Halloween used to be an innocuous little party day with kids dressing up and the candy etc. etc.
However, its celebrations has been taken up more publically by the Wiccans and Satanists who proclaim the day's wickedness.
Therefore it is valid and useful for you to bring up its origins so that we are more aware of its insidiousness. Thanks for posting.
Wiccans are not to be lumped in with Satanists. Buy a clue.
Yeah, I think it used to be pretty much harmless, except maybe for some localized areas, but Satan has been loosed on the world in ways he wasn't before and I think it's playing with fire now.
If I were a parent I doubt I would put the kibosh on all recognition of this, but I'd try to put the emphasis on All Saints and All Souls days and off of the dark evening prior.
Nothing insidious or Satanic about it.
Back when this was the "Celtic new year", people believed the dead walked the Earth as they went to their final resting place. They also believed if you had to go out on that night, you could be grabbed and taken along. This is why the costumes. If you looked like the dead, they would leave you alone. Also, to prevent the dead from doing mischief to your home, treat were put out to placate the dead. The Jack-o-Lantern is an ancient ward against evil, so many put them on doorsteps for protection.
Folding all this together gives us the modern day Halloween.