Around Christmas time, the coined phrase “naughty or nice” returns every year, signifying whether children will receive presents or not. The American Family Association, AFA, has twisted this phrase to mean something entirely different. Depending on a company’s recognition or promotion of Christmas as a religious holiday, they will be dubbed as either “naughty” or “nice.” The master list, posted on their website, lists companies under one of three categories: nice, marginal, or naughty. The goal of the AFA is to bring the word “Christmas” back into the seasons’ advertisements by boycotting those who view the word as taboo.
Refusing to support a company due to its lack of use of the word “Christmas” is utterly ridiculous. Freedom of speech and religion are important freedoms in the United States, and seeing companies attacked for exercising their use of these rights is sickening. Whether a company plasters the words “Merry Christmas!” or “Happy Holidays!” on their commercials and store displays is entirely up to them. There is no reason to boycott and strike against companies who simply apply their rights to company decisions.
The same ridiculous protests against rights include other freedoms given to U.S. citizens such as gun rights. The constitution plainly states that we have the right to bear arms – or own a gun. Various groups protest against this right, advocating revoking gun rights from ordinary people just as the AFA boycotts companies at Christmas-time. This ludicrous idea will spread, creating new groups demanding to remove another freedom that we enjoy.
Committees are very quick to claw at companies’ throats for not supporting homosexuals or not using the word “Christmas” while advertising when there are plenty of other reasons to boycott a company that are overlooked such as mistreated employees, outrageous overpricing, animal-tested products, or environmentally hazardous products. Many are willing to jump to conclusions when religious matters are involved but hesitant to make a scene about less controversial issues. Consistency is just as important as what you’re standing up for.