Saturday October 24, 2020 | COLWOOD, BC
by Mary P Brooke, editor | Island Social Trends
Who hasn’t worn a mask before, for Halloween! But this year, the surgical-style COVID face mask has joined the Halloween wardrobe, possibly for years to come.
It’s astonishing how covering half one’s face has quickly become socially acceptable in a culture where showing one’s identity is an integral part of normalcy, courtesy and even legal expectation.
With security cameras and web-cams almost everywhere beyond your front door nowadays (at the mall, at the bank machine, outside schools and office buildings, at high-traffic intersections, and so on) there is rarely a place that we go where visual identity is not viewed, tracked and (sadly) expected.
Today’s youngest citizens have no idea anymore what privacy is — between visual recognition software, home security cameras, and easy technical access to email, web content and phone usage, it’s a constant-surveillance world we live in.
So here we are, a face mask on a bush in Colwood for Halloween. Quite the statement.
It was only spring of this year when people were using disposable masks, surgical style. Masks have quickly become integrated into everyday fashion. Even high-end online fashion outlets are selling them to match outfits. Businesses, sports teams and non-profits are getting on the bandwagon to have their logo imprinted on masks … the newest way to advertise!
Visit www.islandsocialtrends.com each day up to Halloween for local photos of Halloween-decorated homes and landscapes.
===== Halloween Links:
A chance to jump ship for the night – astrology of Halloween (October 28, 2002)
Halloween retail adapts during COVID pandemic (October 26, 2020)
Ramping up to Halloween: the COVID mask (October 24, 2020)
COVID-Halloween in BC: no parties, wear mask, sanitize doorbell (October 5, 2020)