Americans as well as people across the world celebrated Halloween on Sunday. While the White House did not hold a specific Halloween event, it was illuminated in orange in celebration.
Witches and warlocks, ghosts and ghouls breathed a little easier in the US this year as coronavirus cases in, at a large, were on the decline. Trick-or-treaters felt safer collecting candy.
While Netflix show ‘Squid Games’ dominated the costumes this year, 90s pop culture also got a thumbs up. Harry Styles donned a Dorothy outfit onstage when he played at Madison Square Garden. Megan Thee Stallion sported Cruella as Hailey Bieber put up a spitting image of Britney Spears during her “…Baby One More Time” era. Lakers star LeBron James was dressed as Freddy Krueger and Aaron Rodgers as John Wick.
US President Joe Biden and family canceled the White House event citing their travel schedule for the annual G20 summit in Rome. They did encourage families to trick-or-treat outdoors in neighborhoods or other venues.
A shooting in a party in eastern Texas saw at least one man killed and several others left injured. The police, in a news release, said that gunfire erupted late Saturday at an event center in Texarkana.
As per the police, “at least a couple hundred people” were there. The 10 people who were shot were taken to two separate hospitals for treatment. They were taken either by ambulance, police unit or private vehicle.
Also read: Explained: Is it alright to go trick-or-treating during a pandemic?
While a new poll indicated that Halloween participation is rebounding but still short of pre-pandemic levels, an industry trade group says people who are celebrating are driving record-level spooky spending this year.
Sales of candy, costumes and décor are up at least 25% over last year and are predicted to set a new high, between $10 to $11 billion, said Aneisha McMillan, spokeswoman for the trade group Halloween and Costume Association.
