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My Take | As Gaza and Ukraine wars cast shadow on Halloween, why create more horror in a world already full of it?
- Businesses cash in on holiday by promoting scary movies, costumes and other commodities as a quarter of humanity suffers in conflict zones
- Celebrations could make a statement against terror, fear and bloodshed instead of encouraging people to become desensitised
Reading Time:3 minutes
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As businesses around the world cash in on Halloween by promoting scary movies, costumes, decorations and other commodities designed to create an adrenaline rush through short-term fear, many around the world are suffering from real-life horror.
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The most recent examples are, of course, the abduction of hostages and killings by Hamas in Israel in a surprise attack on October 7 and the terror Palestinians in Gaza have experienced every day as a result of Israel’s retaliatory air strikes.
Meanwhile, 500,000 Ukrainian and Russian soldiers were killed or wounded during the first 18 months of the war in Ukraine, according to US officials quoted by The New York Times in August, while the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights verified a total of 9,614 civilian deaths resulting from Russia’s invasion as of September.
In January, UN Deputy Secretary General Amina Mohammed said violent conflicts had reached their highest number globally since World War II, and 2 billion people – a quarter of humanity – were living in places affected by conflict. She added that six out of seven people worldwide were plagued by feelings of insecurity.
While a significant share of the world population faces terror every day, businesses around the world are luring customers to experience the thrill of short-lived horror and spend money on tacky costumes and decorations.
According to scholars, Halloween has been observed for 2,000 years, first by Celtic people and later by Catholics.
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