Walpurgisnacht (Witches' Night)

Walpurgis Night (Walpurgisnacht) is a traditional religious holiday of pre-Christian origin, celebrated today by Christian as well as non-Christian communities, on April 30 or May 1 in large parts of Central and Northern Europe. Early Christianity had a policy of 'Christianising' pagan festivals so it is perhaps no accident that St. Walpurga's day was set to May 1. Historically Walpurgisnacht is derived from various pagan spring customs. Bonfires were built to keep away the dead and chaotic spirits that were then widely believed to walk among the living. This is followed by the return of light and the sun as celebrated during May Day, although bonfires and witches are more closely associated with Easter (especially in Ostrobothnia, Finland) and bonfires alone with midsummer in the rest of Finland.

In Estonia, Volbriöö is celebrated throughout the night of April 30 and into the early hours of May 1, where May 1 is a public holiday called "Spring Day" (Kevadpüha). Volbriöö is an important and widespread celebration of the arrival of Spring in the country. Influenced by German culture, the night originally stood for the gathering and meeting of witches. Modern people still dress up as witches to wander the streets in a carnival-like mood.

In Finland, Walpurgis day (Vappu) is, along with New Year's Eve and Juhannus, the biggest carnival-style festival held in the streets of Finland's towns and cities. The celebration, which begins on the evening of April 30 and continues to May 1, typically centres on copious consumption of sparkling wine and other alcoholic beverages. Student traditions, particularly those of the engineering students, are one of the main characteristics of "Vappu". Since the end of the 19th century, this traditional upper-class feast has been appropriated by university students. Many graduates from lukio, and thus traditionally assumed as university students or alumni, wear a cap. The cap of the engineering students is distinguished by a pom-pom hanging from it. One tradition is to drink sima, a home-made mead, along with freshly cooked doughnuts.

In Germany, Walpurgisnacht, the night from April 30 to May 1, is the night when witches are reputed to hold a large celebration on the Blocksberg and await the arrival of Spring.In some parts of northern coastal regions of Germany, the custom of lighting huge fires is still kept alive to celebrate the coming of May, while most parts of Germany have a derived Christianized custom around Easter called "Easter fires". In rural parts of southern Germany it is part of popular youth culture to play pranks such as tampering with neighbours' gardens, hiding possessions, or spraying graffiti on private property. These pranks occasionally result in serious damage to property or bodily injury. One of the best places to celebrate Walpurgisnacht is the town of Thale, where not-so-pagan hordes of 35,000 or more arrive for colourful variety events and the Walpurgishalle museum tells you all you need to know about sacrifices, rituals and local myths. People dress as witches and toss away all reserve as they dance around fires.

In Sweden, Walpurgis Night (Swedish: Valborgsmässoafton or simply Valborg) has become a public holiday. The forms of celebration in Sweden vary in different parts of the country and between different cities. Sir James George Frazer in The Golden Bough writes that "The first of May is a great popular festival in the more midland and southern parts of Sweden. On the eve of the festival, huge bonfires, which should be lighted by striking two flints together, blaze on all the hills and knolls". One of the main traditions in Sweden is to light large bonfires, a custom which is most firmly established in Svealand, and which may have begun in Uppland during the 18th century: "At Walpurgis (Valborg), farm animals were let out to graze, and ever since the early 18th century bonfires (majbrasor, kasar) have been lit to scare away predators". In Southern Sweden, an older tradition, no longer practised, was for the younger people to collect greenery and branches from the woods at twilight: these were used to adorn the houses of the village. The expected reward for this task was to be paid in eggs. Singing traditional songs of Spring is widespread throughout the country. In Uppsala students also go rafting in Fyrisån on home-made and often humorously decorated rafts. Several nations also hold "Champagne Races" where students go to drink and spray champagne or sparkling wine on each other. The largest celebration is in Stockholm’s Skansen open-air museum, where a festive concert runs from mid-afternoon to around midnight. In Gothenburg, students from the Chalmers University have for the last century conducted the Cortège parade, with floats showing mock scenes from major events over the past year. More than 200,000 people line the streets to view the parade.

April 30 is "pálení čarodějnic" ("burning of the witches") or "čarodějnice" in the Czech Republic, the day that winter is ceremonially brought to an end, by the burning of rag and straw witches or just broomsticks on bonfires around the country. The festival offers Czechs the chance to eat, drink and be merry around a roaring fire.

Information from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walpurgis_Night
http://journals.worldnomads.com/worldfestivals/post/29465.aspx

Today's Celebrations April 23rd!

Today is...

Aragon Day in Spain

Children's Day in Turkey

Children's Festival Day in Cyprus (Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus)

National Sovereignty in Turkey

Peppercorn Day in Bermuda

St. George's Day in Canada, Spain and the United Kingdom

Castilla y Leon Day in Spain

World Copyright Day

St. George's Day Christianity

Batty Man.

Homosexuality has been legal in the uk for 40 years but to be gay in the black community is still looked down on. Gay comedian, Stephen K Amos, looks at why.

He starts by doing a social experiment in Croydon, South London. He takes 8 men, 1 who is gay and 7 who are straight and asks passersby to "spot the gay". Of the 9 men, 5 were black and 3 were white but it was constantly the white men who were chosen, even though all of them were straight. Stephen wonders if this is because being gay is more associated with being white than black. Stephen then took out the 3 white men and left the 5 black. People found it much harder now to choose, with one woman saying "none of them look gay". Stephen then asked people to pinpoint the person they thought was definitely not gay and there was one man in particular that kept being picked as the definietly straight guy, with people saying he looked like a "player" and a "womaniser". He was the only gay guy. When this was revealed, people were always in shock. When Stephen asked whether it proves you can't look gay, one woman said "stereotypical ennit...that views gone out of the window".

One night Stephen is doing stand up in Brixton, South London, to a predominantly black audience that do not know he is gay. For years Stephen hid his sexuality for fear of not being accepted by the black community. Then one event had a profound effect on him. In 2006 one of his friends was killed just for being gay. This inspired him not to hide who he was any longer and he created a one man show where, at the end, he revealed to the audience that he was gay. This gig in Brixton will be the first time he comes out to a mainly black audience. As soon as Stephen says it, the atmosphere completely changed and all fell silent. Suddenly the room felt full of tension and aggression. He went around the room to talk to some of the people. One man said, "I dont do that gay shit", another said "within the black community youre less likely to be accepted by your family if youre coming out and syaing youre gay you might not have a mum or dad anymore", another man said "there are some reasons why gay people dont come out and one of those is the levels of homophobia in our community that dont allow them to be gay", a woman said "when you asked if there were any gay people in the room,there was a hushed silence because no one wantd to say they were gay in brixton because you mght get stabbed outside". Afterwards, Stephen said it was the toughest gig he had done in a long time.

He then went Tooting, where he grew up, to speak to some youths about being gay. One said "they shouldnt have gay people on tv, or out on the road" another "my familys christian so im against gay peope" two girls agreed "if my brother was gay i would disown him" and later said "black gay people are putting the shame on our race they're making us not look black" one girl said "just make a different country for them ennit" one man said "i dont understand how balck people are thinking that they can be gay, i dont think that could actually run" another boy said "give me 2 women and i would be perfectly fine with that" but he was cussed out by the girls around him. This same boy said "if it wasnt for the music and that, i dont think no one here would have a problem with gays because we've been brought up to believe that gays are not right" They started singing an Elephant Man song where the chorus is "step on the chi-chi (gay) man! step on the chi-chi (gay) man!" Another 2 boys had most of what they said bleeped out apart for the words "batty boy". One of these boys said "tellin the truth, in Jamaica thats what they say: batty man must dead".

Stephen decided to go to Kingston, Jamaica to talk to Elephant Man. The strange thing is, Elephant Man said "i got nothing against gay people, do what you want to do, live your life, i cant come and tell you whatever, so do what you wanna do". Stephen wanted to find out what had changed his mind. He finds out that his lyrics had got him in trouble in places like USA so if he wanted to be successful there, he had to change that. Stephen said it was quite an eye opener to see what people will do when there are western dollars involved.

Homosexual acts are illegal on the island of Jamaica and those caught can serve up to 10 years in prison or hard labour.

Stephen met the band the Heavy Steppaz. His producer thought it would be safer if he stayed in the car and the producer would interview them. One of the band said "for a black person to be gay is really wrong...if a friend switched and turned to be a fish (gay)...theres one thing i think for anyone who turns fish...six foot deep." Another said "must be a man and a women...i say its wrong in many ways...to be a batty man you'll end up dead. straight bullet or gunshot or one of those things...if they really turn into a batty boy they cant see me or hail me they cant be my friend they cant even walk near me, much less look at me. thats a straight bullet. we dont see those things in our class or in our league. im telling you straight because right now a man to woman thing we deal with round here...the whole of jamaica, i know that certain men deal with those things...but if he wants to deal with that he'll have to take the backdoor where no one can see him...a straight bullet."

Stephen finally got to meet one young man called Kevin who risked his life to talk in front of the camera. "Being black and gay in Jamaica is very hard...there are times you have to hide because you're afraid to be who you are in public because you might get killed or those that should help you won't love you anymore...it all comes from the Bible and how people were brought up and dancehall, reggae music...i would pray and pray and pray that i would be happy with who i am and that God would still love me for who i am...i havent come out yet officially...if more gay people come out, i will be a lot easier for the younger generation to be acepting of who they are".

Stephen went to one of the jamacian churches to talk to the young christians to see if they thought it was ok to damn gay people using scriptures. The pastor said "as a pastor people come to me and say they have homosexual tendencies and i say bredrin, i dont see it the way you see it, i dont accept it the way you accept it but remember that you have a brother in me and im not gna kill you, im gna defend you. im not gna defend what you stand for, but im gna defend you as my brother, a human being". The people there believe that people can be conditioned to be gay, it is not genetic and they will be there to help people change this condition. Archbishop of Kingtson said "to use christiantiy is a lie... it usually comes from those with a limited understanding of the bible. You can justify anything by taking out a particular part of the bible. It was used to support apartheid. I certainly wouldnt be bashing homosexuals because they homosexuals, that is completely contrary to our christian faith".

Back in England, Stephen decided to come out to a group of young people face to face. their reactions were partly very encouraging with one girl saying "love is love, happiness is happiness and if that means being with another man, then that means being with another man, simple as that". However, not entirely: "I just see it as wrong...thats just my personal belief...i just feel uncomfortable". One boy said "if i was gay i would pray to god to be put down to dead because i cant see myself being gay".

Stephen talks to gay couple Perry and Olisa who have hidden their sexuality since they were teens. Perry said "before i came out, i was a homophobic. when you first realise it, you dont want it. you dont want to be gay". Olisa said "you can look at me and say im masculine. I could take you down the rugby field and break your nose and say yeah im masculine". Perry agreed "just because you sleep with a man, doesn't mean you aren't masculine". Perry said "my black friends dont know im gay. they wont talk to me again". Olisa said "i havent told my mum yet...i would have been on the first plane to Nigeria if i told her when i was young". Later that night, Olisa told his mum. He was really scared but said she was absolutely a brilliant mum. He said now hes got his approval he doesnt care what anyone else thinks.

Watching the programme back, Stephen hears all the arguments for homophobia and says none of them stack up. The religious argument doesn't wash, neither does the one that you arent masculine nor that pushing them out forces them to change. All fear of homophobics does is give homophobia a platform. The only way to dispell the fear is to face up to it, and thats the hardest lesson of all. Stephen said "I thought I was a strong ballsy comic with attitude and a lot of thinsg to say but i never thought i would have to regress into myself like i had to when we were in Jamaica. There were certain situations where i couldnt express myself and i dont owe anybody anything, i was denying myself and meeting Kevin who was younger, lived there and expressed himself so eloquently taught me something. Hey, stand up and be counted".

If you live in the UK, you can click here to watch this documentary

Greek Independence Day

After centuries of unsuccessful uprisings and failure of the Ottoman Empire to assimilate and convert the Greeks, The War of Independence began in 1821 rising up against 400 years of occupation and oppression by the Ottoman Turks. The origin of the Turkish occupancy began in 1453 with the fall of Constantinople (currently referred to as Istanbul). During the dark years of the Ottoman occupation, thousands were killed and tortured for attending church or teaching their children culture, history and language. It was the Greek Orthodox Church that helped to retain their very identity by the institution of Crypha Scholia (Hidden Schools).

The celebration of Greek Independence Day on March 25th draws inspiration from one of the holiest days for Greek Orthodox Christians, the Annunciation of the Theotokos. This is the day that the Archangel Gabriel announced to Mary that she would bear a child. Bishop Germanos of Patras seized the opportunity by raising the banner of revolution, in an act of defiance against the Turks and marked the beginning of the War of Independence. These freedom fighters, or klephts as they were called, of Greece sacrificed much for their country. Kolokotronis, Nikitara, Karaiskakis, Bouboulina, and Mpotsaris are some of the heroes of the revolution.

During this period there was a strong maritime tradition on the islands of the Aegean which, together with the emergence over the 18th century of an influential merchant class, generated the wealth necessary to found schools, libraries and pay for young Greeks to study at the universities of Western Europe. It was there that they came into contact with the radical ideas of the European Enlightenment, the French Revolution and romantic nationalism. Educated and influential members of the large Greek diaspora, such as Adamantios Korais and Anthimos Gazis, tried to transmit these ideas back to the Greeks, with the double aim of raising their educational level and simultaneously strengthening their national identity.

The struggle for independence was supported abroad by intellectuals of the day. In addition to the Secret Society of Friends (Filiki Etaeria) and the Sacred Band (Ieros Lohos) prominent world figures including Lord Byron of England, Daniel Webster and Dr. Samuel Gridly Howe of the United States raised the interest level among Europeans and Americans.

The Peloponnese (a region in southern Greece), with its long tradition of resistance to the Ottomans, was to become the heartland of the revolt. The crucial meeting was held at Vostitsa (modern Aigion), where chieftains and prelates from all over the Peloponnese assembled on 26 January. There, the klepht captains declared their readiness for the uprising, while most of the civil leaders presented themselves sceptical and demanded guarantees about a Russian intervention.

On 17 March, 1821, war was declared on the Turks by the Maniots in the town of Areopoli. An army of 2,000 Maniots advanced on the Messenian town of Kalamata, which fell to the Greeks on 23 March. On the same day, Andreas Londos, a Greek primate (bishop), rose up at Vostitsa. On March 28, the Messenian Senate, the first of the Greeks' local governing councils, held its first session in Kalamata. On 22 March, the revolutionaries declared the Revolution at the square of Agios Georgios in Patras, in the presence of archbishop Germanos. On the next day, the leaders of the Revolution in Achaia sent a document to the foreign consulates explaining the reasons of the Revolution. On 23 March, the Ottomans launched sporadic attacks towards the town while the revolutionaries drove them back to the fortress.

By the end of March, the Greeks effectively controlled the countryside, while the Turks were confined to the fortresses. Many armatoloi in Central Greece had joined the Filiki Eteria. When the revolution erupted they took up arms alongside the revolutionaries. The first region to revolt in Central Greece was Phocis on 24 March. In Boeotia, Livadeia was captured on 29 March, followed by Thebes two days later. The Ottoman garrison held out in the citadel of Salona, the regional capital, until April 10, when the Greeks took it. Cretan participation in the revolution was extensive, but it failed to achieve liberation from Turkish rule due to Egyptian intervention. The final major engagement of the war was the Battle of Petra, which occurred north of Attica. Greek forces under Demetrius Ypsilantis, for the first time trained to fight as a regular European army rather than as guerilla bands, advanced against Aslan Bey's forces and defeated them. The Turks would surrender all lands from Livadeia to the Spercheios River in exchange for safe passage out of Central Greece.

From November 15 to 20, 1821, a council was held in Salona (present-day Amfissa) in which the main local notables and military chiefs participated. Under the direction of Theodoros Negris, they set down a proto-constitution for the region, the "Legal Order of Eastern Continental Greece", and established a governing council. A month later, a national legislative assembly was formed at Epidaurus, consisted almost exclusively of Moreot notables. The Assembly composed the first Greek Constitution and appointed the members of an executive and a legislative body that were to govern the liberated territories.

On 21 December 1828 the ambassadors of the United Kingdom, Russia, and France met in the island of Poros, and prepared a Protocol, which provided for the creation of an autonomous state ruled by a monarch. Under the pressure of Russia, the Porte finally agreed on the terms of the Treaty of London of 6 July 1827, and of the Protocol of 22 March 1829. Soon afterward, the United Kingdom and France conceived the idea of an independent Greek state, trying to limit the influence of Russia on the new state. Russia was not delighted by the idea, but could not reject it, and, consequently, the three powers finally agreed to create an independent Greek state under their joint protection, and concluded the Protocols of 3 February 1830.

The consequences of the Greek revolution were somewhat ambiguous in the immediate aftermath. An independent Greek state had been established, but with Britain, Russia and France claiming a major role in Greek politics, an imported Bavarian dynast as ruler, and a mercenary army. The population of the new state numbered 800,000, representing less than one-third of the 2.5 million Greek inhabitants of the Ottoman Empire. In the long-term historical perspective, this marked a seminal event in the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. For the first time, a Christian subject people had achieved independence from the Ottoman rule and established a fully independent state, recognized by Europe. The Greek Revolt legitimized the concept of small ethnically-based nation-states and emboldened nationalist movements among other Christian subject peoples of the Ottoman Empire. The Serbs, Bulgars and Romanians would all subsequently fight for and win their independence, while the Armenians would fail as even in their traditional homeland they were outnumbered five-to-one by Muslims (Turks and Kurds).

The flag of Greece has not changed since the revolution. The white cross in the upper left hand corner covering one fourth of the flag signifies the important role of the Greek Orthodox Church in the formation of the Hellenic Nation. The blue and white alternating stripes represent the sea and the relentless waves of the Aegean. According to legend, the Goddess of Beauty Aphrodite emerged from these waves. There are nine stripes representing each letter of the Greek word for freedom, Eleftheria.

Information from:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_War_of_Independence#Central_Greece

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahmud_II

http://www.helleniccomserve.com/greekindependence.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Areopoli

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primate_(religion)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arcadia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peloponnese

Saint Joseph's Day in Italy, Malta, The Philippines, Spain and the USA!

Saint Joseph's Day, March 19th, the Feast of St. Joseph or Solemnity of Saint Joseph is in Western Christianity the principal feast day of Saint Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is a Solemnity in the Roman Catholic Church, a feast in the provinces of the Anglican Communion, and a feast or festival in the Lutheran Church. Saint Joseph's Day is the Patronal Feast day for persons named Joseph, Josephine, etc., for religious orders, schools and parishes bearing his name, and for carpenters. It is also Father's Day in some Catholic countries, mainly Spain, Portugal, and Italy.

March 19th always falls during Lent and according to Canon law if the feast day falls on a Friday, the obligation to abstain from meat or do penance is lifted. If the feast day falls on a Sunday (other than Palm Sunday), it is observed on the next later available date instead: this is the following day, Monday March 20. From 2008 onwards, if St Joseph's Day falls during Holy Week, it is moved to the next earlier available date, usually the Saturday before Holy Week. This does not apply to Traditional Roman Catholics who follow the older calendar and maintain his feast on March 19 as well as on the Wednesday before the Third Sunday after Easter.

St. Josesph's Day in Italy

In Sicily, where St. Joseph is regarded by many as their Patron Saint, and many Italian-American communities, thanks are given to St. Joseph ("San Giuseppe" in Italian) for preventing a famine in Sicily during the Middle Ages. According to legend, there was a severe drought at the time, and the people prayed for their patron saint to bring them rain. They promised that if he answered their prayers, they would prepare a large feast to honor him. The rain did come, and the people of Sicily prepared a large banquet for their patron saint. The fava bean was the crop which saved the population from starvation, and is a traditional part of St. Joseph's Day altars and traditions. Giving food to the needy is a St. Joseph's Day custom. In some communities it is traditional to wear red clothing and eat a Sicilian pastry known as a Zeppole on St. Joseph's Day.

Upon a typical St. Joseph's Day altar, people place flowers, limes, candles, wine, fava beans, specially prepared cakes, breads, and cookies (as well as other meatless dishes), and zeppole. Foods are traditionally served containing bread crumbs to represent saw dust since St. Joseph was a carpenter. Because the feast occurs during Lent, traditionally no meat was allowed on the celebration table. The altar usually has three tiers, to represent the trinity. Some villages like Belmonte Mezzagno use to burn wood and logs in squares on the day before St.Joseph, as thanksgiving to the Saint. This is called "'A Vampa di San Giuseppe"(the Saint Joseph's bonfire).

St. Joseph's Day in Malta

This is one of the public holidays in Malta, known as Jum San Ġużepp. In this day people celebrate mass in the morning, and in the afternoon go for a picnic in the countryside. It is a liturgical feast in the localities of Kalkara, Manikata, Msida, and Qala, but the Maltese typical festa each of these localities celebrate it in a particular Sunday in summer. However, the city of Rabat celebrates the traditional Maltese feast on the 19th of March, where in the evening a procession is also held with the statue of St Joseph. On this day also the city of Żejtun celebrates the day, known as Jum iż-Żejtun (Zejtun's Day). In the past years the Żejtun Parish Church has celebrated these feast days with a procession with the statue of St Joseph.

St. Joseph's Day in Spain

In Spain, the day is a version of Father's Day. In some parts of Spain it is celebrated as Falles. The Falles (in Valencian) are a Valencian traditional celebration in praise of Saint Joseph in Valencia, Spain. The term Falles refers to both the celebration and the monuments created during the celebration. Each neighbourhood of the city has an organized group of people, the Casal faller, that works all year long holding fundraising parties and dinners, usually featuring the famous speciality paella. Each casal faller produces a construction known as a falla which is eventually burnt. A casal faller is also known as a comissió fallera.

St. Joseph's Day in The Philippines

In the Philippines, many families keep a tradition in which an old man, a young lady and a small boy are chosen from among the poor and are dressed up as St. Joseph, the Virgin Mary, and the child Jesus, respectively. They are then seated around a table set with the family's best silverware and china, and served a variety of courses, sometimes being literally spoon-fed by the senior members of the family, while the Novena to St. Joseph is recited at a nearby temporary altar.

St. Joseph's Day in the United States of America

In New Orleans, Louisiana, which was a major port of entry for Sicilian immigrants during the late 19th century, the Feast of St. Joseph is a city-wide event. Both public and private St. Joseph's altars are traditionally built. The altars are usually open to any visitor who wishes to pay homage. The food is generally distributed to charity after the altar is dismantled. There are also parades in honor of St. Joseph and the Italian population of New Orleans which are similar to the many marching clubs and truck parades of Mardi Gras and St. Patrick's Day. Tradition in New Orleans also holds that by burying a small statue of St. Joseph in your yard, your house will sell more promptly. In addition to the above traditions, some groups of Mardi Gras Indians stage their last procession of the season on the Sunday prior to St. Joseph's day otherwise known as "Super Sunday," after which their costumes are dismantled. In the Mid-Atlantic regions, St Joseph's day is traditionally associated with the return of anadromous fish, such as striped bass, to their natal rivers, such as the Delaware. St Joseph's Day is also celebrated in other American communities with high proportions of Italians such as New York City; Buffalo; Chicago; Kansas City, MO; Gloucester, Mass.; and Rhode Island. St. Joseph's Day is also the day when the swallows are traditionally believed to return to Mission San Juan Capistrano after having flown south for the winter.

Information from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falles and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Joseph's_Day

Harriet Tubman: "The Black Moses"

Today is Harriet Tubman day in the USA and to celebrate, we are going to tell you all about this stunning woman.

Harriet Tubman was born Araminta "Minty" Ross to slave parents and as with many slaves in the USA, her exact date of birth wasn't recorded and estimates of the year of her birth are between 1820-25. Her maternal grandmother arrived on a slave ship to the US from Africa, but no other information about her ancestors is known. She was the fifth born of nine children.

Her mother, Harriet or "Rit", struggled to keep the family together as slavery tore it apart. Her owner Edward Brodess sold three of her daughters, separating them from the family forever. When a trader tried to buy her son Moses, she hid him for a month, aided by other slaves and free blacks in the community.When Brodess and the potential buyer finally came to seize the child, Rit told them "You are after my son; but the first man that comes into my house, I will split his head open." The sale was then abandoned. Tubman's biographers agree that this event influenced her belief in the possibilities of resistance.

As a child Harriet took care of her younger brother and a baby. At 5 or 6 she was hired as a nursemaid to watch a sleeping baby and when the baby woke and cried, Tubman was whipped. Later, to protect herself from the abuse she wrapped herself in layers of clothing but cried out as if she wasn't protected. Another time she bit a man's knee while receiving punishment; afterwards he kept his distance. She also worked for a planter and was ordered into nearby marshes to check the muskrat traps. Even after contracting measles she was sent into waist-high cold water. She became very ill and was sent back gone, to be nursed back to health by her mother. As she grew older she was assigned to gruelling field and forest work. One day as a teenager she was struck on the head by a 2 pound weight which was aimed at a different slave. She was sent back to her owners house and left without medical care for 2 days and then sent back to the fields. Her boss said she wasn't "worth a sixpence" and returned her to Brodess who tried unsuccessfully to sell her. She began having disabling seizures, headaches, powerful visionary and dream activity and spells of hypersomnia which occurred throughout her entire life. A devout Christian, she ascribed her visions and vivid dreams to premonitions from God.

In or around 1844 she married a free black man named John Tubman. Their union was complicated due to her slave status. The mother's status dictated that of the children so any children born to Harriet and John would be enslaved. Tubman changed her name from Araminta to Harriet soon after her marriage though the exact timing is unclear.

In 1849 Tubman became ill again and her value as a slave diminished as a result. Brodess tried to sell her but couldn't find a buyer. Tubman began to pray that her owner would change his ways and stop trying to sell her. When it appeared as if the sale was being finalised, she changed her prayers, instead praying for God to kill him. Brodess died a week later and Tubman expressed regret for her earlier sentiments. Brodess' widow began selling the family slaves but Tubman refused to wait for the Brodess family to decide her fate. Tubman and her brothers Ben and Henry escaped from slavery on September 17 1849. Tubman was hired out to Dr. Anthony Thompson and it is likely her brothers labored for Thompson too. Two weeks later, Brodess' widow posted a runaway notice offering a reward for the return of her slaves. Tubman's brothers succumbed to second thoughts, fearful of the dangers ahead, and went back, forcing Tubman to return with them. Soon afterwards Tubman escaped again, this time without her brothers. Tubman made use of the extensive network known as the Underground Railroad. This nformal but well-organised system was composed of free and enslaved blacks, white abolitionists and other activists.

In 1850 Tubman received warning that her niece and her niece's two children were going to be sold. Horrified at the prospect of having her family broken up even more, Tubman returned to the land of her enslavement. Tubman's niece and children escaped and Tubman brought the family safely to Philadelphia. The following spring she went back to Maryland to help guide away other family members. This time she brought back her brother Moses and two other unidentified men. As she led more and more individuals out of slavery, she became popularly known as "Moses" - an allusion to the prophet in the Book of Exodus who led the Hebrews to freedom. In the fall of 1851 Tubman returned to Dorchester County to find her husband. While she had been gone, John had married another woman named Caroline and Tubman sent word that he should join her but he said he was happy where he was. Suppressing her anger, Tubman found some slave who wanted to escape and led them to Philadelphia. In December 1851 Tubman guided a group of 11 fugitives northward to Canada. For eleven years Tubman returned to the Eastern Shore of Maryland, rescuing some seventy slaves in 13 expeditions including her 3 other brothers, their wives and some of their children. She also provided specific instructions for about 50 to 60 other fugitives who escaped to the north. Slaveholders in the region never knew that "Minty" was behind the slave escapes. They began to suspect a northern white abolitionist was secretly enticing their slaves away. Despite the best efforts of the slaveholders, Tubman was never captured and neither were the fugitives she guided. One of her last missions into Maryland was to retrieve her aging parents. She travelled to the Eastern Shore and led them north to Canada.

When the American Civil War broke out in 1861, Tubman saw a Union victory as a key step toward the abolition of slavery. Tubman hoped to offer her own expertise and skills to the Union cause and soon she joined a group of abolitionists. Tubman served as a nurse in Port Royal, preparing remedies from local plants and aiding soldiers suffering from dysentery. She rendered assistance to men with smallpox. When Lincoln finally put the Emancipation Proclamation into effect Tubman considered it an important step toward the goal of liberating all black people from slavery. She renewed her support for a defeat of the Confederacy and soon she was leading a band of scouts through the land around Port Royal. She later provided Colonel James Montgomery with key intelligence which aided the capture of Jacksonville, Florida. Later that year Tubman became the first woman to lead an armed assault during the Civil War, a raid which rescued more than seven hundred slaves. For 2 more years Tubman worked for the Union forces scouting into Confederate territory and nursing wounded soldiers in Virginia. Despite her years of service, she had never received a regular salary and was for years denied compensation. She didn't receive a pension for her service until 1899. Her constant humanitarian work for her family and former slaves kept her in a state of constant poverty.

Tubman spent her remaining years in Auburn and married a Civil War veteran called Nelson Davis, who was 22 years younger. They spent the next 20 years together and in 1874 they adopted a baby girl named Gertie.

Tubman worked in her later years to promote the cause of women's suffrage. Tubman travelled to New York, Boston and Washington D.C to speak out in favour of women's voting rights. She was the keynote speaker at the first meeting of the National Federation of Afro-American Women.

At the turn of the century Tubman became heavily involved with the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church in Auburn. In 1903 she donated a parcel of real estate to the church under the instruction that it be made into a home for "aged and indigent colored people". It was named the Harriet Tubman Home for the Aged and opened on June 23, 1908. By 1911 her body was so frail that she had to be admitted to the rest home. Surrounded by friends and family members, Harriet Tubman died of pneumonia on March 10, 1913. Just before she died, she told those in the room "I go to prepare a place for you".

This information is taken from the Wikipedia page on Harriet Tubman. To read the entire page on her life, click here.

Below is a youtube video of an edited documentary on Harriet Tubman.

Today's Celebrations March 1!

Today is...

Anti-Japanese Uprising Day in North Korea

Baba Marta in Bulgaria

Heroes' Day in Paraguay

Independence Movement Day in South Korea

Instauration de la Republique in Switzerland

International Women of Color Day all over the world!

International Day of the Seal all over the world!

Memorial Day in the Marshall Islands

National Independence Day in Bosnia-Herzegovina

Nuclear Victim's Remembrance Day in the Marshall Islands

St. David's Day in the United Kingdom

Yap Day (Yap) in Micronesia

Labour Day (Western Australia) in Australia

National Pig Day in the United States of America

Martisor in Romania

St. David's Day in Christianity

British Political Parties: The BNP

In Britain there are three main political parties: Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrats. However there are also many small parties who try to gain support such as the Green Party, the UK Independence Party (UKIP) and the British National Party (BNP).

The BNP is a far-right political party. Until 2009, when it was challenged in the courts on grounds of racial discrimination, it restricted membership to people of "Caucasian origin". After a vote by members in a February 2010 extraordinary general meeting the party dropped this policy, with chairman Nick Griffin saying that the party will now "accept anyone as a member providing they agree with us that this country should remain fundamentally British".

The BNP seeks to restore the overwhelmingly white ethnicity of Britain that existed prior to 1948 through legal means, including "firm but voluntary incentives for immigrants and their descendants to return home", and the repeal of anti-discrimination legislation. It believes that there are significant differences between races.

The party has very little respect from other political parties and has never gained enough power to have an MP (member of Parliament). However in the 2006 English local elections the party doubled its number of seats in England. The BNP finished fifth in the 2008 London mayoral election with 5.2% of the popular vote and secured one of the London Assembly's 25 seats. They won their first county council seats in 2009 together with two seats in the European Parliament.

At its founding, the BNP was explicitly racist. In October 1990, the BNP was described by the European Parliament's committee on racism and xenophobia as an "openly Nazi party ... whose leadership have serious criminal convictions". When asked in 1993 if the BNP was racist, its deputy leader Richard Edmonds said, "We are 100 per cent racist, yes". Founder John Tyndall proclaimed that "Mein Kampf is my bible". When Nick Griffin became chairman in 1999, the party began to change its stance with regard to racial issues. Griffin claims to have repudiated racism, instead espousing what he calls "ethno-nationalism". He claims that his core ideology is "concern for the well-being of the English, Scottish, Welsh and Irish ethnic nations that compose the United Kingdom".

The BNP previously required that all members must be members of the "Indigenous Caucasian" racial group. The party does not regard non-white people as being British, even if they have been born in the UK and are naturalised British citizens. Instead, Griffin has stated that "non-Europeans who stay", while protected by British law, "will be regarded as permanent guests".

The BNP is opposed to mixed-race relationships on the stated ground that racial differences must be preserved; the party said that "when whites take partners from other ethnic groups, a white family line that stretches back into deep pre-history is destroyed." Nick Griffin stated: "...while the BNP is not racist, it must not become multi-racist either. Our fundamental determination to secure a future for white children is restated, and an area of uncertainty is addressed and a position which is both principled and politically realistic is firmly established. We don't hate anyone, especially the mixed race children who are the most tragic victims of enforced multi-racism, but that does not mean that we accept miscegenation as moral or normal. We do not and we never will".

In April 2006, Sky News confronted the party's national press officer, Phil Edwards (it has been claimed that this is a pseudonym for Stuart Russell) with a tape of a telephone conversation the previous year. On the tape, Russell could be heard to say that "the black kids are going to grow up dysfunctional, low IQ, low achievers that drain our welfare benefits and the prison system and probably go and mug you." He responded: "If I thought I was going to be recorded ... I would not have used such intemperate language, but let’s be honest about it, the facts are there".

The party states that "The BNP has moved on in recent years, casting off the leg-irons of conspiracy theories and the thinly veiled anti-semitism which has held this party back for two decades. The real enemies of the British people are home grown Anglo-Saxon Celtic liberal-leftists ... and the Crescent Horde—the endless wave of Islamics who are flocking to our shores to bring our island nations into the embrace of their barbaric desert religion".

Suggested policies to help police this "threat to all of us" include a Muslim no-fly policy, which would ban Muslims from flying in and out of the UK. The BNP erected a plaque in Oldham, Greater Manchester in memory of Gavin Hopley, a 19-year-old white man who was mugged and kicked to death by Asian Muslims in the street in Glodwick, in February 2002. The plaque was later removed by the local council.

The BNP states that homosexuality in private should be tolerated but believes that it "should not be promoted or encouraged". It opposed the introduction of civil partnerships and wishes to ban what it perceives as the promotion of homosexuality in schools and the media; and believes that homosexuality should be returned "to the closet".

BNP spokesman Phil Edwards stated that homosexuality "is unnatural" and "does not lead to procreation but does lead to moral turpitude and disease". Mark Collett, former chairman of the Young BNP and current Director of Publicity, described homosexuals as "AIDS Monkeys", "bum bandits" and "faggots" and said the idea of homosexuality was a "sickening thought".

The BNP was criticised over a list on their website titled "Liars, buggers and thieves" which grouped several gay politicians in with convicted murderers, rapists and paedophiles. The compiler of the list, BNP local councillor for Redbridge, Julian Leppert defended it and said that the reason why gay MPs were included was because "it fits in with the headline, the bugger part, I guess" and stated that the BNP are "a family party with family values".

Articles published in the Sunday Times and Daily Mail have alleged that Nick Griffin had a four year homosexual relationship with Martin Webster, although Griffin denies this. On his appearance on BBC One's Question Time on 22 October 2009, he stated in response to being asked about the death of Boyzone member Stephen Gateley, "I said that a lot of people find the sight of two grown men kissing in public really creepy. I understand that homosexuals don't understand that but that's how a lot of us feel, Christians feel that way, Muslims, all sorts of people."

According to their website, the BNP policy on immigration is to:

- Deport all the two million plus who are here illegally;

- Deport all those who commit crimes and whose original nationality was not British;

- Review all recent grants of residence or citizenship to ensure they are still appropriate;

- Offer generous grants to those of foreign descent resident here who wish to leave permanently;

- Stop all new immigration except for exceptional cases;

- Reject all asylum seekers who passed safe countries on their way to Britain.

They say that "India would not tolerate millions of non-Indians taking over that society. Pakistan would not tolerate millions of Hindus or Christians entering that country and changing it from a Muslim society into something else. Japan would not do it; China would not do it – so why should Britain?"

The BNP policy on education is:

- The restoration of discipline – including corporal punishment – uniforms, traditional teaching methods and stricter exams (e.g. ‘0′ levels);

- The reintroduction of grammar schools with entrance exams at 11 and 13;

- The reversal of the programme to close special needs schools which penalises the most vulnerable;

- The reintroduction of competitive sports and daily Christian assemblies;

- The teaching of old-fashioned literacy skills (as opposed to clearly failed “modern” teaching methods);

- The teaching of old-fashioned mathematics skills which have practical application to everyday life;

- The teaching of a full curriculum of British history. This will instil in our young people knowledge of and pride in the history, cultures and heritage of the native peoples of Britain, and not the cherry-picked politically correct drivel being fed to children today;

- The abolition of fees and the restoration of full grants to university students studying proper subjects (as opposed to fake “social sciences”);

- The improvement of school food as proper meals have been shown to be linked to behaviour and achievement;

- The ending of the scandalous and racist neglect that has left working class white boys at the bottom of the table for academic achievement;

- The introduction of tax breaks for home-schooling parents or direct subsidies as their fair share of the education budget;

- The introduction of a compulsory Community Award Scheme for all school-leavers to teach them work ethics and social and community values. This would consist of work caring for the elderly or handicapped people, or environmental or heritage restoration projects, or military training. These courses would be character-building and instil discipline, social and community values and work ethics in all young people. Service in this scheme would entitle each individual to get ’something back’ from the society to which they have learnt to contribute, such as free university education, a properly supported apprenticeship, or business training and start-up capital for would-be entrepreneurs.

The BNP foreign affairs policy is:

- Reach an accord with the Muslim world whereby they will agree to take back their excess population which is currently colonising this country, in exchange for an ironclad guarantee that Britain will never again interfere in the political affairs of the Middle East or try to dictate to any Arab or Muslim country as to what their internal government form should be; and

- Maintain an independent foreign policy of our own, and not a spineless subservience to the USA, the ‘international community’, or any other country.

- Resolutely oppose the single European currency;

- Support the overwhelming majority of the British people in their desire to keep the Pound and our traditional weights and measures.

The majority of the British public are highly against the BNP and the recent support they have received in British elections has been put down to the British populations frustration with the main political parties over immigration and the MP expenses scandal.

In 2002 the foundation Stop The BNP was created "to counter racism and fascism in elections and beyond". According to their website, "we want to make sure that people know the full story about who the BNP are and what they really stand for. The Stop the BNP website aims to do just that, serving the anti-fascist movement and providing up to date news, good practice and analysis."

(Information taken from : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_National_Party, http://www.stopthebnp.org.uk/, http://bnp.org.uk/)

Click here to watch the BNP Campaign video

Click here to watch a BNP propaganda video

Click here to watch a documentary about the BNP

What do you think about the BNP? Are there any political parties like this in your country? Comment and let us know!

The Forgotten Holiday: Pancake Day February 16!

Looking at today's celebrations, I realised one was missing that we are celebrating in the UK: PANCAKE DAY! I have contacted earthcalender.net, who we use to get the information on Holidays, and have told them to add it to their list!

In the UK Shrove Tuesday is also known as Pancake Day because it is the one day of the year that nearly everyone eats a pancake!

It was originally a religious day, as the last day before the Christian lent. It was a tradition to eat pancakes on this day as it was seen as your last chance to indulge yourself and use up the foods that aren't allowed during lent such as fat, butter and eggs. Today, however, most people celebrate Pancake Day just for the pancakes and do not recognise it as a religious event. I know a huge and dedicated fan of Pancake Day and she is an Atheist!

Shrove Tuesday is always 47 days before Easter Sunday so the date varies from year to year and falls between 3rd February and 9th March.

A pancake is a thin, flat cake made of batter and fried in a pan. Usually once it is cooked people put caster sugar or lemon juice over the pancake . You can also add things like berries, golden syrup, jam and melted chocolate.

Quite a few different countries celebrate Shrove Tuesday, or Pancake Day, but perhaps have different names for it. They are all listed below:

UK, Ireland, Australia: Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Day

Brazil: Terça-feira Gorda (Fat Tuesday) - the final day of Brazilian carnival

Greece: Apocreas (from the meat) they also don't eat meat during lent

Sweden: Fettisdagen - Fat Tuesday

USA: In Catholic and French-speaking parts of the US it is called Mardi Gras

Germany: Fastnacht (Also spelt "Fasnacht", "Fasenacht", "Fasteloven" (in the Rhine area) or "Fasching" in Bavaria.)

France: Mardi Gras (Grease or Fat Tuesday)

Iceland: Sprengidagur (Bursting Day)

St. Maron Festival!

Hello All,

Today is a celebration in Lebanon! This celebration is called "Feast of St. Maron". For my readers who may not know, St. Maron was a Christian missionary who spread the ideals of Christianity. St. Maron has spent most of his life doing missionary work helping people of all faiths. This holiday is symbolic to many Christians inside Lebanon; this is where St. Maron introduced the concept of Christianity to those in the Lebanese region. St. Maron had become so wide known because he converted a temple in the mountain of Syria into a Christian church. Upon his death in 410 A.D. his practices continued on through his disciples. This day is observed by many followers of St. Maron. Maronites celebrate The Feast of St. Maron in their churches with special services and various entertainment activities. During lunch, traditional Lebanese food such as Tabbouleh, Kibbe Nayye, and salad. To the followers of St. Maron Happy Holiday!!!!!!

Cortez A., US

I will, from this day strive to forge togetherness out of our differences.
Josefa Iloilo