Posted on 11/26/2005 12:00:04 PM PST by pissant
ENCINITAS – Three community groups and members of a Jewish temple are boycotting this year's holiday parade because the city reverted to a name that they said discriminates against non-Christian religions: the Christmas Parade.
Mayor Dan Dalager said he used his prerogative as mayor to ask staff members to change the name.
"Some years ago, someone in their bureaucratic wiseness decided to change the name to Holiday Parade. I just changed it back to its historically correct name," he said. "It's no big deal.
"There is a Christian holiday called Christmas that is celebrated in churches, and there is a Christian holiday called Christmas that is about Santa Claus and reindeer and snowmen and getting together with family and friends and having parades and all this stuff," Dalager said. "We are celebrating the American holiday called Christmas."
He said he will not change the name back.
The annual parade along South Coast Highway 101, the city's main drag, will be held Dec. 3 starting at 5:30 p.m.
Critics of the name change said the city is turning back the clock on religious and cultural tolerance at a time when many organizations have changed their Christmas celebrations to religion-neutral names, such as December Nights at Balboa Park instead of Christmas on the Prado.
They said the city should not favor a religion when it spends $4,000 to organize the parade, and they are trying to figure out how to change the name back to Holiday Parade.
"It is the ignorance that bothers me, the philosophy, the desire to exclude people, whether intentional or not," said Olivenhain resident Nan Sterman, who is Jewish.
Three community groups that had participated in previous parades have pulled out or indicated they will not take part this year because of the name change, said Chris Hazeltine, the city's parks and recreation director.
They are Leucadia Town Council, Bernese Mountain Dog Club of Southern California and Girl Scouts Seacoast Service Unit in Encinitas.
Rabbi David Frank of Temple Solel said many of the 800 households in his congregation will not attend.
"It makes it very difficult, obviously, to participate in this specifically Christian observance," Frank said.
Hazeltine said the mayor changed the parade's name at the beginning of this year when the city began planning its events.
Some critics accused Dalager of soliciting the support of two other council members in secret to switch from the Holiday Parade, violating the "Ralph M., Brown Act," which deems illegal any secret meetings among a majority of a legislative body.
Dalager denied the allegations and said he acted alone.
The number of community organizations applying to participate this year has dropped from last year's 95 to 82, Hazeltine said.
Last year's event attracted 30,000 spectators, city officials said.
Jennifer Zaayer, vice president of Bernese Mountain Dog Club of Southern California, said participating in the event would be taking a step backward.
"This reeks of a political time when people have their own agendas," she said. "I was shocked it was changed without being on the agenda for public comment."
Thank you for the link!!!
Great. What a terrible "concession" that had to make. Geez Louise!
Thanks for the link
They are. Except that you KNOW that most of these idiots also have Christmas trees and take their kids to see Santa. Maybe not the jewish whiners, but the rest of the pathetic losers do.
I do not shop or give business to the stores that do not have the word Christmas front and center. If all I see is Holiday this or Holiday that, I'm gone.
When I was in grade school, in an ultra-liberal school district, we used to have Christmas decorations at school and sing Christmas carols. Since then, our country has gone steadily backwards.
True, those were the days of the Protestant ascendancy, when mainstream WASPs were riding high, but that was sure preferable to what we have now, with the ascendancy of the separationist police who refuse to allow any public demonstration of religion, except maybe Islam.
My school was in Scarsdale, where there were surely enough Jews to stop the carols if they had wanted to; but thankfully they did not.
Good to see a real pissant out there!
I think the city should spend all the tax money they want on a parade for a Christian holiday and let the Jews and others move to another city or shut up. What's wrong with them?
OK, if anybody knows of any businesses in Encinitas that do mail order, I'm inclined to buy my Christmas presents from them.... Please advise :-).
"For the perpetually offended activists"
Isn't it about time the MAJORITY GETS OFFENDED.
Screw the minorities. They offend the hell out of me!
better yet, let the city pay for a parade for each religion's hoilday. Maybe a parade every weekend.
Well said.
Though Christmas is not ONLY an American Holiday, obviously, it is indeed a declared National Holiday.
It's not the observant jews and muslims that want to put the clmps down on Christmas. It is the secular humanist POS (plural) for the most part.
I'm about as pissy as can be, when it comes to my $$$ leaving my fingers. ROFL!
We have not eveolved that far. But anywhere where libs are in power, they try thru the declarations, rules and courts to tear down the traditions of this country. And they have met their match in a wave of conservatism (thank you Ronald Reagan) that will steamroll their petty designs.
I should have said "not ONLY an American holiday".
I said on another thread I almost feel like changing my name to "Christmas Christmas" so even if people just use the first or last name, they have to say the "C" word.
I sense sarcasm.
I have no clue about that. But good luck!
You don't look like Christmas Jones from the "The World is Not Enough" James Bond flick, I assume!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.