If you haven't noticed, it's June.  Well, the month formerly known as June.  Perhaps you didn't realize the change, so let me provide a brief history and bring you up to speed.

In the late 1500s, Pope Gregory XIII instituted the use of the Gregorian calendar, of which June is the sixth month.  Gradually, over the centuries, this style of calendar gained popularity and spread around the globe, becoming the international standard in most places.  It normalized planting and harvesting schedules; holidays; events; historical records; and, especially, in more modern times, vital dates for international finances and global commerce.

Despite the centuries of history and accepted practice, June is being canceled and replaced with Pride month.  Ironically, the month of June is named after the Roman goddess Juno, the goddess of marriage and women, and the wife of Jupiter — a much too gender-conforming construct for 2021.  All you have to do is explore social media or corporate websites for a few minutes to see the communal proclamations of Pride month everywhere — superfluous imagery of rainbow-blazoned corporate logos, men in garish makeup, ads for drag queen storytime, or celebrations of young people transitioning.

But isn't this all a bit much?  Why does the sentiment of a few override centuries of common cultural practice?  Shouldn't we get a vote as to whether June should be renamed for a month of celebrations for gay, lesbian, pansexual, non-binary, transgender, queer, etc. people?  The answer given by LGBT advocates and corporate America is a resounding no!  We do not get to maintain the Judeo-Christian values held dear by centuries of Americans.  Instead, we are force-fed the idea of acceptance, and if you don't, you'll be canceled.

We should be concerned as a society when a small minority of people can unilaterally change our culture, customs, and history without ever asking our opinion.  This has happened time and time again over the past year, with the overwhelming consent and support of media and corporate America.  Whether it is the destruction of statues, renaming of buildings, or the continued alteration of our calendar, we're discarding our history as if it's an old, used tissue.

It was once considered cute when we humorously named June 4 national doughnut day or January 24 national peanut butter day.  But today it seems that everyone needs a celebration, and so we have heritage and inclusion months throughout the year.

February is African-American history month, March is women's history and Irish-American heritage month, May is Asian Pacific and Jewish American heritage month, June is now Pride month (too many identifiers to call it Gay and Lesbian month any longer), September is Hispanic-Latino heritage month, October is Italian-American heritage month, and lastly November is American Indian heritage month.  But to list some is to exclude many.  Where are the months to celebrate Caribbean, German, Scandinavian, French-Creole, or people from India?  When is enough enough?

Unfortunately, we live in a time when identity politics reign supreme.  People want to claim this label or this identifier so that they can feel a sense of belonging.  They want to feel as if they're a part of something bigger than themselves, a cause or group of people that needs to fight perceived injustices.  We have several generations (Millennials and Z) that have been taught to hate their own country, and so they hitch their cart to the cause du jour like BLM or transgender rights.

The side-effect is that when we divide ourselves by ethnicity, sexuality, or politics, we identify only differences, and we lose sight of our commonalities.  Instead of seeing other Americans, we categorize them by perceived ethnic, sexual, or political labels.  This is dangerous.  Our relationships must be based off our character alone, not our looks or proclivities.

We are a nation comprising many different types of people, but we are all American.  We are a nation with many different languages, but we are all American.  We have different religious and political beliefs, but we are all American.  It's time to recall the old saying: "United we stand, divided we fall."

The more we divide ourselves and identify our differences the harder it will be to see what we have in common.  We are a great nation where people can pursue their dreams with hard work, where you can go from rags to riches in a single generation, where people worship freely, where people love and care for their families as they choose.  We live in a great nation, a nation of many people, blessed by our Creator, but we can no longer afford to divide ourselves into disparate groups.

We must forgo Pride month and all the other heritage and inclusion months.  Forget the countless labels.  Instead, let's get back to calling ourselves Americans and celebrating what makes our country great: all Americans.

Image: Pride parade by Silar.  CC BY-SA 4.0.

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