Windmill Point Elementary School in Port St. Lucie, Florida, canceled its Christmas pageant.  Why?  Because it could be associated with Christmas.

The pageant itself, A Penguin Christmas, had no religious themes, overt or subtle; its subject matter featured characters such as Santa Claus, Rudolph, elves and, obviously, penguins.  However, a district spokeswoman said many people associate those symbols with Christmas.

That, along with the pageant’s use of the word, was enough for the school to cancel the play on the grounds that its mention of the holiday may be offensive.

But take comfort: though both Halloween and Thanksgiving could be offensive, they are still safe to mention in school.

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Highlights from the Palm Beach Post’s article:
“‘Any reference to a religious holiday has the potential to offend anyone who is not part of that particular persuasion.'”

“‘I feel like I have the principal that canceled Christmas.'”

“Windmill Point parent Heather Cowart, mom to third-grader Logan, said she was upset last year when Logan’s teacher demanded he not bring Santa cupcakes, candy canes or other Christmas-themed treats to a ‘holiday party.’ Even donations of canned goods to the needy had to be wrapped in newspaper, not traditional wrapping paper, Cowart said.”

“Last year Logan got in trouble for saying “Christmas” in class. Is that a bad word now?'”

“‘Everywhere in Florida, and probably the whole country, there is a heightened awareness to not be offensive to anyone,’ Karst said.”