Many examples of making Christmas disappear have recently come to the attention of the Catholic League. Here are some of them:
- An insert in the New York Times Magazine of November 18 entitled, “The Best of the Season,” had a calendar section that listed events for Hanukkah on December 9 and Kwanzaa events for December 26. For December 25, the only listing was for “A walking tour through a century-and-a-half of Jewish history” on the Lower East Side.
- On December 3, the Copley News Service ran an article on “Travel and Adventure” in New York. The only event listed for December 25 was a “Jewish Lower East Side Tour.”
- “Holiday Light Spectacular” is the name of a booklet that covers events at Jones Beach that runs from November 17 to January 1. Released by New York State’s Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, the “Holiday Trivia” section lists questions regarding Hanukkah, Winter Solstice and Kwanzaa. Christmas is not included.
- The Farmer’s Almanac Every Day Calendar 2002 highlights Jewish holidays in a respectful way while ignoring or treating lightly Christian holidays.
Catholic League president William Donohue remarked as follows:
“None of this is by accident. All of it is by design. Though none of it is organized, it remains true that many of our elites are at war against the values that have undergirded our society from the beginning. The instances cited above are no less invidious than the more blatant attacks on Catholicism that we’ve recorded. Those responsible for making Christmas disappear are not against cultural celebrations, per se: it’s just Christian ones they deplore.”
