Decades ago, when I was a liberal Democrat, I bought into the fallacy that saying “Merry Christmas” was wrong. But back then, I also thought murdering a baby in the womb was right. As (my husband and) I slowly morphed into Reagan Democrats and then finally abandoned the now Marxist-leaning Democrat party to register as Republicans, I realized that celebrating Christmas is fundamental to the United States remaining a beacon of freedom in the world. Commemorating Christmas guarantees freedom of religion for all Americans.

Think about it. If a nation where about 80 percent of its population is Christian is denied its own religious beliefs (“Merry Christmas” morphing into “Happy Holidays”), what chance do smaller religions such as Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, etc. have for celebrating their holidays? If woke Marxists can remove the nativity scene from Christmas and replace it with Santa Claus, it’s even easier to remove the Hanukkah menorah and replace it with Liberace’s candelabra.

My story

December approached along with Bill O’Reilly’s nightly commentary about ridiculous liberal attacks on Christmas and how many stores were quickly going along with the woke agenda. The silent majority griped about it, but many grudgingly accepted the woke mandate that “Christmas” was bad, but “holiday” was good. Family and friends said, “Merry Christmas,” but didn’t complain when shopkeepers put the two joyous words in the history bin. These were the days before the Tea Party and MAGA movements, back when some conservatives erroneously believed that, if we just gave in to this madness, maybe those nutty progressives would leave us alone.

At the same time, I noticed that many Southern California stores had started featuring small Hanukkah displays. Having grown up in Bayside, Queens (which was predominantly Jewish in the 1960s), it was nice to see reminders from my childhood.

Image made using Adoration of the Magi (1480-90), Menorah, and festive background.

However, I also noticed something very wrong with most stores’ festive décor and decided to do something about it.

Proudly showcasing my Star of David necklace, I checked out the store’s Hanukkah and Christmas displays. Then standing by the Hanukkah items, I asked to speak to the manager. Invariably, when the managers approached and saw a big smile on my face along with the Star of David, they quickly assumed it would be a friendly conversation. It went something like this:

Me: I want to thank you and (store name) for the small Hanukkah display. Being Jewish, I appreciate that you have it.

Manager: You’re welcome. We want to recognize all the holidays.

Me: But I have a question.

Manager: Yes.

Me: You correctly call the Jewish holiday by its proper name Hanukkah and yet you insult my Christian friends by calling their Christmas “holiday.” This makes no sense to me at all. If it’s “Happy Hanukkah” for Jews, it should be “Merry Christmas” for Christians.

Manager: Well, uh, you know, um, corporate, um, well, you know, instructs us to say, “Happy Holidays.”

Me: They are wrong. As a Jewish woman, I can assure you that recognizing Christmas is as important as recognizing Hanukkah. Please give me the name of your CEO and the corporate address as I plan to write a letter about this. It’s not your fault, as you’re the store manager, but this corporate policy insults all people of faith.

And like a crazy meshuggenah, I wrote those letters to the store’s CEOs. In the few instances when someone responded, it was usually a boilerplate form letter that made little sense unless you believed that Santa Claus was the reason for the season.

And here we are today. Progressive lunacy has given us a society filled with misguided people who think they can pick from hundreds of genders or no gender (when they’re not busy stealing luggage from airport carousels). They want to convince young children that they can medically alter their gender without parental consent, that men have can give birth, that teachers should discuss kinky sexual acts with kindergartners, that one race matters more than another, that biological men wearing skirts are women, that abortion after birth is acceptable, that millions of illegal aliens can waltz into our country, that criminals shouldn’t be arrested and …

E N O U G H !

The attack on our freedom started with words when Marxist progressives demanded that “Merry Christmas” become “Happy Holidays” and I say, “Enough!” As Benjamin Franklin warned: “Whoever would overthrow the liberty of a nation must begin by subduing the freeness of speech.”

David Horowitz of the nonprofit David Horowitz Freedom Center wisely urged all us Americans as follows:

“This December, it’s more important than ever that religious Americans honor their traditions and do what they know is right. Because no matter what you believe or how you worship -- it’s a decision you and your loved ones should make for yourselves -- not the government’s decision to make for you.”

Every American Thinker reader can “do something” to promote America’s Judeo-Christian values, the values that, since our nation’s founding, have made the United States a unique and blessed nation. Don’t sit around ranting on social media or nodding in agreement with your favorite evening news hosts. Whether it’s writing letters, making phone calls, or sending email messages to elected officials and corporate CEOs, there is always something we can do to have our conservative patriot voices heard.

From glowing Hanukkah lights to joyous Christmas nativity scenes, conservative patriots must not acquiesce to progressive demands that America abandon its Judeo-Christian foundation. Let’s commit in this New Year that each of us will “do something” to embrace the reason for the season and the reason for the United States of America.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Hanukkah!

Happy New Year!

God Bless all American Thinker readers and God Bless the United States of America.

Robin M. Itzler is a regular contributor to American Thinker. She can be reached at PatriotNeighbors@yahoo.com.