Cultural and Social Awareness During the Holiday Season by Karis Price
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The holiday season is often advertised as a time filled with joy, celebration, and togetherness. While it can be all of this for some, it can also be a difficult time for others. Engaging in practices that support mental wellness during the holidays can be a great way to cope during hard times. Additionally, there are many things you can do to support others during the holidays. As the season approaches, cultural and social awareness during the holidays can be a great way to familiarize oneself with the experiences of others.
The holidays can be a difficult time for people regarding many cultural and social issues, including but certainly not limited to financial stress, loneliness, and historically inaccurate understandings of the season. If you or someone you know is dealing with any of these issues, it can be easy to feel alone or like things will never change. That’s where cultural and social awareness comes into play. Knowledge is power, and in the age of information, increasing your knowledge is an easy and accessible way to give back during the giving season. Furthermore, there are numerous mental health benefits to giving back. By increasing your knowledge and understanding of other people, cultures, and issues around the world, you can benefit the mental wellbeing of yourself, your community, and beyond.
Tips for boosting your awareness of cultural and social issues during the holidays:
Identify your emotions. Taking on the task of increasing your awareness can bring up many different emotions. For some, it may feel daunting and for others it may be exciting. More positive feelings like empowerment, compassion, and empathy may come up. Guilt, anger, and sadness can also come up when learning more about past and current events. Whatever your feelings are, identify them and allow yourself to feel them. Keep an open mind about the journey you are about to embark on. Once you are aware of what comes up for you, you can even utilize practices like meditation and mindfulness in order to get yourself in a healthy headspace in order to engage in learning more.
Brush up on history. Now that you’re in a healthy mindset, it’s time to do what you’ve set out to do–learn! But where do you begin? One simple way to begin is to re-learn things you’ve already been taught. For example, over the years, many of us have heard stories of Thanksgiving all of our lives, but how accurate are the stories you were told? There is nothing wrong with re-learning history from different perspectives or challenging what you’ve been taught, especially as you receive information that may be new to you. In the case of Thanksgiving, seek out and center Indigenous perspectives in your learning and consider familiarizing yourself with other holidays during the winter season.
Engage with those around you. No matter what stage of learning you’re in, further awareness may be closer than you think. Whether friends, family, community members, or strangers, the people around us can serve as invaluable resources. Consider cultural and social differences and identities that you and the people around you have. Put yourself in their shoes. What are things that might come up for them during the holiday season? What are things that might come up for you? Are the holidays a time of grief, joy, or stress? What causes those feelings? Sharing and receiving information with your support system and local community can be a great way to foster learning from the comfort of safe spaces.
Embrace the giving season. Outside of learning, there are many other ways to give back during the holidays. If you are able to, activities like donating to mutual aid funds, participating in community service and volunteering, and sharing information and art on social media are all forms of giving back. Don’t be afraid to get creative, get involved, and give back in ways that feel authentic to you. Remember, giving back is a form of self-care!
One reason that it is so important to learn about history is so that it doesn’t repeat itself. At the same time, it is also important to acknowledge that today many people aren’t aware of history and we are actively watching it repeat itself. From the United States, to Palestine, to Congo, and everywhere in between, immense pain and hardships are being inflicted upon many cultures worldwide. While raising your cultural and social awareness may seem like simple actions, they can have a huge positive impact on other cultures and on your own mental wellbeing during the holiday season and beyond.
Supplemental Resources:
Amplifying Marginalized Voices
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