The European Union’s Commissioner for Equality, Helena Dalli, recently issued a memo on inclusive communication. The guide sought to “reflect diversity” and combat “stereotypes deeply rooted in individual and collective behaviour.”
The report was full of the usual dreck about the necessity of replacing “Ladies and gentlemen” with “Dear colleagues,” and the perils of assuming anyone’s gender. It even noted that instead of potentially referring to the “colonization of Mars,” we should say “sending humans to Mars.” Okay.
But that’s not all. The EU’s Equality Czar issued this timely direction: all references to Christmas should be avoided, since referring to elements of Christian culture is tantamount to “assuming that everyone is Christian.” The generic term “holiday” is to be employed instead. The memo even implied that Christian names such as Mary and John were problematic and borderline offensive.
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