A Diversity Message From Neil Meltzer - May
Each May, we celebrate Jewish American Heritage Month as a time to acknowledge the contributions Jewish Americans have made to our country. Jews have been pioneers in everything from science and medicine to art, athletics and scholarship. Jewish American Heritage Month is a time for us to reflect upon all the ways that the Jewish people have helped to shape American culture and to celebrate their individual and collective achievements.
In 1990, Congress passed a law designating May as Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. Asia Pacific encompasses the entire Asian continent and the Pacific islands of Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia. Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders are influenced by a great depth and breadth of languages and cultures; the richness of their traditions is felt in their legacy to America: innovations in transportation, technology, defense and the arts. During this month, we also commemorate the immigration of the first Japanese citizens to the United States as well as the anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad, built mainly by Chinese immigrants, in 1869.
On May 5, we celebrate Cinco de Mayo, or, as it is also known, the Anniversary of the Battle of Puebla. On this day, festivities are held in Mexico and the United States to commemorate the Mexican army's victory over French forces. Under the leadership of Gen. Ignacio Zaragoza SeguÃn, the Mexican freedom fighters were outnumbered by the French, but they persevered, won the battle and helped turn the tide of the Mexican struggle for independence.
The Supreme Court issued a ruling on May 17, 1954, that would alter the course of our nation, and move all Americans toward the promise of equality first articulated in the Declaration of Independence. On that day, Brown v. the Board of Education of Topeka became a landmark case that ruled that racial segregation in public schools was inherently unconstitutional. This decision by the justices, led by Chief Justice Earl Warren, empowered civil rights advocates in their efforts to strike down unjust segregation laws.
This year, Ramadan begins on the night of May 26 and is observed by Muslims worldwide as a month of fasting to commemorate the first revelation of the Quran to the Prophet Muhammad, according to Islamic belief. Millions of Muslims will begin a month of intense prayer, dawn-to-dusk fasting and nightly feasts. This annual observance is regarded as one of the Five Pillars of Islam, and it comes to a close on June 25 with a day long celebration called Eid-al-Fitr.
Americans will come together on May 29 to commemorate Memorial Day. On this day, we remember the men and women who died serving in the U.S. military. Also known as Decoration Day, it originated in the years after the Civil War and became a federal holiday in 1971. Americans observe Memorial Day by visiting cemeteries, holding family gatherings and participating in parades.
At LifeBridge Health we celebrate both what makes us diverse and unique, and what makes us the same - our shared purpose of caring for communities together.
- Written by Neil Meltzer, president and CEO of LifeBridge Health