Texas governor Rick Perry signed a new law in 2013 called the “Merry Christmas” law. The new law protects Christmas and other holidays in Texas’ public schools from legal challenges.
The law was initiated when Representative Dwayne Bohac learned that his son’s school had erected a “holiday” tree, as the word “Christmas” was banned in the school for fear of attracting litigation. Mr. Bohac remarked that the exclusion of any reference to Christmas at public schools was “political correctness run amok”.
The Christmas controversy, called the “War on Christmas” by Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly, has taken a variety of forms.
In 2005 the City of Boston erected a “holiday tree” that incensed the Nova Scotia farmer who supplied the tree to Boston. He said he would rather put the tree in a wood chipper than put up with misguided political correctness.
Nativity scenes were barred in public schools in New York in 2002, a position that prevailed when the public school authorities were sued.
In 2007 a public school in Ottawa caused alarm when the word “Christmas” was excised from the school choir’s rendition of “Silver Bells” and replaced with the word “festive”. A few years later another public school in Ontario cancelled their Christmas concert and replaced it with a winter craft fair and concert in February.
Major American big-box chain stores have also been subject to criticism. Sears, Home Depot, Kmart, Target, Walmart, and others who left out the word “Christmas” in their marketing material acceded to pressure from customers and Christian lobby groups to reinstate the name of the religious statutory holiday.
Meanwhile Texas has led the way for “Merry Christmas” laws in Alabama, Tennessee, and Missouri with bills awaiting enactment in several other American states.
As for me, I say both “Merry Christmas” and “Happy Hannukkah”.
Lawdiva aka Georgialee Lang
Lawdiva's Blog 
Good for Texas! Finally, a bit of common sense! Political correctness has truly run amok. We are becoming a nation that is afraid to express ourselves. It would be nice if politics simply supported all faiths and allowed them to celebrate their practices in peace notwithstanding one’s ethnicity or background. Christians celebrating Christmas, Jews their Hannukka, Islamists celebrating Ramadam or Wiccans with the Sabbats, all should be free to peacefully celebrate and use language that is appropriate to their faiths without interference of Progressives who wish to marshal our freedom of expression and our culture.
Thank you for bringing this out in the open. It’s so hypocritical for people to take time off from work, exchange gifts, eat themselves silly, go to Christmas parties, etc., etc. in order to celebrate a “holiday” which we all know refers to Christmas yet “Christmas” has become an unmentionable word. Perhaps it’s time for Canada to grow a backbone and follow the lead of Texas!!
Thanks for your insightful, sensible comment! Merry Christmas to you!