The Limited Times

Now you can see non-English news...

Elections and coronavirus, prospects for a spooky Halloween in the United States

2020-10-30T06:15:16.801Z


Very popular event across the Atlantic, the night of horror is this year shaken up by the Covid-19 and a presidential election which worries more than the usual vampires, ghosts or other witches.


Croton-on-Hudson, a quiet town 37 miles from New York City, typically attracts over 100,000 tourists for its Halloween celebrations.

But this year, America's Great Pumpkin and Horror Party will take place under heavy surveillance, with unusual chills due to pandemic and election.

Read also: Halloween in Paris 2020: 5 ideas for outings to celebrate with the family

“Witches' Night” is a big business in this area of ​​the Hudson River Valley.

Tourists disembark in Croton and the nearby town of Sleepy Hollow, drawn to

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

- the story of a schoolteacher persecuted by a headless horsewoman, designed by Washington Irving in 1820.

This year the pandemic, which has claimed more than 227,000 lives in the United States and continues to spread rapidly, has caused iconic Halloween activities to be canceled - like haunted houses full of maniacal clowns and monsters in the hall lookout.

Croton, however, maintained its main event: “the great fire of the Jack O'Lanterns”, a sound and light show made of more than 7000 carved and illuminated pumpkins, in front of the historic house of Van Cortlandt Manor.

“I'm so happy they kept it up this year.

There are so many things children cannot do, it's good to have a Halloween tradition they can participate in, ”

Sarah Nocerino, 36, mother of two, told AFP. every year comes to see this show.

Tradition despite the pandemic

Capacity was limited to 33%, food and drink sales canceled.

But visitors, often disguised, remain amazed at the pumpkin sculptures of the Statue of Liberty, a merry-go-round of skeletons on horseback, or even a mini-museum reproducing

Le Cri

, de Munch, the

Mona Lisa

, even a Banksy.

"It's an activity that can be done safely, as a family, we have taken all the precautions, and it's very good for morale,"

said Rob Schweitzer, one of the managers.

Halloween here is like Christmas elsewhere, probably the biggest public holiday.

A resident of Croton-on-Hudson.

Visitors are almost all locals: Tourists have disappeared, with New York State requiring its visitors to self-quarantine upon arrival.

Same efforts at Sleepy Hollow, to maintain a festive spirit despite reduced celebrations: the sacristan of Old Dutch Church, quoted in Irving's account, is preparing a torchlight excursion to the cemetery for a group of teenagers.

The Statue of Liberty in pumpkin.

TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP.

"Halloween is Christmas here, probably the biggest public holiday,"

explains John Paine, 54, at Irving's grave, lined with oaks and cypresses: his tombstone had to be replaced several times, damaged by "fans" who tear pieces of it with hammers.

After the closure of a General Motors factory which employed more than 4,000 people, the inhabitants of North Tarrytown in 1996 renamed their town "Sleepy Hollow", turning it into a tourist attraction: the figure of the headless horsewoman is visible everywhere, even on the ambulances, and the fire engines are in the colors of Halloween, orange and black.

Candy or covid?

Across the United States, Halloween promises to be closely watched this year, with the approach of a particularly tense presidential election adding to the pandemic.

"Do you know what is more disturbing than Halloween?

That people do not go to vote ”

, tweeted recently the attorney general of Michigan, Democrat Dana Nessel, disguised as a witch for the occasion.

Some costumes reflect current events, with ballot-shaped outfits or Vice President Mike Pence's wig adorned with a fake fly, a souvenir of his debate against Democratic rival Kamala Harris.

Even the town of Salem, Massachusetts - which became something of a witch's capital thanks to its famous witchcraft trials of the 1690s - authorities have asked visitors to avoid coming, for fear of contamination.

Do you know what is more disturbing than Halloween?

Let people not go and vote.

Dana Nessel, Attorney General of Michigan.

From Massachusetts to California, many states have advised children against knocking on doors for sweets this year, as tradition dictates, but they do not want to prohibit it.

The Centers for Disease Prevention (CDC) ask to avoid this ritual, just like costume parties.

They recommend that sweets and other sweets be left outside, in individual sachets, away from the entrance of houses or apartments.

In New York itself, the very festive parade which brings together some 60,000 people each year has been replaced by a virtual show. Croton-on-Hudson will still have its scariest scarecrow contest, and its parade of elves for children, on Saturday, with all the necessary precautions, explains Brian Pugh, mayor of this city of 8,000 inhabitants.

"After seven months of the pandemic, the psychological impact of distancing is weighing on the morale of a lot of people,"

he said, determined to enjoy a

"safe and frightening Halloween."

Source: lefigaro

All news articles on 2020-10-30

You may like

Life/Entertain 2024-02-14T00:59:12.897Z

Trends 24h

Latest

© Communities 2019 - Privacy

The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.
The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.