It’s Time for the Holidays: Holidays Exposed

By Sebastian DiNatale

The Holiday season is upon us, and with it comes the sacred religious and cultural observations that Americans proudly practice. But what is it about the Holidays that Americans proudly observe? Is it the ancient teachings and writings of our religious ancestors, the remembrance of historical events in scripture, or the celebration of heritage? None. In fact, in recognizing and celebrating these holidays in the way most Americans do, we have proudly observed our ignorance.

This is going to be a critique of the three Holidays most Americans either recognize or are forced to recognize. If you are looking for holiday cheer, this is not the place.

We’ll start with Kwanzaa. I’ll begin by saying that the celebration of Kwanzaa shares a commonality with the practice of Hanukah in that it shows blatant hypocrisy. Kwanzaa is an African American and pan-African holiday which celebrates family, community and culture. Rather than signifying a historical event, such as the birth of Jesus Christ or the rededication of the Holy Temple during the Maccabean Revolt, it promotes cultural pride with no historic instance or message to guide it. The term itself means “first fruits” in Swahili, celebrating the first harvest. This might be cause enough to justify its historic relevance, that is, if the majority of its celebrators knew of the significance of this event.

Granted, the actual dates we celebrate Christmas are also based on farming traditions, such as the winter solstice. However the major difference is the theory behind why we celebrate such an event. For African-American to equate a harvest with cultural promotion is unsubstantiated. Plus, the majority of Africans don’t even celebrate the “first-fruits,” let alone a “holiday invented by an American in the 1960′s.

In short, African-Americans who do recognize Kwanzaa don’t celebrate the “first fruit”, much like many Christians trivialize the birth of Christ and Jews the Maccabean Revolt with presents and festivities.

What they do celebrate is ingathering, reverence, commemoration, recommitment, and celebration.

These five qualities are extremely important for any collective group to recognize and celebrate. In fact, many groups can take a page from this ethos and focus more on its importance. But my main argument here is that what Kwanzaa represents does not mirror its incorporation into mainstream American society.

You need not look further than the first fundamental activity it promotes: ingathering of the people to reaffirm the bonds between them. It is very clear that there is already a segregated community which focuses on the strengthening of that community.

Further, the actual establishment of the activity of Kwanzaa provides some more detail as to its actual meaning. Its self-proclaimed creator, Ron Karenga, said his goal was to “give Blacks an alternative to the existing holiday and give Blacks an opportunity to celebrate themselves and history, rather than simply imitate the practice of the dominant society.” He also claimed in an essay about religion that it was meant to be an alternative to Christmas, adding “Jesus was psychotic,” and “Blacks cannot except [ed. accept] the religion of another people.”

Other aspects of Kwanzaa’s creator’s life have affirmed that he does not exactly follow the “teach by example” methodology of instruction. He was found guilty in 1971 of felony assault and false imprisonment, a felony which included graphically torturing two women.

I’m not writing this as an attack on Mr. Karenga, his record speaks for itself. It is very possible that he learned from his mistakes and through Kwanzaa has developed a better understanding of man. Nor does a religious holiday’s founder have complete immunity, as Jesus was a criminal during the time period, and the Maccabeans Revolt led to the deaths of many people. But, Jesus had neither motive nor desire to create a holiday, nor did the Maccabeans. Mr. Karenga, on the other hand did.

The fact is that regardless of what you would like to believe, Kwanzaa started as a direct alternative to a “white” holiday Karenga did not appreciate. Karenga altered his position as he gained mainstream adherents, stating in his book Kwanzaa: A Celebration of Family, Community and Culture, that “Kwanzaa was not created to give people an alternative to their own religion or religious holiday.” Over the years, Kwanzaa has “evolved” to a more palatable cultural event, though the principal is exactly the same. It calls for inclusion of blacks only to appreciate their goals.

Again, to have a group or community that values its own merits and calls for the promotion and progression of a particular race in order to do good is perfectly acceptable, though many policies might not encourage it. But to ensure that Americans recognize such a holiday only acts contrary to its primary ethos: that the black community is different, and should not seek assimilation, but to promote their own unique identities. Inclusion of Kwanzaa into the mainstream does the exact opposite. It does not educate the white majority, in fact most people are ubiquitous to its principals. Nor does it promote tolerance of the black community, as more controversy surrounds the inclusion than not. In short, Kwanzaa contributes to the polarization of the holiday season.

I, as well as many people, am perfectly fine with the practice of such an event. What I am not fine with is the mandatory recognition it receives on foundations of political correctness, not logic. To put up a Christmas tree, even to a lesser extent a Menorah, in a location where celebrators attend, is done because the majority of people at that location associate or celebrate that holiday.

It is necessary to educate the public about the plethora of unique cultural appreciations, but if we are going to do it, it must be in a logical, apolitical manner.