Outrage as St. Patrick's Day deemed too religious and renamed "O'Green Day"

Principal makes name change to encourage diversity and remove Catholic element

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Girl Scouts, Troop 7203, wave the Irish flag as they participate in 2nd annual Robbinsville's St. Patrick's Day Parade.

Photo by Mary Iuvone/For the Times

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A Massachusetts school principal has enraged the local community by renaming St Patrick’s Day ‘O’Green Day’ in an effort to encourage diversity and remove the Catholic element.

Irish American parents and many others are dismayed by the actions of Lisa Curtin, herself an Irish American, at the Soule Road School in Wilbraham, Mass.

Principal Curtin decided to rename Ireland’s national day in an effort to be ‘inclusive and diverse’ and remove the religious factor.

She says she took the action to change the name to ease discomfort that some students might have in celebrating St. Patrick’s Day.

Last month, Principal Curtin rebranded Valentine’s Day, also named after a saint as ‘Caring and Kindness Day’.

Parents have already called the decision ‘stupid and illogical’ according to reports. Even though St Patrick’s Day falls on a Saturday this year, students at the school will be encouraged to celebrate ‘O’Green Day’ on Friday.

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They have been urged to wear green during class and eat green vegetables in the cafeteria.
Parent Dina MaMotte, whose daughter attends fifth grade at the school, was critical of the decision.

She said: “I think it’s ridiculous. What’s next, birthdays?”

Wilbraham resident Theresa Finnegan added: “It should be either in or out. They’re still celebrating it by calling it a different name, which makes no sense to me. It’s totally illogical.

“Those two holidays are holidays that have become over the years very secular in nature.”
Other parents, who say Curtin’s heart is in the right place, believe her latest actions are ‘political correctness gone too far.’

A mother of three former students, Janet Carlyle told Foxnews.com: “It’s really stupid. Everybody is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day.

“It’s not a holiday that’s generally associated with a religion. The renaming of the holiday is insulting and unfair to Irish Catholic students for whom the holiday might have special meaning.

“I would have been really annoyed if my kids were still in the school.

“I am not Catholic but she said she celebrates the holiday like most normal people do by eating green mash potatoes.”

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