Hello Ebrandon'ers, I wanted to get your input on what is happening at Souris School this year. The school has decided to cancel their annual school Christmas concert and instead have a "Winter Festival". Santa Clause will not be present for this event either. What are other peoples views on this.

it when school's do this!!  
The holiday is there because it's CHRISTMAS. no christmas, there'd be no "holiday"--(yes, for those who are going to blast me, save it, it's MY opinion and it won't change).

s123 said "it when school's do this!!   The holiday is there because it's CHRISTMAS. no christmas, there'd be no "holiday"--(yes, for those who are going to blast me, save it, it's MY opinion and it won't change). "

completely!!

my first thought was sure! Change is good & Santa can be found anywhere you look this time of year & it is such a busy time that maybe its not a bad idea...when would they be doing it?...but on the other hand...as a parent I LOVE watching the little plays & listening to the songs the kids have been working on for the xmas concert. So I guess it depends on what the format of the winter festival is as it is nice for kids to work on & present something to show family/community. I am from a small community & i know many of the seniors who dont even have a family connection to the school still look forward to enjoying the christmas concert! I would be curious to know the reason for the change.

s123 said "it when school's do this!!   The holiday is there because it's CHRISTMAS. no christmas, there'd be no "holiday"--(yes, for those who are going to blast me, save it, it's MY opinion and it won't change). "

would also agree with this. It is Christmas for gosh sakes

I would understand if the school division as a whole decided something like this should be done but it is only the one school doing it.

Kids (and adults) look forward to Christmas more than any other holiday. I'm curious as to why this is happening...is it because of certain people who don't believe in Christmas? I think those kids should not partake in the event if they don't believe in it...why take it away from all the other kids who look forward to it all year? This is really sad.

its sad that they changed it to a winter festival instead of a Christmas concert. but it doesn't surprise me, we have to be politically correct now a days, and apparently Christmas is not politically correct. when its called Christmas its not fair to the "non-Christians" who don't celebrate christmas. boo hoo. i think its stupid and too bad.

Blast me if you want, I agree with it is a HOLIDAY because it is Christmas!! Where does it end? If you don't want to join in the festivities for whatever reason, religion, culture that is fine. You don't hear anyone critisizing you for it so don't let the kids not partake that do celebrate it!! It is ridiculous already!! I am not jewish so I don't celebrate Hannuka (I think I spelled it wrong and I apologize!) but I think it is great for those who do choose to celebrate it as that is their CHOICE!! So, don't take it away because some might not want to partake for whatever reason, which again is THEIR choice!! Okay, I think I am done ranting.....  
 
Oh and MERRY CHRISTMAS to all who celebrate it!!

I know someone who should be attending souris school, and I think that even for a school they should at least have santa....It's something every child waits for and knows that the actual christmas is right around the corner.  
I can understand now wanting to have a christmas concert but a winter Festival...I think it might be a good change...could actually be something interesting...but no winter event is complete without the arrival of Santa himself.

before some jump to conclusions & assume the change is to be 'politically correct' because not everyone celebrates christmas...does anyone know the official reason they made the change?

SDT said "before some jump to conclusions & assume the change is to be 'politically correct' because not everyone celebrates christmas...does anyone know the official reason they made the change? "

I could be jumping to conclusions, but that is my guess anyway...its usually the reason why they change everything from "christmas" to "holiday" or "winter". What other reason would there be?

Santa has for the last couple of hundred years or so been associated with Christmas but this has not always been the case. It used to be that Christ was associated with Christmas. When I was a wee lad we prayed in school respectful of those who did not believe in Christ, they were not made to pray.  
Let's bring Christ back into Christmas and those who have connections to the Souris school, call them and ask to see why and stress your belief that Christmas pageants should go on. The squeaky wheel get the grease.

is what happened from what i heard, one parent asked what their child (who does not participate in chrismas) would be doing while the other children were preparing for the christmas concert.

Why do so many things have to swing so far one way or the other? Giving people religious freedom definitely is a good thing, but we shouldn't have to deny our own in the process. The "holiday" is Christmas. What is wrong with calling it that? We don't have to hide Christmas under the table in order to give others the freedom to celebrate their own "holidays".

it makes you wonder what next? the next thing you know is the teachers will have to go to work on Good Friday!

Let's deal with the reality of modern Canada - less than 10 % of our population go to Church - why should the MINORITY be able to continue dictating to the rest???  
 
I think Souris' school board is courageous and bold in being radically inclusive by making sure that the ONE child who had family willing to speak up is included in what should rightfully be a Winter Festival.  
 
Across Canada most School Boards celebrate the Holidays by recognizing the broad diversity of faiths and cultures that NOW people our nation.  
 
Why should Christian Holy Days be set aside for those who never darken the doors of any Church to begin with???  
 
For those who practise - go ahead, but let's not impose our values on others who don't practise the same faith ... Schools today should mark in some way ALL the Holidays from Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Sikh, Hindu, and so on ... we have members of these faith communities in our cities and towns, and the sooner we deal with THAT reality and become the welcoming FRIENDLY Manitoba we pretend to be, the better it will be for everyone.  
 
Embracing traditions from other cultural and faith backgrounds will not mean losing anything, it will just mean gaining ... Put Christ back in Christmas by removing it from the public celebrations ... and celebrate winter instead. Most of the traditions associated with Christmas are add ons anyway ...  
 
Oh, and did you know that the image of Santa Claus that we use predominantly today was created by the Coca-Cola corporation as a marketing campaign???  
 
Christmas today is NOT about Christ - it is about corporate greed ... and universalizing seasonal celebrations by embracing the many expressions from around the world would be apt and more appropriate.  
 
 
Edited by anknmn, 2009-11-20 10:34:47

The title of this thread is very misleading. Your making it sound like one school changing from a Christmas concert to a winter festival is completley cancelling Christmas in Souris.  
 
The school has decided to hold an activity that will include all of the children. Well shame on them! How dare they not cater only to the christian families and how dare they take into consideration the feelings of other children who will be made to feel left out and not part of the group! Let me guess, the parents of the children who don't believe in Christmas should just take a day off work and stay home with their child while they are excluded from the Christmas concert? Last time I checked, schools were for learning, not celebrating holidays. This is an extra activity for the students to have fun. The school doesn't have to do anything at all, so maybe you should be thankful they are doing something. And yes, I do celebrate Christmas, though not as a Christian.  
 
You people need to realize that we are well into the 21st Century and Christianity no longer rules the world. There are many different faiths, religions and yes, holidays that are celebrated by the people of this world. I'm willing to bet that in the next 10 year, there will either be a lot more holidays celebrated in schools (to capture ALL the religions), or they will stop celebrating any, so as not to offend anyone. And I would be fine with this since School is a place children go to learn. Any holidays we celebrate can certainly still be done at home. Christmas concerts should happen in church, since it's SUPPOSED to be a religious holiday, and kids can see Santa at the mall.  
 
Edited by Opinionated, 2009-11-20 11:24:10

Everyone could celebrate what they wanted to celebrate and not get offended by others.  
 
My family celebrates Christmas, but if my kids come home and say the school was to be doing something for Kwanzaa or if there was going to be a Hanukah party, I would think that's great.  
 
I WANT my kids to see other people's traditions, and I WANT my kids to respect the fact that other people celebrate things that we don't, or celebrate things differently than we do.  
 
I certainly wouldn't want the school to cancel the Kwanzaa play because people complained!  
 
I don't know why Souris is doing this, and the explanation isn't really clear. Maybe they just decided to not have a play. I really don't know.  
 
Suffice to say, we shouldn't cancel any celebration of any culture for any reason. That includes Christmas.  
 
We should be exposing ourselves and our children to different religions and celebrating our differences, if nothing else.  

Christmas isn't just celebrated by Christians, it is celebrated by non-christians as well, there is a holiday because of Christmas. Children look forward to Christmas, and mainly look forward to Santa, I just find it ridiculous that they are cancelling Santa because one child's parents complained. If I had children, I would have no problem with them celebrating another holiday at school such as Hanakuh, but i think they are taking the fun out of this holiday by removing Santa and removing a christmas concert. i find it quite sad.  
i agree with fefman, we shouldn't be canceling any sort of celebration.  
and opinionated, i do believe that in ten years we will not be celebrating any sort of celebrations in school as too many people are being "offended". I hope they don't mind when i remove my child from school on Good Friday.

I don't think we've heard the last of this story yet.There are many upset parents over the decision the school board has made and from the people I have spoken with they plan to do something about it.  
 
Stay tuned..........................

School is there to inform and teach. If there was a class that was dedicated to teaching about every Religion, I think that would be great, but as this is not the case, and Christianity is the only one that comes into play in our schools, then leave it out all together.  
 
I am not going to raise a fuss as my kids are doing the religious Christmas concert, even though we are not religious, they ask questions, I give them the anwsers, and they can make thier own choices as they become more informed. I am respectful of others beliefs, and want my kids to be as well.

Wesley said "Hello Ebrandon'ers, I wanted to get your input on what is happening at Souris School this year. The school has decided to cancel their annual school Christmas concert and instead have a "Winter Festival". Santa Clause will not be present for this event either. What are other peoples views on this. "

I have 3 children at Souris school, and I look forward to seeing what the Winter Festival has to offer!  
 
Santa Claus has become really tacky, and doesn't need to be at every event for 6 weeks.

anknmn said "Let's deal with the reality of modern Canada - less than 10 % of our population go to Church - why should the MINORITY be able to continue dictating to the rest???     I think Souris' school board is courageous and bold in being radically inclusive by making sure that the ONE child who had family willing to speak up is included in what should rightfully be a Winter Festival.     Across Canada most School Boards celebrate the Holidays by recognizing the broad diversity of faiths and cultures that NOW people our nation.     Why should Christian Holy Days be set aside for those who never darken the doors of any Church to begin with???     For those who practise - go ahead, but let's not impose our values on others who don't practise the same faith ... Schools today should mark in some way ALL the Holidays from Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Sikh, Hindu, and so on ... we have members of these faith communities in our cities and towns, and the sooner we deal with THAT reality and become the welcoming FRIENDLY Manitoba we pretend to be, the better it will be for everyone.     Embracing traditions from other cultural and faith backgrounds will not mean losing anything, it will just mean gaining ... Put Christ back in Christmas by removing it from the public celebrations ... and celebrate winter instead. Most of the traditions associated with Christmas are add ons anyway ...     Oh, and did you know that the image of Santa Claus that we use predominantly today was created by the Coca-Cola corporation as a marketing campaign???     Christmas today is NOT about Christ - it is about corporate greed ... and universalizing seasonal celebrations by embracing the many expressions from around the world would be apt and more appropriate.       Edited by anknmn, 2009-11-20 10:34:47"

not surprise me you disagree with almost every post on here, as you usually do.  
Christmas is part of Canadian culture, like it or not. It is celebrated by christians and athiests alike. (although i agree with you cheeky chuck). Let the kids have their fun instead of taking the fun out of everything in hopes of not offending anyone.

Opinionated said "The title of this thread is very misleading. Your making it sound like one school changing from a Christmas concert to a winter festival is completley cancelling Christmas in Souris.     The school has decided to hold an activity that will include all of the children. Well shame on them! How dare they not cater only to the christian families and how dare they take into consideration the feelings of other children who will be made to feel left out and not part of the group! Let me guess, the parents of the children who don't believe in Christmas should just take a day off work and stay home with their child while they are excluded from the Christmas concert? Last time I checked, schools were for learning, not celebrating holidays. This is an extra activity for the students to have fun. The school doesn't have to do anything at all, so maybe you should be thankful they are doing something. And yes, I do celebrate Christmas, though not as a Christian.     You people need to realize that we are well into the 21st Century and Christianity no longer rules the world. There are many different faiths, religions and yes, holidays that are celebrated by the people of this world. I'm willing to bet that in the next 10 year, there will either be a lot more holidays celebrated in schools (to capture ALL the religions), or they will stop celebrating any, so as not to offend anyone. And I would be fine with this since School is a place children go to learn. Any holidays we celebrate can certainly still be done at home. Christmas concerts should happen in church, since it's SUPPOSED to be a religious holiday, and kids can see Santa at the mall.     Edited by Opinionated, 2009-11-20 11:24:10"

husband and his family of athiests celebrates christmas, so does his friend who came here from ndia 20 years ago, because that is what we do in Canada. It is part of our cluture. It just has a different meaning to me than to my husband.  
What else from our culture will be dropped because somebody somewhere if offended....

People are assuming this is because 1 person was offended. Why can't it be just because sometimes a change is good?  
 
Maybe because of budget and time restrictions, the teachers simply don't have the resources to plan and produce the Christmas concert? How many of the parents that are upset would be willing to take on the annual concert as volunteers? Likely about as many as show up for the parent council meetings.  
 
A change isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Our non-christian teachers. Should they have to put together a Christmas concert, they don't believe and don't care about our religous beliefs. A public school needs to think about everyone, not just the majority. Leave religous celebrations to other forums. Have totally inclusive celebrations that everyone can attend and feel comfortable being a part of.

i think everyone is missing what the OP had put.  
 
"The school has decided to cancel their annual school Christmas concert and instead have a "Winter Festival""  
 
So there will still be a concert but it won't be entirely about Christmas and Santa. It will probably be about celebrating the winter season. What's the big deal about that? They'll still sing songs and dance around, they just won't be singing the same boring Christmas carols.  
I hope Souris' Winter Festival is a huge success this year. Maybe you should attend it and see what it is all about before you start bashing it.

Dickie Dunn said "Our non-christian teachers. Should they have to put together a Christmas concert, they don't believe and don't care about our religous beliefs. A public school needs to think about everyone, not just the majority. Leave religous celebrations to other forums. Have totally inclusive celebrations that everyone can attend and feel comfortable being a part of. "

many many non-christians celebrate christmas, as i've said my husband and his whole family of athiests, and many many others.  

This "politcal correctness" is starting to go too far. Christmas and Santa has been part of our holiday season for years. Newcomers and non christians shouldn't veiw it as offending but an opportunity to learn about Christmas tredition. I think the children would be losing out greatly.