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I call it the, "Oh, God! My kids are home for two weeks break!"
Local Schools Reject Christmas
The Grinch couldn't steal Christmas, but the school board sure can.
Very few San Antonio area school districts refer to "Christmas" or "Christmas Vacation" in their official communications and schedules, although all specifically designate holidays for "Thanksgiving," "Veterans Day" and "Martin Luther King Day," 1200 WOAI news reported today.
In the Northside ISD, Bexar County's largest, as well as in the Judson district, the time off that happens to fall around December 25 is officially referred to as "Winter Break." In the North East and Edgewood districts it is "Winter Holidays." It's "Holiday Break" in the New Braunfels ISD, In the Randolph Field ISD, it's even more politically correct, referring to the time off simply as a 'Teacher-Student Holiday.' In San Antonio, only the East Central, South San and Harlandale school districts refer to "Christmas, although Harlandale calls it the "Christmas/Winter Break," and South San pleases everybody with "Christmas/Winter Holidays." Moving further away from the city is apparently good for traditional values. The Boerne, Seguin, Pleasanton, and Comal ISD's all refer to the holiday as 'Christmas."
No district appears to have the same PC problems with "Thanksgiving" and many even refer to Easter. But Christmas, apparently, is a no no.
"We have all kinds of families that live out here," Northside's Pascual Gonzales explained. Not everybody celebrates Christmas.
Polls shows roughly 85% of Americans consider themselves Christians and celebrate Christmas, and that figure is larger among Latino families. In fact, polls show a far smaller percentage of Americans celebrate Thanksgiving, Veterans Day, and Martin Luther King Day, although all those are prominently named on the official Northside calendar.
Parents in the Northside district have had it up to here with political correctness. They call the holiday Christmas and they want the school district to call it that too.
"Right now in society if you offend people, they are anxious to sue and get on TV and get publicity," one Northside parent told 1200 WOAI's Michael Board.
Another woman rejected the use of the term 'winter break' in a part of the country that doesn't have a traditional winter.
"If it's during Christmas time, why would it be 'winter break'?" she asked.
"We thought it would be better to call it is 'winter break' because it does better describe the time of the year," Gonzales said.
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This message is from me, a Northside ISD taxpayer, graduate and former employee.
For the love of God, 'one Northside parent,' there are a TON more things to worry about in the NISD than whether or not the term Christmas is used.
Hey 'another woman,' why don't you ask the district why the children in the district are coming out less prepared for college than in the past?
Why don't you ask the Lege why they can't get some finance reform passed so teachers can concentrate on teaching instead of whether they can make the bills this month?
God, I hate sweeps months.
I call it the, "Oh, God! My kids are home for two weeks break!"
This is so stupid. I would see the outrage if you made a jewish kid play Santa Claus but we as a society have become so disgustingly PC. Do Jews, Muslims and others really get offended if its called "Christmas Break?" I guarantee the kids don't care. Every kid got the time off no matter what faith they were...how is it offensive?
It doesn't matter to me what the school districts call it because they have no say in how my family celebrates the Holidays other than what days my kids will be off.
I remember Jewish parents ing when my youngest was in kinder.
I see SA is feeling the after effects of cracking down on strip clubs on the NE side.Why don't you ask the Lege why they can't get some finance reform passed so teachers can concentrate on teaching instead of whether they can make the bills this month?
Booo, X-Mas!!
just because it was called Christmas Break?I remember Jewish parents ing when my youngest was in kinder.
I think they were ing about not doing anything crafty that reflected Hanukkah. So my son came home with an Star of David ornament he made. I should have complained.
Wouldn't surprise me. I know of a Jewish Principal in an elementary school who will not allow any decorations at Christmas Time unless they are snowmen or snowflakes. No trees, wreaths, Santa's (WTF????), elves, reindeer. No kidding. She even tried to stop teachers from wearing sweaters with the traditional themes on them. Don't like the sweaters personally, but give me a freakin' break!
I kinda get the ornament thing but they should have asked instead of . Still...I don't see how calling it "Christmas Break" is offensive. If they said "only people who believe in Christmas can be off" then yes.
Oy vey.
Well, calling it Winter Break is in no way inappropriate, and I don't get the moron ing about that.
The reality is that most schools still decorate with trees, sparkly things, red and green and gold . . . so until that stops, the semantics of the time off is pretty irrelevant.
I don't think it's a big deal - or - I think there are much bigger fish to fry in education. The people who about this stuff are missing the point. By God, they'll elect someone who says they support prayer in school, but not someone who is serious about something as important as FINANCING the schools without raising property taxes to unpayable proportions (thank God the legislature had enough time in the four extra special sessions to give themselves raises, right?). Teachers will work for nothing! Why bother paying them?!?
without raising property taxes to unpayable proportions
In Texas they will be phasing out the school district portion of property taxes....legislation has already passed. They are now in the "how the do we recoup that money and from what other sources" stage.
Heed taken. What of it?
The reason xmas is during the winter because the xtians adopted the period when the pagans were already having their winter festival. So the Winter break is older and more accurate. Same with thanksgiving and easter which were originally seasonal festival periods, so don't get so high and mighty on us nonbelievers of supers ions.
Northside ISD sucks...
Unless the break begins after 21 Dec, it is not a winter break. Good to see that they teach basic astronomy in schools.
What is this "winter" you speak of?
A phenomenon of cold weather that affects mainly Yankees and is limited to two weeks in Texas per the last special session of the Texas Legislature. You see, the Republicans in Texas have in their possession a weather changing machine that can affect the world.
Two weeks? Not in South Texas!
I am not of a non-Christian faith so I cannot say it is not offensive and I do see how some of other faiths could be "offended" for a lack of a better term.
But again it matters not to me because it is simply a name which leads me to wonder why someone would be "offended" by the the term "Christmas break".
I don't agree with it....but I can understand it.
I can understand it, too. But tough , get over it. I'm sure people of other religions own stock in retail companies who profit from Christmas sales, where's the outrage over that?
Two totally different issues.
But I agree...tough for everyone. Call it "school-closed" and move on!!
Okay. Then let's just call it Hanukah Break. That's equally appropriate and descriptive. I'm sure nobody will be offended by that characterization.
It's more approrpriate, to me, to call it Winter Break, because it accurately describes the reason for the break without insinuating the many different things that go on during that time. The break extends beyond December 25 and through the New Year, so it's not just about Christmas.
Thanksgiving and Easter create different situations. The break is set up specifically for the purpose of allowing celebrations of those days, just as some ins utions have specific holidays to allow for the celebration of Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur. It would be odd to describe those holidays by anything other than the inherently-religious name associated with the reason for the celebration.
But in the Winter time, when schools give kids 2 weeks off, there it's not just about Christmas. It makes perfect sense to me to describe the period accurately, even if it offends those Christians who seem to be begging for governmental acknowledgment these days.
^^I concur.
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