Instead of marching in the Halloween parade, Ben Franklin Elementary School students will participate in "thematic units of study about the fall," "autumnal artwork," and "sharing all the cozy feelings of the season," according to The Daily Signal.
Meanwhile, author and family advocate Janice Crouse sees children of every race participate in Halloween in her predominately black neighborhood in Maryland.
"I do not see the racism," she tells American Family News. "I think this is just a parody. I just don't know how you could get more ridiculous than this particular manufactured instance is."
Crouse knows one school principal who uses this season as a time of learning by centering the whole celebration around books.
"The children read books … all fall in anticipation of Halloween, and then for their costume they dress as a book character," she relays "They call it Red Ribbon Week. It's against drugs, and so they give prizes to the kids who have the most creative Red Ribbon ideas."
The Daily Signal adds the equity team at Ben Franklin Elementary, whose principal and staff are predominantly white, debated for five years before canceling Pumpkin Parade. The school did not consult parents on the decision, but encouraged them to join the Racial Equity Committee, which is responsible for the parade's cancellation, according to a newsletter and a statement from a Seattle Public Schools spokesperson.
