DOES LHS RECOGNIZE ALL RELIGIONS DURING THE HOLIDAY SEASON?
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“Hanukkah Sameach” and “Habari Gani,” are phrases not commonly heard here at LHS. As the holiday season draws near, we usually hear “Merry Christmas.” This begs the question, does LHS recognize all religious holidays celebrated during December? After a long discussion and research, The Bell staff decided no, LHS does not celebrate all holidays equally. While LHS itself does not promote a specific holiday, there are a large number of Christmas decorations visible throughout the school. Whether it’s on posters or the blue tinsel Christmas trees by the front office, symbols of Christmas are present, but no menorahs or kinaras to represent Hanukkah and Kwanzaa. One LHS teacher believes Christmas decorations have simply become
Monday, December 11, 2017 at 9:11:49 AM Central Standard Time
Illustration by Daryl Gichui
“mainstream” and “part of pop culture.” She believes the school is not necessarily promoting a particular holiday but rather promoting holiday spirit and festivity in general. One Bell staff member commented on how Christmas has become such an integral part of society that it’s not really considered a religious holiday anymore. Many staff members brought up that rather than being a holiday that focuses only on its Christian background, Christmas has become little more than a label placed on the time of year for families to get together. Another factor that may influence the Christmas-centered focus is the lack of knowledge of other religious celebrations. One Bell staff member commented on how a lot of people are unaware of other holidays.
Grace Buehler
Editorial by Aaron Jones
Along with that, some religious holidays don’t even occur in the winter. One Bell staff member, who is Muslim, mentioned that their family doesn’t celebrate Christmas at all. Ramadan is the equivalent of Christmas in Islam, which won’t come around again until the end of Summer, 2018. In a unanimous vote, the staff decided there needs to be more awareness of more religious holidays than just Christmas.
YES: 0 NO: 18
The opinions reflected do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the entire Bell staff. For comments and concerns, email the editor at gbue6396@lps53.org
Staff Ed December 19, 2017
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