. As a result, thousands of kids and parents flood their streets, causing litter and trampling their yards.
She was annoyed but did nothing about it until a recent family emergency occurred on Halloween. OP's daughter tripped and broke her arm, necessitating a much-needed trip to the emergency room.
Unfortunately, there were so many people that they couldn't get out. OP said empty cars were parked in people's yards, lining the sidewalk, and parked in the middle of the road.
They had to wait until 1 AM after the merry trick-or-treaters had left before they could go to the ER.
OP's daughter was in pain for hours, but they couldn't really do anything about it. This was the straw that broke the camel's back.
OP got in touch with the neighborhood community and managed to get the guards on board. They will stand at the gate with a pre-approved list of names, family, and friends of people living inside the subdivision, whom they will allow inside the neighborhood.
That year, there were only about 300 kids who managed to trick-or-treat. This was great for OP, as there was not much litter left afterward.
They will be doing the screening again this year. OP didn't think she did a bad thing until she talked to her sister about it.
OP's sister reminded her that when they were young, they had to trick-or-treat in the nicer neighborhood because they used to live in a trailer park. She said OP is a horrible person for ruining Halloween for thousands of kids.
Despite her sister being upset, OP doesn't feel bad about what she did. OP said that if there was a fire or other emergency, then first responders wouldn't be able to get through due to the people and haphazardly parked vehicles.
throwawaynotherr432
OP doesn't believe she was wrong, but her sister's outburst made her doubt her actions. Do you think OP is the a**hole? You can read her original post below:
throwawaynotherr432
"I was annoyed."
throwawaynotherr432
"I was done."
throwawaynotherr432
"Honestly, I'm not too broken up."
throwawaynotherr432
Oh gosh.
throwawaynotherr432
Initially, people assumed that OP was discriminating against poor kids and using the emergency as a reasonable excuse.
pictogasm
They even said she was selfish and masking her hatred for "those people."
pictogasm
OP said that wasn't the case at all and explained where she was coming from.
throwawaynotherr432
Surely the city government can intervene if the problem is this bad?
Dontthinkaboutshrimp
Apparently, it's not a city but a financially struggling small town.
throwawaynotherr432
A commenter asked OP for clarification.
zootnotdingo
While they are not poor, OP says they're also not drowning in money. Well, you can read the rest of her comment below, which doesn't help her case.
throwawaynotherr432
It does sound like there are other biases at play here, but OP didn't bother to answer or refute the comment.
Slammogram
Did OP call an ambulance at least?
Mean_Mathematician70
OP said that there were so many people and vehicles that an ambulance wouldn't have been able to get through.
throwawaynotherr432
After some time, comments supporting OP's actions began gaining traction.
goestoeswoes
They pointed out that if it was a life-threatening emergency, the number of people and cars in OP's neighborhood would have caused a significant problem.
Kathrynlena
The parents could have made sure they were treating the neighborhood and, by extension, the residents nicely.
JuiceEdawg
If they cause obstruction, then it's a problem.
roman1969
If others can maintain proper decorum and not destroy other neighborhoods, then this could be done in OP's town as well.
Elaan21
That is, if the parents and children make an effort not to destroy people's property.
Flahdagal
It seems OP acted just soon enough before things escalated to this level.
teresajs
The happy times stopped because the parents weren't responsible adults.
shadow-sage
It's easy to see why OP was rightfully worried...
MistressChantal
... but she shouldn't go around telling people about her involvement with the pre-approved list.
carlocarlow
This is a big blow for the children who only want candy, but OP was right to raise concerns.
southparkslaps
OP just wanted the annual tradition to be safe for everyone involved.
apromessadevida
As the people from the first comments, I thought OP was just discriminating against others from outside her social standing. Reading and reflecting on what she posted, my opinion changed.
OP could have easily been labeled the witch who ruined Halloween, but if you really think about it, she just wanted the fun times to be safe. Had the visitors been responsible and respected the properties, then this wouldn't have happened.
