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As we move closer to finals week and colder weather, we are also getting closer to the Christmas season. That’s right, I said Christmas, not the “Holiday” season. I’m tired of this walking on eggshells and skating on thin ice in this whole politically-correct society that we live in. Americans are so afraid to say anything offensive that we constantly censor and edit ourselves to the point where we are not allowed to mention Christmas or anything related to that because – heaven forbid – someone might be offended. Here’s the thing: I respect other people’s opinions. I was raised in a household where Christmas was the major holiday, but we celebrated the winter solstice, the Fewst of Saint Nicholas,the Feast of Saint Lucia, Hanukkah – even though we’re not Jewish – and Kwanzaa, even though the rest of my family is Caucasian. Instead of pretending these holidays don’t exist, why not embrace all faiths and beliefs and celebrate everything? Sure, it’s harder, but aren’t we, as college students, expected to expand our horizons and learn about other cultures and ways of life?
My mother works with preschool-aged children. Even at that age, they are not allowed to learn about holidays. Not just Christmas, but Halloween, Thanksgiving, Kwanza -, all the important days in our lives and history. Because we go so far to be “politically correct,” it is costing us the chance to actually learn about each other and other traditions.
Don’t get me wrong – I don’t want to offend people. I understand people are sensitive and we all have our own thoughts and feelings. But in all honesty, will people who don’t celebrate Christmas really be offended by signs that say “Merry Christmas” or large Christmas trees with Christmas lights? A Christmas tree is a pagan symbol, after all. Perhaps some people might be offended, and I apologize, but for the remainder of people, just let us say Merry Christmas. Furthermore, I am a Resident Assistant. I want to plan activities and crafts for my residents. Whatever I do, I have to make sure I’m making a “holiday ornament” versus a Christmas ornament. If I want to have coloring pages, I have to make sure they don’t have pictures of Santa Claus or other Christmas figures. When my co-workers and I do the annual gift swap, we can’t call it “Secret Santa”. Instead, it’s the “Secret Snowflake” or the “Yankee swap.”
Does anybody else besides myself remember the ridiculous time when we could no longer use the word “French” because of the Iraq war conflict and the French not getting involved? Instead, everything became “freedom fries” or the “freedom horn.” It’s not quite the same thing, but let’s not get to that point. Let’s not start renaming all the holiday traditions and events. I think we can all come up with a compromise so that we do not end up overreacting. It doesn’t have to be all or nothing. So let’s go out there and have a Merry Christmas, or a Happy Kwanzaa or Hanukkah. Why not learn about each other’s way of life? That way, we can all have a Happy Holiday.
Laila Sholtz-Ames is a junior journalism student.
Bangor Daily News