Happy Immutable Characteristic Month!

Wednesday was the start of March, and the beginning of Women’s History month. It came after February, which is Black History Month, and before April, which is Arab-American heritage month. Throughout the year, there is also an Asian-American Pacific-Islander Heritage Month, a Haitian Heritage Month, a Jewish-American History Month, a Caribbean-American Heritage Month, LGBT Pride Month, and many others. There is a Black Catholic History month, but not a Catholic History month. At this point, some people will object to all these different groups having their own months while there is never a Men’s History Month or a White History Month. Why do women have a history month, but men don’t? Why does every other ethnic group have a history month, but white people don’t?

Why are the accomplishments and achievements of white people and of men being slighted, and not appreciated with a specified month in their honor? It feels like a slap in the face, an attempt to disrespect members of those two groups. White men are not allowed to be acknowledged for their accomplishments because they have been designated for cancelation. It is curious that every white man is continually reminded of and held accountable for every bad thing that white men have ever done in history, but at the same time white men are not supposed acknowledge any good that any white men has ever done. Ignore all the good and focus solely on the bad. That’s healthy for society.

But the more I think about it, the more I go back to the way I thought, when I first heard of the idea of a month honoring a specific group of people. It is stupid. It is pandering. It is divisive. It is the exact opposite of healing and unifying. These months encourage people to view themselves based on their gender or their ethnicity or the color of their skin, thinking of themselves in a way that is the exact opposite of what is healthy for themselves and best for society. We are all individuals. We are all unique unto ourselves. By lumping us into specific groups by criteria that do not or should not define us, is confining, putting us into a box.