Halloween can be a scary time. I know, I know. Obviously there are scary movie marathons and people dressed in spooky costumes that might make it a little bit harder to sleep at night, but as we get older, we’re starting to face things that are even scarier than werewolves or vampires.
Halloween can be a dangerous time, especially for girls on college campuses, because of different features of the holiday. For one, it is one of the biggest party weekends of the year (they don’t call it Halloweekend for nothing). We all know that the prevalance of alcohol can be a huge factor in campus sexual assaults or violence. Mixing this fact with the fact that everyone is dressed up in costumes only makes the situation a little bit worse. If a girl is wearing a revealing costume, for some reason people think that they are given permission to their bodies. Here’s a fun idea: if a girl does not want to sleep with you today when she is wearing a sweater, she still does not want to sleep with you on Halloween when she is wearing bunny ears.
The other issue with costumes is the idea of “mask mentality”. Sometimes when people are dressed in costumes, they feel like they are not “themselves” and therefore feel like they can get away with more and do not really hold themselves accountable for their actions.
As a female college student, this freaks me out. My only problem on Halloween when I was a kid was trying to decide what candy I was going to eat first! The fear of sexual assault or harassment can feel insurmountable at times, but there are definitely smart ways to handle it all.
My favorite thing is to simply call people out for their absurd behavior. If someone acts like whatever you are wearing makes it acceptable for them to treat you in a disrespectful manner, call them out. Have people join you until they leave you alone. Maybe one person will act like an idiot because they think they can get away with it, but it is unlikely that they will continue if the entire party is informed of their skeezy actions.
My other piece of advice is simple and has been said time and time again but I must say, the buddy system is my favorite thing ever. Stay with your friends! Or at least someone you know you can trust. This is a good rule for any occasion like this, but especially on Halloween when the streets are filled with strangers in masks. You may not always need protection or support, but it’s nice knowing you have it if you need it.
Halloween should be fun! We should reclaim the happiness we felt at the end of October when we were kids. Take back Halloween, have the best weekend possible, and keep it spooky.