Becoming culturally aware helps appreciate other’s beliefs

We are entering the season when people are getting in the full swing of the holidays, and they are beginning to celebrate important observances representing their wide variety of religious and cultural backgrounds.

Last week the Associated Student Government hosted a holiday tree lighting that featured a multi-cultural storybook reading of holiday stories from around the world.

The Advocate thinks it was great to host an event that catered to more than just Christmas, which seems to be the most widely celebrated holiday in America. Because of the diverse culture we have on campus, it is great to cater to all of the other celebrations that take place during the holiday months such as Kwanzaa, which begins Dec. 26 and ends Jan. 1. Kwanzaa is a seven-day, African celebration that honors African American heritage and culture.

In a Kwanzaa celebration, there is a candle lighting with seven candles; there is also a dinner and gift giving.

Hanukkah is an eight-day Jewish observance celebrating the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem after a successful revolt against Syrian occupation in the Second Century B.C. As a part of the celebration candles are lit on a Menorah, which has nine-branches; one candle is lit each night leading up to the final night. Hanukkah begins at sunset on Dec. 20 and ends at sunset on Dec. 28.

It seems Hanukkah and Kwanzaa are winter observances that have a fairly large following, even if they don’t match the monopoly of American traditions that is Christmas. But we would like to see a wide range of cultural holidays recognized on campus, whether it is a large event dedicated to learning about all sorts of multicultural holidays and having various activities dedicated to each tradition or if it was split into a week of smaller, more condensed activities, where each day focused on a different tradition.

We think it is important for young people to be aware of other cultures and traditions and be taught about the importance and significance of these traditions.

Whilst one is walking through a store during the holiday season, they might notice that the decorations, candy, wrapping paper and other related items give Christmas special treatment. Christmas material may take up several isles while Hanukkah decorations are only given an end cap, while no Kwanzaa decorations are found at all.

Other holiday celebrations on a smaller scale are the Winter Solstice, also known as Yule, which celebrates the solstice occurring when the axial tilt of Earth’s polar hemisphere is farthest from the sun, thus generally marking the beginning of shorter nights and longer days. This year’s solstice is on Dec. 22.
Another smaller and possibly not very well known holiday is Epiphany, also celebrated in the winter months. The Christian celebration of Epiphany is a day of feasting celebrating God the Son that will take place on Jan. 6.

The Advocate would like to promote a multi-cultural awareness of winter holidays on campus to highlight our vast cultures and our traditions.
We encourage you to learn about other holiday celebrations and learn why they are important. We hope that you will emerge from the experience a more culturally aware individual.