Source: Post-Gazette
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/03300/234525.stm
On October 27, 2003 Post-Gazette reported that many children of conservative Christian, Jewish or Muslim religious traditions will opt out of Halloween parties this year because they view Halloween as a day that commemorates the devil or encourages pagan worship. "'There is a cultural war over Halloween,' said Charles Haynes, a senior scholar at the First Amendment Center who has become a national expert on the subject because he fields so many questions about Halloween from school districts around the country. 'The debate has grown over the years because I think more and more parents, for different reasons, are uncomfortable with Halloween. It's become more of an issue and gone beyond the core group of Christian parents who first raised the issue.'"