You might have find out about the Birmingham urban center council inEnglanddeciding in 1998 to renameChristmasas Winterval , in purchase order to be politically right . Except it never hap . The full term was on a inclination from the city ’s marketing team , which was trying to come up up with a set phrase to cover 41 unlike activities offer in Birmingham over the wintertime time of year . However , the story was pick up by mainstream media and reduplicate so many times , it was still being corrected in 2011 [ source : Arscott ] .
That ’s just one example of a Christmas controversy . It seems the holiday , apparently consecrate to spreading joy , feasting and merry - making , is always mired in one competition or another . Some people cogitate Christmas is too commercial ; others recall it is too religious — or not religious enough . Some find the very give-and-take noisome — others take offense to substitute words like " vacation . " Some ethnic music believe there is a warfare on Christmas . Others believe the only war is the brouhaha stirred up by people who recollect there is a warfare on the vacation . Controversy is nothing young . The early Puritans banish Christmas celebrations in New England , deeming them too pagan .
The websiteDefendChristmas.comhas been conducting a poll for the past 10 years and say that 95 per centum of respondents just do n’t want to fight about it . They want to lionise the holiday however they want .
But another 5 percentage are apparently really put in one outcome or the other . And they get all the medium attention . permit ’s look at 10 hot - clit controversies surrounding Christmas andHanukkah .
10: What Do We Tell the Kids About Santa Claus?
For decades , people have been arguing over whether it ’s good parenting to say their kids thatSanta Clauscomes down thechimneybringing present for unspoilt slight girls and boys . The naysayer maintain you should never lie to your kids . It ruins your credibility and trustworthiness . It ’s fine to bring Santa into your home via flick , Koran and the like , they say , as long as you separate your tot that Santa is just a made - up character in a taradiddle .
Those on the " pro " side note that young children believe in many fantasy figure of speech such as fairies , monstrosity and superheroes , so adding Santa Claus to the commixture is really no unlike . Believing in jolly one-time St. Nick is also a custom stretch out back generation for many ; if notion did n’t harm them , their parent or grandparents , say the Santa garter , why would it be harmful for kids today ? Most kids substantiate Santa is a fake by the time they ’re 7 or 8 years quondam anyway , and walk aside unscathed [ sources : Brown , Johnson ] . Plus , Santa is everywhere at Christmastime , and the source of much joy . Why would you desire to divest fry of that ?
The public radio receiver show " This American Life " did anepisodefeaturing a family that somehow convinced their children Santa was real even into their former teens . Needless to say , the kids were a bit traumatized to get word the the true . But that ’s the elision to the rule , right ?
9: Real Tree or Fake?
Oh , Tannenbaum ! You cause so many kerfuffles . Should we call you aChristmas tree diagram , a holiday tree or a giving tree ? And after that ’s settled , should you be literal or artificial ? Which is good for the environment ?
Real Tree have a great piney smell ( at least for the first week ) . But they tend to get dry and brittle and spill messy pine needles as clock time goes on . Only 2 percentage of Christmas tree emptor still cut down trees from forests , but until the forties , forest depletion was a real worry [ source : Lee ] . Now , most people get their trees from Christmas Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree farms . However , these tree have usually been spray with pesticides that can harm birds and perchance human race . Also , throwing the trees out at the ending of the month lend to the refuse problem — unless you recycle them .
faux trees have the vantage of being reusable every year and demand less fuss to localise up and take down — plus no shedding . But they ’re ordinarily made of the plastic polyvinyl chloride ( PVC ) , which releases the chemical dioxin during production . And many fake Tree have been find to be contaminated with lead story , which has been linked to organ damage in beast . Plus , the manufacturing and transporting of so many plastic trees from China allow a large C footprint . Further , they ca n’t be reuse [ sources : Main , Lee ] .
One scientific cogitation base little difference between the two as far as environmental impact , but say artificial trees were slightly worse [ source : ZME Science ] . An expert advises that the greenest choice are grease one’s palms a potted Christmas tree that you may replant subsequently or renting a potted Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree that can be regress to the farm after the holidays [ generator : Lee ] .
8: Should You Say “Happy Holidays” or “Merry Christmas”?
Whether section store clerks wish their customer a " Merry Christmas , " " Happy Holidays " or " Season ’s Greetings " seems to be an issue that gets under some people ’s craws . In the past 50 years or so , many storage have move off from the standard " Merry Christmas " as mass have become more sensitive to the fact that kinfolk of other religions or no faith survive in the U.S. , too . Plus , " Happy Holidays " can encompassHanukkah , Kwanzaa and the New Year without requiring a switch in greeting .
The Public Religion Research Institute rifle through the trouble of check to see what greeting " existent the great unwashed " prefer and the result were n’t quite as expected . People living in the Midwest and West prefer " Merry Christmas " while people living in the Northeast and South liked " Happy Holidays " better . The cause seemed to be that African Americans , who make up a enceinte dowry of the Bible Belt South , preferred " Happy Holidays " even though most are very religious . And in the secularize West ( think California and Oregon ) , the full term " Merry Christmas " has been stripped of its spiritual connotations [ source : FiveThirtyEight ] .
For years , Fox News reviewer Bill O’Reilly keep open a list of which section fund had their clerks say " Merry Christmas " and which ones read " Happy Holidays . " In 2016,O’Reilly claimedthat " the War on Christmas had been win " and that most company were once again take into account their employee to say " Merry Christmas . " O’Reilly did n’t explain how he come to that conclusion . Maybe he just receive tired of keeping the list .
7: Christmas Creep Gets Worse Every Year
More than a few mass cluck their clapper whenChristmas tunesbegin blaring from the wireless in mid - November , or when ornament begin dotting store shelves the minute the Halloween décor is removed . It ’s Christmas creep , they shout , rail against retailers and others who seem to campaign the season on us a little sooner every year .
Interestingly , the ailment about ever - early Christmas sales has been occurring in America since the nineteenth C . And with good intellect . A Nov. 15 , 1885 , advertizement warned reader to start their Christmas shopping now ! One that be given in 1912 gave the same advice inOctober[source : Collins ] .
Christmas creep is a long - stand ailment in England , too . In 2019 , Christmas sparkle set out winkle along Oxford Street , London ’s most illustrious shopping venue , on Nov. 1 , the early appointment yet . These lights signal the unofficial start of the holiday shopping season in the U.K. According to the Quartz Christmas Creep Calculator , this have in mind that by 2030 , Oxford Street ’s holiday luminance will blink on Oct. 1 [ source : Karaian ] .
Many Americans insist the first of the Christmas time of year is Black Friday , the day after Thanksgiving . So that ’s the first clock time Christmas items should appear in stock and yuletide song should be played on the wireless . It ’s only correct to celebrate one vacation at a fourth dimension , they say . One expert told Newsweek that even though retail store would know to start the vacation season early on in the tumble , Thanksgiving and Halloween require specific marketing of their own , so the Christmas - shopping time of year is unlikely to creep up much further than where it is now [ rootage : Lees ] . Uh , thanks ?
6: Celebrating Hanukkah as the “Jewish Christmas”
Every twelvemonth as Christmas nears , someJewsbegin to fret about Hanukkah and its " Christmastization . " Hanukkah is a minor vacation within Jewish tradition ( the major celebrations arePassover , Rosh HashanahandYom Kippur ) . Dubbed " the fete of light source , " it memorialize the rededication of the tabernacle in Jerusalem , and the fact that while the Jews only had enough oil to illuminate the temple menorah for one Nox , the oil live on for eight .
Hanukkah , which falls between Thanksgiving and Christmas ( the date change every yr and are tied to the moon cycle ) , is observe for eight days . Celebrations broadly feature the lighting of a family menorah — an extra standard candle each day — and play the dreidel for chocolate coins . But the holiday is not supposed to be about giving and receiving presents and having a big dinner party . In short , Hanukkah is not the Jewish reading of Christmas [ source : Rich ] .
But over the age , as Christmas became progressively commercialized and omnipresent , many Jewish family started crab up their Hanukkah celebrations so their kid did n’t feel left out of the sport . They began buy present for others , sending Hanukkah menu and even decorating their lawns with giant menorah . Some of these actions were n’t an attempt to turn Hanukkah into the " Jewish Christmas " — but actually a means of asserting Judaic identity [ sources : Rich , Crimmings ] .
Interestingly , at the turn of the twentieth century , many American Jews actually celebrate Christmas . They did n’t view this as turning their backs on their religion , but rather as embracing their absorption into American beau monde . Over prison term , however , rabbis and other spiritual leaders put the kibosh on this practice [ source : Crimmings ] .
5: Does the Word “Xmas” Take Christ Out of Christmas?
The news " Christmas " is a bit long . Far easier and quicker to scribble " Xmas " on your holiday card and note . But if you do , be prepared for backlash from some who will insist that in doing so , you ’re slam Christ . As in Jesus Christ , the baby born in a manger on Dec. 25 ( accord to theChristmas myth ) . The little bozo who is responsible for everything Christmas , Santa included . But how is " Xmas " a dis ?
Some argue the abbreviation " Xmas " was created by religion hater . If you publish " Xmas , " they assert , you ’re helping to commercialise the vacation and pass over away its true meaning . But they are misinformed . The term " Xmas " come about centuries ago . The first letter in the Grecian word for " Christ " is " chi , " and a working capital chi is drop a line as " X. " So " Xmas " is an older , respectable abbreviation for " Christmas " [ source : Mikkelson ] .
So , while some may by design scribble " Xmas " as a jab at religion , its original usage was perfectly acceptable to the faithful .
4: Christmas Is Too Commercialized
In the 1965 classic " A Charlie Brown Christmas , " Charlie Brown complains about the commercialization of Christmas . Even his dog , Snoopy , gets carried away by the holiday , tricking out his doghouse with wink lights , a star and ornamentation . Today , many people continue to share Charlie Brown ’s thwarting with the holiday ’s overemphasis on buying material .
According to a 2013 Pew Research Centersurvey , the No . 1 thing people dislike about the Christmas and holiday time of year is its commercialisation — 33 pct of respondents learn this box . Another 22 percent say they ’re not fans of the amount of money blast out at this time of the year , while 10 percent dislike holiday shopping andcrowds . More than two - thirds enunciate the best part about the holiday is something very unproblematic : spending time with family unit and Friend .
Of course , sometimes give voice bely actions . The same chemical group of resume respondents enunciate they were going to purchase gifts ( 86 percent ) , put up a Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree ( 79 pct ) and send Christmas / holiday scorecard ( 65 percent ) [ source : Pew Research Center ] . So , while many people lament Christmas as being too mercenary , plenty of the same folks do enjoy , or at least engage in , the hype .
3: What’s Up With the Starbucks Cup?
It ’s grueling to imagine a newspaper publisher cup was so controversial , but Starbucks ' yearly holiday cup was just that for years . The tradition of serving its joe in seasonal holders began in 1997 , when a jazzy Santa debuted cup - side . From there the designs switch from snowman andsnowflakesto ornaments andcarolers . And then , in 2015 , the cupful choke minimalist : The " pattern " was an all - red intimacy — cherry at the top and slowly fading to a dusky crimson at the bottom [ source : Whitten ] .
Starbucks officials said its plain cherry-red cupful was destine to goad customers to create their own holiday scrabble on the side . But some scream foul , saying the coffee giant was ignore its nose at Christmas . No way , said defenders , notice there are always plenty of seasonally appropriate detail for sale inside the Starbucks shop , admit CDs , cookies and even Advent calendars . But the dust - up extend all through December [ source : Whitten ] .
In 2016 , Starbucks seem eager to stave in off more controversy while also intrude fun at the previous class ’s berth . On Nov. 1 , the java heavyweight wave out unripe cups covered with a sea of people , meant to represent one . Then , on Nov. 10 , its red cup debut . The 2016 loving cup featured designs created by 13 client from six countries , which apparently did not generate the rivalry of previous long time [ author : Goldman ] . In 2021 , the cup was reddened and green and covered in ribbons and Starbucks logos . The loving cup had moved on from flashpoint in the " War on Christmas " to societal media meme , The Washington Post account .
2: Religious Displays in Public Venues
For X Nativity scene were regularly placed in public options in America , places like courthouse and city parks . But in more late yr , atheist and civil liberties activists have declared crèches set on public prop a violation of the separation of church and DoS , a tenet of American society . somebody and radical began suing — with varied results — and so the battle summarize every holiday season , and is settled in different ways .
Indiana ’s Tippecanoe County once featured a Nativity scene in front of its courthouse . But after protests , an regulation was passed in 1999 ostracize spiritual displays . Ever since then , one resident physician place a Nativity view in the back of his getaway and parks the truck in front of the courthouse during the holiday , a perfectly legal move [ source : Flores ] .
Meanwhile , the United States Department of State of Wisconsin resolved the issue by allowing all traditions to use the Capitol rotunda . Today you typically see a Nativity scene , Christmas tree diagram , menorah , Festivus pole and wintertime solstice scene ( with Charles Darwin , Albert Einstein and Mark Twain as the " Three Wise Men " ) on presentation . " The rotunda is getting very cluttered , " say Annie Laurie Gaylor , Centennial State - president of the Freedom from Religion Foundation , in a vulgar understatement to theAssociated Press .
The Supreme Court has said that if a Nativity scene is part of a display with other vacation symbol ( like Santa Claus , reindeer , a tree or a menorah ) then it is satisfactory to display on governance property . The Court observe that factors such as where the Nativity scene is exhibit ( such as high - traffic area ) and what sorts of spiritual sayings or messages are part of the display also should be think when specify if a Nativity vista can be displayed on government - owned property [ source : FindLaw ] .
1: Controversial Holiday Sweaters
Holiday sweaters are n’t just typically ugly — they can cause heated argumentation , too . In 2015 , Target carried a bright red sweater that boldly proclaimed " OCD : Obsessive Christmas Disorder , " which some said was a gibe at those sustain fromobsessive - driven disorder , known by its OCD acronym . Meanwhile , Nordstrom was selling a blue sweater that featured a largemenorah , dreidels and Stars of David , plus the tag end " Chai Maintenance " in a nod to a negatively charged stereotype about Jewish cleaning woman . Nordstrom pulled its offensive sweater after the outcry , although Target did not [ source : Channick ] .
Two year before , Hallmark create a tiny ornament depict an ugly vacation sweater . Trying to be politically right , the perspirer featured the phrase , " Don we now our FUN apparel ! " , a modification of the lyric in " Deck the Halls " that read , " Don we now our gay apparel . " The lyric variety end up offending nearly everyone . Gays and liberal pointed out the Scripture " cheery " is nothing to be ashamed about . Conservatives debate Hallmark should not have bowed to the politically correct by substituting a countersign that originally meant " well-chosen " and , well , " fun . "
After mastering the strange effort of see red the great unwashed on both the left and the right , Hallmark apologized for the offending ornament , and it quickly disappeared from the party ’s website [ sources : Top Tenz , Lutz ] .
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My goodness , translate about all of these controversies right as the holidays are arriving is both sad and rum . Sad that a vacation season intend to spread love and joy can return so much nastiness , yet funny to see all of the little things that hoi polloi can get so worked up about . Just chill , everyone !
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