Forbes Coaches Council Post: Hanukkah Isn't Christmas And That's OK! Five Ways To Rethink Religious Inclusion At Work
Rand Braun is a member of the Forbes Coaches Council, where this post was first published on Forbes.com.
There’s an elephant in the room and it’s not the $15 Starbucks card in your office’s white elephant gift exchange. Rather, we need to talk about the "holiday season" at work, specifically how we celebrate Christmas and Hanukkah.
As a Jewish woman, let me tell you, I love enjoying the Christmas spirit with my Christian friends and colleagues. I live for a good old-fashioned cookie exchange, I love the music and decor and I even have an ugly sweater just for themed parties in December. I’m all in on participating in your Christmas fun as your guest for an evening but, at work, I have to ask: Please stop trying to make your holiday my holiday.
Hanukkah is not Christmas, and we need to stop lumping them together. I’m OK with this and, if you celebrate Christmas, I want you to be OK with it, too. Because while it's often a well-meaning attempt to be inclusive, it can actually have the opposite effect and make people feel excluded.
Instead of wishing your Jewish colleagues “happy holidays,” this year, all I want for Christmas is for you to do these five things:
Understand what Hanukkah is about.
Hanukkah commemorates the against-all-odds miracle of a tiny army of Jewish people (the Maccabees) fighting off an occupying Greek army that had desecrated the Jewish temple and persecuted the Jewish people for practicing their religion. After expelling the Greeks, the Maccabees found just enough oil to light the menorah in the temple for a single night. Miraculously, that oil burned for eight nights and days. That's why we light the menorah for eight nights, eat lots of oil-centric food like latkes (potato pancakes) and sufganiyot (jelly doughnuts) and why Hanukkah is often called the “Festival of Lights.” Here’s the bottom-line takeaway: This is a holiday that celebrates the Jewish people's refusal to assimilate, so when we try to make it Christmas, we kind of ruin the point, ya know?Check in on the holidays that matter most.
I can’t count how many times I’ve been asked what I’m doing for Hanukkah and the answer is usually, “Um... lighting the menorah?” In fact, I'm more likely to have big plans on Dec. 25 as it's a time-honored Jewish-American tradition to order Chinese takeout and watch movies on Christmas. Of all the Jewish holidays I observe, Hanukkah is one of the most minor ones. It simply punches above its weight due to its proximity to Christmas. It will likely mean more to your Jewish colleagues if you check in around the High Holy Days like Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) and Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement), or during Passover.Order inclusive food.
There is nothing that brings people together in an office like free lunch, am I right? As somebody who keeps kosher, I’ve attended countless corporate meals where I’m promised lunch only to be fed leftovers on a crudité platter or an iceberg salad. Jewish people are not the only religious group who often require dietary accommodations. Consider the restrictions of your Muslim employees who observe a Halal diet or the many faiths like Hinduism, Jain or Buddhism that require a vegetarian diet. If you’re rolling your eyes and thinking "You can’t please everyone," consider the extent you may go to accommodate your gluten-free colleagues. If you can order them pizza with a gluten-free cauliflower crust, can you please also order us something without the pepperoni?Have a more holistic calendar view.
I was recently asked to speak at a diversity, equity and inclusion conference on the Eve of Passover. That’s like me asking a Christian if they have time to fly across the country to attend a conference the day before Christmas. And it’s not just Jewish people. I spoke to a woman recently who had to pass on an incredible speaking opportunity because it conflicted with Diwali. Organizations should put all of the important holidays on the calendar and strive to schedule things like meetings, retreats and conferences on more inclusive dates.Recognize and stop antisemitism at work.
Jewish comedian Amy Schumer did a funny yet painfully poignant skit about antisemitism at work that I recommend watching. In a way, it mirrors my own experience. People have made assumptions about my financial choices, saying I'm "cheap" or "obsessed with money." They've commented on my looks: “You have a Jewish face but don’t have a Jewish name.” Often, I’m expected to understand and be able to explain everything that happens in Israel (never mind that I’m actually American, not Israeli). The truth is that antisemitism is no laughing matter. It's one of the world's oldest and most enduring forms of ethnic hate and violence and, according to the Anti-Defamation League, antisemitism is at an "all-time high" in the United States. I’m not here to be a Grinch. I so appreciate the spotlight my faith gets at this time of year, but I’m hoping to use the attention to illuminate these five ways you can be more inclusive toward your Jewish colleagues this winter.
Randi Braun is a certified executive coach, consultant, speaker, and the CEO of Something Major. Get in touch with Randi via email or social (below). Copyright 2022. All rights reserved.