Sign This Petition to Make Halloween Happen on Saturdays
Like most holidays, Halloween has little to do with its origins.
Halloween is/was the holiday before All Saints Day. It also has roots in Samhain and some other stuff thrown into the mix. But let's not get into a boring history lesson here. You're not celebrating any season, and you're not celebrating any religious holiday. You are celebrating all things spooky and handing out treats for kids.
In other words, whatever meaning Halloween used to have, it's outgrown them. For this same reason, there's no need to hang onto October 31st.
Having Halloween on October 31st causes the celebration to float through the week, leading to some awkward timing. For example, do you really want to take the kids trick-or-treating on a Tuesday night? And if Halloween fell on a Thursday, do you have your get-togethers the Saturday before, or the Saturday after? If Halloween falls on a Wednesday, do you dress up for work or not?
There's also the matter of the kids. Having Halloween officially on a Saturday means less traffic on the roads and more time for parents to prepare for whatever form their celebration will take. It also means more time for the kids in general.
Yes, these are all somewhat trivial concerns, but why even deal with them when you're dealing with a holiday that's not really a holiday?
We've moved Washington's and Lincoln's birthdays into Presidents Day, and Columbus Day may get completely washed out, so why not a national designation for the last Saturday in October to be Halloween?
Who knows how far this will go, but if you'd like to sign the petition, you can do so here.