Morning:
13°c
An awesome and ridiculous film that leaves you thrilled beyond the point of your natural endurance
London faces a wave of bus and Tube strikes that could cause chaos for millions of passengers as unions walkout over pay and conditions
More...
Ba humbug: Jack Straw lashes out at greetings cards for banishing 'Happy Christmas'
Last updated at 14:52pm on 17.12.07
A typical of Mr Straw's ire
Jack Straw has criticised greetings cards firms for banishing the words "Happy Christmas" in case they upset ethnic minorities.
The Secretary of State for Justice says it is almost impossible to find cards which carry the traditional message.
Instead, it has been replaced with the humdrum "Season's Greetings" message to avoid excluding other faiths during the Christian holiday.
Mr Straw, who is also Lord Chancellor, says companies are ignoring the real message of Christmas and diluting the celebration of Christ's birth by changing the wording.
The comments come in his weekly column for his local paper, the Lancashire Evening Telegraph - in which he called last year for Muslim women to remove their veils to aid community relations.
He writes sarcastically: "Merry Season. I hope you have a good one. What's Father Season bringing you?
"Oh, the usual Season presents. Then we'll have our Season dinner, to make the fact that this season is usually the cheeriest of the year.
"Gibberish, isn't it? But all I've done is substitute 'Season' for 'Christmas' and it's no different from the greeting card manufacturers, who in a vain effort, I imagine, to please all the people all the time employ the phrase 'Season's Greetings' in place of 'Christmas Greetings' or better 'Happy Christmas'.
"What we celebrate on December 25 is not the season, it is Christ's birth.
Words have meaning and there's a very good word for this in one language - Christmas.
"So what is it that possesses the designers and printers of greetings cards to seek to obliterate - or at least downgrade this accurate salutation?
"Who do they think they'll offend if they say the real word?
"Not the 72 per cent of the population who at the last census voluntarily repeated they were of the Christian Faith.
"How about the remaining 28 per cent? Many of those are of other faiths: Judaism 0.5 per cent, Islam 2.7 per cent, Hinduism, 1 per cent, Sikhism 0.6 per cent.
"When I meet friends of these faiths on their holy days I don't say 'Season's Greetings' or something similarly bland. I say, for instance, 'Happy Hanukkah' to Jewish friends, 'Eid Mubarak' to Muslim friends or 'Happy Diwali' to Sikh or Hindu friends.
"We are not a multi-racial no-religion society, but a multi-racial society, and the key to our collective happiness is mutual respect."
"Meanwhile, will the greetings card manufacturers please stop trying to airbrush Christmas."
Edward Monroe, a member of the Greeting Card Association, said: "There has been a move towards a more anodyne message in recent years.
"But it is not something companies have been encouraged to do. I am sure that this is a trend that will correct itself very shortly."
Gordon Brown's first choice of greeting card as Prime Minister should meet with Mr Straw's approval.
He and his wife Sarah selected a charity card featuring an illustration of ten children around a Christmas tree.
The card, for the charity Booktrust, which promotes reading, features a girl holding the message "Happy Christmas".
It makes a sharp contrast with Tony Blair's preference for cards featuring portraits of himself and his family.
Most MPs now have cards featuring the word "Christmas" following a backlash over a trend towards sending cards depicting non-traditional images.
Reader views (14)
I have noticed in recent years new Christmas Tradition; newspapers write scare mongering articles about local councils and schools banning nativity plays or the mention of Christmas and there is a whole load of hand wringing from people writing into papers about the “PC brigade” (whoever they are) and how it’s “political correctness gone mad”. Personally I don’t feel like it’s Christmas without it!
- Nick, London
I agree with Frank, they should all be made to work while we are enjoying our turkey and midnight mass.
- Dardellion Montblanc, London, UK
Christmas is, of course, nothing to do with Christ. The early Roman Christians usurped a pagan festival. What we celebrate is the Winter Solstice, a real event, and the traditional turning of the Seasons.
- Peter Bench, London
What a hypocrite, it is this man and his government who have turned our country into the PC obsessed place that it is! No good backtracking now Jack, your time is up!
- Anon, London UK
I am Jewish and do not know of one Jewish person who objects to Christmas cards, nativity plays, carols etc., etc. Those Jews who do not wish to participate in Christmas do so, without making any fuss. This is a Christian country and all of us who live here, whatever our religion, should remember that. But I am also inclined to agree, it is the PC brigade again spouting their lunacy.
- Cheryll, Ilford, Essex
I have seen plenty of cards which say Happy Christmas, Merry Christmas, Christmas Greetings, etc. Considering that modern Christmases have very little to do with "Christ's Mass" for most people in this country - and I am not talking about Moslems or people from other faiths - together with the fact that the celebration of Christmas at this time of the year was hi-jacked from earlier pagan celebrations for the Winter Solstice, Season's Greetings is perhaps just as appropriate. Or perhaps it should be called "Happy Shopmas".
- Pat, East Kent
'Seasons Greetings' is a perfectly acceptable Christmas message and has been for many years. 'Happy Holidays' as perpetuated by companies such as Coca-cola and Gap in their adverts is also just a matter of choice. If people celebrate 'Kwanza' or whatever that's up to them too, and I am sure shops would stock the cards if anyone bought them. and it's 'Merry Christmas' not 'Happy Christmas' traditionally in this country.
- Squiz, Islington
Thanks to the Labour party for pushing this cute'n'cudley, politically correct, multicultural rubbish down our throats for the past ten years, no-one is sure if they're likely to arrested for upsetting some minority group whilst celebrating the country's national holiday and their own religious beliefs.
- Dave, London
People who don't subscribe to a Merry Christmas celebrating the birth of Jesus should not be allowed any holiday at all. They should be made to work.
- Frank, England
Why is the word Christmas obscene to some people, I thought we were a nation of understanding and tolerance.
- Brian, Wiltshire
This is another chance for us to question what we really want to see on our cards at this time of year. The more we purchase cards with an ‘across the board’ message, the less we are true to our roots, and the more ‘correct’ we might become. It would be well to remember that the buying, sending and giving of cards should say more about us, than about those who manufacturer them.
It’s strange isn’t it that the Greeting Card Industry is keen to publish cards that promote and respect particular multi-racial celebrations, whilst seeming to churn out often bland, non-specific greetings for the Christian festival of Christmas.
- Geraldine Jozefiak, Norwich, Norfolk
This has nothing to do with ethnic minorities; the Muslim lady I work with as a hospital volunteer wished me a Happy Christmas and New Year when we finished work last week. No, this is yet again the PC brigade.
- Blind Pugh, Addlestone, UK
The answer is simple. If they don't mention 'Christmas', don't buy them.
- Paul, London
Cynical, I know - but why did they wait until long after everyone was getting upset about this sort of thing to speak out? Could it be that they are simply playing at political face-saving again?
- Rogan, Dallas TX
