[ID: The classy Bugs Bunny meme. Bugs is dressed in a suit. OP has edited a festive mask and ratchet noisemaker onto him. Text to the left reads, “I wish all of my Jewish followers a very pleasant Purim”. End ID.]
About ten days ago, I wrote a seriesofposts regarding the difficulties Jews and people of other minority faiths encounter in western society when it comes to having our holidays respected and recognized. I got a lot of feedback from Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Jains, etc. echoing my sentiments (some of which was absolutely heartbreaking), and I have additionally seen a variety of otherposts on the matter that underline my point. When reading all of the notes and comments relevant to these posts, I noticed a very similar theme reappearing time after time:
“I didn’t take off for X holiday because I’m not that religious, but the scheduling was very inconvenient for my more observant friend or family member.”
Indeed, I had previously quoted former MLB player Gabe Kapler, who once made the justification to play baseball on Yom Kippur by saying:
“I am not really a practicing Jew. It would be selfish to be a practicing Jew on only one day.”
It would seem that many people have been led to believe that observing a Jewish or Muslim or Hindu holiday is cheating unless you are sincerely devout.
Well, I have a special message for those people:
YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO NON-CHRISTIAN SECULAR OBSERVANCES
This is important, so I’m going to say it again:
YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO NON-CHRISTIAN SECULAR OBSERVANCES
Think of all the times you have been chided by secular Christian friends for not celebrating Christmas.
“It’s not really even a religious holiday anymore,” people will tell you. “It’s just a nice time for families to get together and celebrate.”
Well, guess what? So is Rosh Hashanah. So is Eid. So is Diwali.
A secular Jew might not want to go to synagogue on Rosh Hashanah, but that doesn’t mean they don’t want to fly home for Rosh Hashanah dinner to be with their family.
A non-practicing Muslim may have lost interest in regular religious practices, but that doesn’t mean they don’t still look forward to Eid celebrations.
A lapsed Hindu can still have fond memories of celebrating Diwali as a youth, and want to continue on with their family traditions.
There is no written rule that says only people from Christian backgrounds can be non-religious and still celebrate their cultural holidays. There is no law that says only Christmas and Easter can be boiled down to family dinners and fun festivities.
BEING A SECULAR PERSON FROM A MINORITY FAITH DOES NOT INVALIDATE YOUR RIGHT TO YOUR OWN CULTURAL BACKGROUND.
It doesn’t matter if you haven’t prayed in years or don’t believe in God. If you want a day off for your holiday, take it. No matter what, it’s still yours.
wishing gender euphoria on all trans people, wishing for all trans people to feel at home in their bodies, to be absolutely and entirely in love with and at peace in their bodies
(or at least all Canadian citizens, which isn’t quite the same thing)
There is an election on September 20th. You need to vote.
But if you want to avoid crowds, or you might be away on the 20th, or you just want to get it over with so you don’t have to think about it anymore, the advance polls are open this weekend, Friday to Monday, 9am to 9pm. That’s the 10th to the 13th.
If you received a voter card, it will have your advance poll location on it. If you did not, you can find the location HERE (français). You can also vote at any Elections Canada office (français) before September 14th.
In order to vote you need EITHER a driver’s license or provincial ID card OR two pieces of ID, one of which has your current address. A letter from your University or residence counts. The full list of ID accepted is HERE (français).
If you are not yet registered to vote, you can register at the poll. You can register on Election Day. But it’s easier to register in advance, and you can do that online HERE (français) or in person at your local Elections Canada office (français) until Tuesday
September 14th.
You can alsovote by mail(français), but you must apply to do so by Tuesday
September 14th.
what I really like about all these vintage couple’s portraits is that there is a very certain romatic decorum kept up – certain themes and poses – which, while of course being the mainstream preferred view of couples repeated throughout many studios, are just… so nice to look at.
this staged affection, a mix of theatricality and intimacy, the couple holding still for a couple of moments and now immortalised in a very set sequence of embraces and kisses. there is a charm to it even when I can’t tell whether this was a genuine couple portait or just actors hired by the photographer.
the kiss on the bare shoulder (eyes perfectly averted), the cheek caress, the piano and the violin, the interrupted embrace, the woman tilted back as in a half-stopped dance…
I simply must torment you a bit with these, let us see some of my personal favourites! (part one due to the image limit)
let us start with the kiss on the cheek (eyes averted! oh the pose! these were taken between 1910-1940)
or the nearly opposite energy (how daring!) of the kiss or caress with direct eye contact (1910-1930)
and then the innocent – yet so flirty – classic of the park encounter! (1890-1920)
and then the famed kissonthebareshoulder – what an idea, what a vibe, such intimacy! (1910-1930)
and oh, I am not done, look at this – theadorationofthewoman! look at this expression, this pose, this decorum! (1910-1940)
and then some of my favourites from the more playfulordirectcategory, enjoy (1910-1930):
and, at last (thank you for still being here and witnessing my recent fascination with vintage polish photography) my three absolute favourites outside of any particular categories (1910-1930)
