DETROIT – Detroit mayor Mike Duggan, along with nearly a dozen community activists and members of the city’s department of neighborhoods, kicked off this year’s “Halloween in the D” campaign on Tuesday morning.
“I am just really pleased that Halloween is a time of joy for the children of the city of Detroit,” Duggan said during the announcement at the Chandler Park Fieldhouse.
The initiative began in 2018 as a way to make Halloween fun for a new generation of Detroit kids.
“I talked to young people in their 20s about their memories of growing up in Detroit, and I was struck by how many of them said one of their most distinct memories was Halloween,” Duggan said. “Not as something they celebrated, but at the time, they were scared.
“Our children grew up seeing those flashing lights as a symbol of a danger that their house could burn down,” Duggan said.
The city of Detroit has finally shed the stigma of the mayhem that plagued the city during Devil’s Night, which occurred from the 1970s through the early 2000s.
“Halloween in the D” features a range of Halloween activities at police precincts, recreation centers, and firehouses throughout the city. The activities include trunk-or-treating at police and fire stations, fully decked out city parks, and various activities at recreation centers – along with free candy all across the city.
“We are encouraging our block clubs and our community associations to get out and decorate their blocks to bring back the fun into the neighborhood,” Tonie Stovall, a volunteer coordinator with the neighborhoods department, said.
Over 30,000 kids and their families participate in Halloween in the D.
The citizen patrols for fires and mischief are largely a thing of the past, but area radio patrols will still be active in each neighborhood district.
“We’re going to have our officers out on patrol,” Detroit Police Chief Todd Bettison said. “I encourage everyone, because it’s a lot of children that will be out, crossing the streets, etc., to slow down and I’m going to have my traffic enforcement officers out too because we want to ensure that we’re providing a safe environment.”
Click here if you’re interested in volunteering to help in your neighborhood.