‘Kind of creepy’: Halloween doll display sparks debate

LAKELAND, Fla. — A west-central Florida man’s Halloween display featuring bald, unclothed dolls continues to stir controversy in his neighborhood.

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“It does freak some neighbors out,” Kenneth Cain, of Lakeland, told WFLA-TV. “But I’m right here if they want to ask. I’ll be more than glad to tell them.”

For the past few years, Cain has displayed approximately 100 dolls hanging from trees in his front yard.

He told the television station that it is a reference to Island of the Dolls, or La Isla de las Muñecas, in Mexico City. According to Guinness World Records, the Island of the Dolls is home to the world’s largest collection of haunted dolls.

“(It is in) observance or attention to child neglect, child abuse, child abandonment, child slave labor,” Cain told WFLA. “Anything to do with kids that’s wrong or bad.”

Some of Cain’s neighbors are not buying into that interpretation. The sight of the dolls also could be a reminder of claims overseas that Hamas beheaded babies. The militants were accused of the atrocities when they attacked Israel on Oct. 7, CNN reported.

The Israeli government has not confirmed those reports. Hamas has denied the claims.

Even without the potential international context, some of Cain’s neighbors are trying to get the display removed.

“That’s promoting this kind of violence and crime,” Mack Milner told WFLA. “These dolls are naked. They’re little children and they’re showing scenes of torture.”

Another neighbor, Kevin Smith, agreed that the images were disturbing.

“They’re kind of creepy. It’s very unpleasant to drive by and look at that,” Smith told the television station. “I’m just glad he lives toward the back of the neighborhood so I don’t have to drive by it every day.”

Despite the complaints, Cain said he still draws a fair amount of trick-or-treaters.

“This was the goth girl selfie station,” he told WFLA.

Cain said he will retire the display after this year and will leave a box full of the dolls at the end of his driveway the next day for anyone who wants them, according to the television station.