The European Commission wants to “cancel” Christmas in a bid to impose a language that undermines the European’s Christian identity. This false narrative refers to a set of communication guidelines that has been withdrawn by the Commission in the meantime.
NEWS: “In the midst of a health, energy and economic crisis, the European Commission is particularly concerned about the way we express ourselves and is inventing a new language, as in "1984"; Inclusive gibberish.
The Italian publication Il Giornale got hold of the European Commission Guidelines for Inclusive Communication, known as #UnionOfEquality.
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In the name of the holy inclusiveness, the European Commission goes as far as to cancel Christmas, urging us to stop using sentences such as “the Christmas season can be stressful”, and change it with “the holiday can be stressful.”
And if you think they’ve gone far enough, you are wrong. There is still room for more. Thus, in communications, we are urged to use "generic names" instead of "Christian names" when we are not referring to specific individuals.
For example, instead of "Maria and Ion are an international couple" we should say "Melania and Iuliu are an international couple".
The aberration goes as far as to ban words about which the politruks in Brussels say would bring back memories of times we don’t want to remember.
Thus, it becomes an offense to talk about "colonizing Mars." Not even "human settlements on Mars" would be correct. Instead, one has to say "sending people to Mars."In conclusion, in today's Europe, it is best to keep your mouth shut. Or leave”.
NARRATIVES: 1. The European Commission "cancels" Christmas and bans the use of Christian names. 2. The Commission requires the removal of terms that do not reflect gender or LGBTQI ideology. 3. The EU is destroying the European identity based on Christianity and family values.
LOCAL CONTEXT / ETHOS: European Equality Commissioner Helena Dalli has proposed a set of guidelines for inclusive communication based on the idea that equality and non-discrimination are "fundamental values of the European Union". Dalli wrote in the guide that any European citizen, "regardless of gender, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation" should be valued and recognized, which is the essence of the "Unity in Diversity" principle. The recommendations were addressed to Commission staff and officials and aimed at their official communication - in press materials, conferences, speeches, social media posts, etc.
The recommendations cover a wide range of topics - for example, European officials are told not to use the term "European" as a synonym for those living in the EU, as Europeans are also citizens of countries such as Ukraine, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania etc. Similarly, it is recommended that when using EU countries as an example, officials should not limit themselves to old or big members, such as France and Germany: "Whether you are in Berlin, Rome or Paris, EU laws protect you” should be replaced by "Whether you are in Berlin, Budapest or Vilnius, EU laws protect you."
These principles are also applicable to matter regarding gender, sexual orientation, etc.
Some of the document's recommendations are reminiscent of the ideas behind the so-called "cancel culture" trend, which is in turn reminiscent of the older "political correctness" and is strongly challenged by its right-wing opponents. They also denounce "cancel culture" in the campaign they are waging against left-wing opponents.
It should also be noted that for several years now, Russia has been involved in a fake news and disinformation campaign aimed at undermining and questioning the values that underlie the EU. The EU is referred to as "Gayropa", a space of homosexuals and pedophilia, in which Christian and family values are destroyed, and foreigners from abroad - migrants and refugees – are destroying the Christian, cultural and even ethnic identity. The idea of "canceling" Christmas, for example, falls within both the specific discourse of the radical right and that of Russian propaganda.
The conclusion of the ActiveNews article - “In today's Europe, it is best to keep your mouth shut. Or leave” - is also in line with a discourse promoted by radical sovereigntists and the Russian far right: the construction of Europe must be abandoned (obviously for the sake of freedom and traditional values).
PURPOSE: To promote narratives about a so-called attack on the European “identity”
WHY THE NARRATIVES ARE FALSE: The guide does not try to impose anything on EU citizens - it is strictly a matter of communication between officials, and its purpose is to ensure that this communication does not harm the feelings of any minority or any EU citizen. There is no question of banning names, it’s just a recommendation for the use of a wider range that reflects European diversity. Christmas is not "canceled"; it’s just that the European officials are told not to assume that all those they speak to/for are Christians and everybody’s sensibilities must be taken into account; Similarly, officials are told not to start from the assumption that the recipients of their messages are white, married, or heterosexual. It is not "an offense to talk about the colonization of Mars" or the use of the phrase "human settlements on Mars", the officials are merely advised to take into account the fact that such terms can have negative connotations (the former for the descendants of the natives of colonized regions; the latter given the fact that the English term “settlement” has a political connotation – and not only – in particular against in the context of the Middle East conflict).
For the time being, the recommendations do not even apply to European officials: after the document was denounced by Il Giornale and vehemently criticized by right-wing politicians, including former European Parliament President Antonio Tajani and former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, the Commission withdrew it. Furthermore, Helena Dalli has distanced herself from the document, stating that "it is not a mature document and does not meet all the Commission's quality standards".
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