I was talking to my sister who lives in Louisburg, KS near Kansas City yesterday and she asked what Halloween is like in New York. I said it was really like anywhere else in the country with hoards of little kids running from door to door threatening and begging for candy. She questioned letting children take candy from complete strangers and walking the streets after dark. I promised her that the people handing out candy were not "strangers" and that the streets were probably better lit and more populated than the streets her kids would be walking down. I set out with my camera on Saturday to capture some images of Halloween in my neighborhood to better explain to her and myself what it's like to trick or treat in the mean city. 
Coming from Evergreen, CO where in many areas the houses are too spread out to trick or treat in your own neighborhood families often go over to friends houses and launch their kids in neighborhoods where the houses are closer together. In New York there is no need to search for dense areas of housing. In some of the larger apartment buildings families sign up with the doorman to let tenants with children know who will be home and handing out candy. For these lucky kids they need go no further than their high rise building. That is not to say that high rises exclusively cater to their own tenant's children. Doormen at large building often dress up and act as the official greeter handing out buckets upon buckets of candy. And it's not the cheap crap either. Cameron and I were out early taking photos and we had one doorman dressed as something a kin to a swamp monster call us to the door to take some of the goodies while he waited for the trick-or-treaters to head his way.
Several streets particularly down in the West 60's, 70's, and 80's have streets with lots of stoops. Some of the tenants go to great measure to out do each other with decorations and costumes for passing out candy. West 69th Street Block Association blocks off the street and offers games, a bouncy house, craft tables and rummage sales, but be prepared for crowds.
So back to the question of safety. How does a parent know if the candy their children are receiving is safe? Well, they don't. The best a parent can do is chaperone their child and observe the treats they are being offered and who is offering them. New York is a big, dangerous city, like any city, but it's also a city comprised of neighborhoods full of good people, families, seniors, and singles who all want to help in providing our community with a safe Halloween experience. In some ways I think it's more festive and well attended than many other more rural places in the United States.
