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This article originally appeared in the January-February 2004 issue of
the Children's Advocate, published by Action Alliance for Children.
2004 Multicultural Calendar
U.N. International Decade for a Culture of Peace
January
1 New Year's Day: first day of the Gregorian calendar year
• Emancipation Proclamation takes effect 1863.
2 Ancestor's Day (Haiti).
6 Armenian (Orthodox) Christmas,Epiphany, Día de los
Reyes, Twelfth Day: Christians celebrate the visits of the Magi •
Birthday of Kahlil Gibrán, Lebanese American poet
7 Ethiopian, Greek, and Ukranian (Orthodox) Christmas, also
other countries following the old Julian calendar
8 Midwife's or Women's Day (Greece): Men do all the housework
and women spend time in cafes.
9 Birthday of Rigoberta Menchú (1959-): Quiche Maya
activist for the rights of Indigenous peoples in Guatemala.
14 Makar Sakranti, Gujarat (India), Hindu holiday celebrating
the sun's changing position. During the day kites are flown; at night
they are strung with oil lamps.
15 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day (1929-68): birthday of African
American civil rights leader • Humanitarian Day: celebrates those
who changed racial segregation laws in America.
16 Día de San Antonio (Mexico): Blessing of Animals.
17 Birthday of Alan Alexander Milne (1882-1956): author/creator
of Winnie the Pooh.
19 World Religion Day: dedicated to increasing interfaith
understanding and cooperation.
20 Ati-Atihan (Philippines): celebrates an ancient peace pact
between the Ati of Panay and the Malays, early migrants to the islands.
22 Yuan Tuan: Chinese New Year 4702, Year of the Monkey •
Tet begins: week-long Vietnamese celebration. Children pay respect to
their elders and receive gifts of money.
23 Babin Den (Bulgaria): Grandmother and Midwives' Day.
25 Sojourner Truth (1797-1883) addressed the first African
American women's rights convention in Akron, Ohio, in 1851.
27 Day of Remembrance for Victims of Nazism.
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February
African American History Month
1 National Freedom Day: commemorates the 1865 abolition of
slavery in the U.S • African American students staged a nonviolent
protest of segregation in 1960 at a lunch counter in North Carolina, launching
widespread civil rights activities • Birthday of Langston Hughes
(1902-67): African American writer.
2 Groundhog Day • Día de la Candalaria (Mexico):
celebration with dances and processions • Candlemas: commemorates
Bridget, Celtic goddess of fire, hearth, fields, poetry, and childbirth
(Ireland, France, Canada).
4 Setsubun (Japan): Bean-throwing Festival celebrates the
end of winter • Birthday of Rosa Parks (1913-): civil rights activist.
5 Teng Chieh (Lantern Festival) marks the end of the Chinese
New Year holiday period.
6 Tu B'Shevat: Jewish holiday to show respect and appreciation
for trees and plants begins at sundown • Birthday of Bob Marley (1945-81):
influential reggae musician in the Rastafarian movement.
9 Birthday of Alice Walker (1944-): African American author
and activist.
12 National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
(NAACP) established in 1909.
14 Valentine's Day.
15 Birthday of Susan B. Anthony (1820-1906): early women's
rights advocate • Birthday of John Trudell (1946-): Lakota activist,
poet, spoken-word artist.
16 Presidents' Day.
17 International Friendship Week.
18 Birthday of Toni Morrison (1931-): African American author.
19 Japanese Internment National Day of Remembrance: commemorates
the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II • Birthday
of Amy Tan (1952-): Chinese American author.
22 Awwal Muharram/Al Hijra begins the Islamic New Year (1425).
23 Birthday of W.E.B. Du Bois (1868-1963): sociologist who
helped found the NAACP.
24 Carnival, Fat Tuesday, Mardi Gras (Brazil, Caribbean, Italy):
celebration of the cycles of life with music, costume balls, and parades,
the last day before Christian Lent • Día de la Bandera (Mexico):
Mexican flag day • Elizabeth Gurley Flynn (1890-1964) led 20,000
women in the 1912 "Bread & Roses" textile strike in Massachusetts.
29 Leap Day.
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March
Women's History Month
2 Birthday of Dr. Seuss (Theodore Geisel, 1904-91): children's
book author.
3 Hina Matsuri (Doll Festival, Japan): a special festival
for girls • First law regulating hours of employment for children
passed in 1824.
4 Peace Corps founded 1961.
6 Holi (India) Hindu Spring Festival • Birthday of Gabriel
García Márquez (1928-): Colombian author • Purim (Jewish):
celebrates the ancient rescue of the Jews from religious persecution with
plays and pastries, begins at sundown.
8 International Women's Day: widely observed holiday started
by U.S. women garment workers demonstrating for the right to vote.
9 Barbie debuts 1959.
10 Death of Harriet Tubman (1821-1913): leader of the Underground
Railroad and self-liberated slave.
11 Girl Scouts USA founded in 1912, Savannah, Georgia.
16 National Youth Service Day (U.S.)
17 St. Patrick's Day (Irish) • South African referendum
to end Apartheid, 1992.
20 Vernal Equinox (Northern Hemisphere): first day of spring
• Ibo Afo Festival (Nigeria): celebrated with shouts driving out
the old year and applause greeting the new year • Noruz (Persian
New Year): rebirth of nature celebrated with 3,000-year-old rituals, which
include preparation of seven symbolic dishes all beginning with the Farsi
letter 's'.
22 Varsha-Pratipada begins the Hindu New Year (2061).
22 International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
(U.N.) • Birthday of Benito Juarez (1806-72): Zapotec leader of resistance
to foreign invasion in Mexico • Day of the Indian Child (Mexico).
24 Birthday of Harry Houdini (1874-1926): magician and escape
artist.
29 Youth Day (Taiwan).
31 Cesar Chavez Day (1927-93): celebrates the birthday of
Mexican American labor leader who organized migrant farmworkers in the
U.S.
April
Child Abuse Prevention Month
1 April Fool's Day (U.S.)
4 Birthday of Maya Angelou (1928-): African American author
• Ch'ing Ming (China), Han Sik'il (Korea): celebrates the coming
of spring and honors ancestors.
5 Birthday of Booker T. Washington (1856-1915): African American
leader and educator • Gayanashagowa (Great Binding of Nations): Iroquois
confederacy was established uniting six Native American nations, became
the model for the U.S. constitution • Passover begins at sundown:
Jewish celebration of liberation from slavery.
8 Day of Vesak: birthday of the Buddha (India) (563-483 B.C.)
9 Birthday of Paul Robeson (1898-1976): African American actor,
singer, activist.
10 Birthday of Dolores Huerta (1930-): Chicana labor rights
leader and social activist.
11 Easter Sunday.
14 Thingyan (Burma), Songkram (Thailand): water is splashed on
others and on Buddha images to bring in new year.
16 Birthday of Selena (1971-95): legendary Chicana singer.
18 Week of the Young Child begins.
21 Birthday of Friedrich Froebel (1782-1852): the father of
kindergarten and an originator of the progressive education movement •
Birthday of John Muir (1838-1914): naturalist and conservationist.
22 Earth Day: first celebrated in 1970 to honor the earth
and promote environment-friendly living.
24 Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day (U.S.).
25 Arbor Day.
27 National Child Care Professionals Day • Deaf Moms
and Dads Day (CODA).
30 Día de los Niños (Mexico, U.S.) • Spank
Out Day, promoting alternative methods of discipline.
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May
Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
1 Worthy Wage Day, established to increase awareness of the
need for adequate wages for child care workers to ensure quality care
for children • International Workers' Day, May Day: celebrated around
the world to honor workers • Lei Day (Hawai'i): leis are made and
worn to celebrate May Day • Mother Goose Day: reappreciate old nursery
rhymes.
2 Mawlid al Nabi celebrates the birthday of Muhammad (570-632),
the Islamic prophet.
4 World Asthma Day • National Teachers' Day.
5 Cinco De Mayo (Mexico) • Occupation of Wounded Knee,
South Dakota, by the American Indian Movement ended in 1973 • Children's
Day (Japan and Korea).
9 Mothers' Day (U.S.).
17 Desegregation in public schools mandated by the U.S. Supreme
Court in 1954 (Brown v. Board of Education).
19 Birthday of Malcolm X (1925-65): African American nationalist
and civil rights activist.
22 Birthday of Harvey Milk (1930-78): gay rights leader.
25 African Freedom Day commemorates the independence of Chad,
Zambia, and other African countries with sports contests, political rallies,
and tribal dances.
31 Memorial Day (U.S.) • World No Tobacco Day (U.N.).
June
Gay and Lesbian Pride Month
1 Stand for Children Day (U.S.) • Children's Day (China).
6 Birthday of the Dalai Lama (1935-): Tibet's spiritual leader.
7 Multicultural American Children's Awareness Day: share the
talents of all children.
12 Philippines Independence Day • Birthday of Anne Frank
(1929).
14 Flag Day (U.S.).
16 Cherokees were forced to begin the 1,200 mile Trail of
Tears to Oklahoma in 1838.
19 Juneteenth: African American celebration of the day in
1865 when Union General Granger proclaimed the slaves of Texas free •
Birthday of Aung San Suu Kyi (1945-): Burmese leader for democracy and
nonviolence.
20 Fathers' Day • World Juggling Day.
21 Summer solstice (Northern Hemisphere).
24 Inti Raymi (Incan): festival of the sun god celebrated
with bonfires, dances, processions.
26 Release of Smoke Signals, the first major U.S. movie to
be entirely written, directed, and produced by Native Americans, in 1998.
28 Stonewall Riot in New York City (1969), considered the
beginning of the gay liberation movement.
29 Birthday of Julia Lathrop (1856-1932): pioneer in the struggle
to establish child labor laws.
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July
1 Canada Day.
2 Birthday of Thurgood Marshall (1908-93): first African American
Supreme Court justice.
3 Child laborers struck for an 11-hour work day and a six-day
work week in Patterson, New Jersey, in 1835.
4 Independence Day (U.S.).
7 Star Festival (Japan): children tie poems, wishes and decorations
to bamboo sticks and offer them to the stars.
12 Birthday of Pablo Neruda (1904-73): Chilean poet and diplomat.
15 Bon Festival (Japan): lanterns and bonfires lit to honor
the dead.
18 Birthday of Nelson Mandela (1918-): South African black
leader against apartheid. Impri-soned for 27 years, he was president of
South Africa from 1994 to 1999 • Children's Defense Fund (then the
Washington Research Project), founded by Marian Wright Edelman in 1967.
19 Seneca Falls convention (1848): where women drafted the
"Declaration of Sentiments" asserting women's right to equality.
20 First Special Olympics held in Chicago in 1968.
24 Birthday of Amelia Earhart (1897-1937?): record-setting
aviator.
26 Americans with Disabilities Act signed 1990.
29 Parents' Day (U.S.).
August
1 International Clown Week begins.
6 Hiroshima Day commemorates the 1945 atomic bombing and promotes
peace.
9 Birthday of Jean Piaget (1896-1980): Swiss philosopher and
psychologist who studied children's mental development • International
Day of the World's Indigenous People (U.N.).
11 American Indian Religious Freedom Act, giving Native Americans
the right to practice their traditional religions, passed in 1978.
12 Youth Day (Zambia).
15 Birthday of Oscar Romero (1917-80): archbishop who worked
for justice and peace in El Salvador.
18 Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Consti-tution ratified
in 1920, giving women the right to vote.
27 Birthday of Mother Teresa (1910-97): devoted her life to
caring for the destitute of Calcutta, India.
28 March on Washington in 1963, where Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr. gave the "I Have a Dream" speech.
30 Raksha Bandhan (Brother and Sister Day, India): brothers
and sisters promise to be good to each other. Trung Nguyen: Buddhist Day
of Wandering Souls (Vietnamese).
September
Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept. 15-Oct. 15)
1 Childhood Injury Prevention Week begins.
3 Frederick Douglass (1817-95) escaped from slavery in 1838
and became a leader in the struggle.
6 Labor Day (U.S., Canada): honors the working class.
11 Columbus Day. Ethiopian New Year (1995) • Coptic New
Year (1718).
12 Grandparents' Day.
15 Mexican Independence Day • Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New
Year) begins at sundown (year 5765).
17 U.S. Constitution signed in 1787.
21 United Nations International Peace Day.• Autumn Equinox
(Northern Hemisphere): first day of autumn.
22 Banned Books Week begins • Birthday of the ice cream
cone in 1913, originated by Italo Marchiony, who sold lemon ice from a
pushcart in New York.
24 Yom Kippur: Jewish Day of Atonement begins at sundown.
26 Tet Trung Thu: Vietnamese autumn celebration. Children
parade through the streets with lanterns and mooncakes are baked. Also
Hong Kong moon festival.
28 Teachers' Day and Confucius's birthday (551-479 B.C.E.),
Taiwan, China • Chusok (Korea): harvest thanksgiving festival.
29 Succot: Jewish harvest festival begins at sundown.
October
Child Health Month
1 Universal Children's Day (U.N.).
2 Walk to School Day • Birthday of Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948):
leader of the nonviolent struggle for Indian independence • Birthday
of Charlie Brown and Snoopy (1950).
5 Death of Tecumseh (1768?-1813): Shawnee leader who spoke
out against unfairness of treaties with white settlers.
7 Birthday of Desmond Tutu (1931-): South African archbishop
and leader in the struggle against apartheid.
9 Lights on Afterschool! celebrates after-school programs
and publicizes the need for additional programs.
10 Birthday of Ken Saro Wiwa (1941-95): Ogoni environmental
and human rights activist in Nigeria • White Sunday (Samoa): a feast
is prepared by parents and served to children.
12 Día de la Raza (Mexico) • Indigenous People's
Day (U.S.).
15 Ramadan begins: Muslim holy month of fasting and prayer.
24 Establishment of the United Nations in 1945 to work for
world peace.
31 Halloween.
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November
Native American Indian Heritage Month
1 Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead, Mexico): Cemeteries
are visited and shrines decorated to honor departed loved ones.
2 Election Day (U.S.).
3 Wuwuchim (Hopi New Year): celebrating with songs, prayers,
and dances.
4 Child Protection Act banning hazardous toys and articles
passed in 1966.
9 Berlin Wall opened in 1989, symbolizing the end of the Cold
War.
10 Sesame Street, the children's educational television program,
premiered in 1969.
11 Veteran's Day (U.S.): honors veterans of U.S. wars.
12 Diwali (Festival of Lights, India): a 5-day festival of
lights and fireworks celebrates fortune, wealth and generosity.
14 Eid-ul-Fitr: celebrates end of Ramadan. Day of feasting
and praying.
15 Children's Day (India): commemorates the birthday of Jawaharlal
Nehru (1889-1964), India's first prime minister • National Chil-dren's
Book week begins.
18 Birthday of Wilma Mankiller (1945-): Chief of the Cherokee
nation from 1985-1995 • Children's Advocate newspaper began publication
in 1973.
20 Parent Involvement Day: encourages parent participation
in children's development and education (U.S.).
25 Thanksgiving (U.S.).
26 Buy Nothing Day: activists urge no shopping on this day
to draw attention to overconsumption (U.S.)
29 Education for All Handicapped Children Act passed in 1975.
30 Andres Bonifacio Day (1863-97): Birthday of Filipino leader
who led the nation's revolt against Spain.
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December
1 World AIDS Day • Arrest of civil rights leader Rosa
Parks for refusing to give up her seat in a bus in Montgomery, Alabama,
in 1955. This set off a bus boycott which ended segregation on buses throughout
the southern U.S.
3 International Day of Disabled Persons (U.N.) • Birthday
of Anna Freud (1895-1982): authority on mental disorders in children.
She warned against the effects of neglect and harsh discipline.
7 Chanukah (Jewish Festival of Lights) begins at sundown.
10 U.N. Human Rights Day • Birthday of Thomas H. Gallaudet
(1787-1851), pioneer in the education of deaf people.
11 United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF)
established in 1946.
12 Feast of the Virgen de Guadalupe: patroness of Mexico.
16 Las Posadas (U.S., Mexico), Simbang Gabi (Philippines):
candlelight parades commemorate Joseph and Mary's search for shelter in
Bethlehem, lasts until January 6.
20 Birthday of Sandra Cisneros (1954-): Mexican American author.
21 Winter Solstice (Northern Hemisphere).
24 Birthday of Ricky Martin (1971-): Puerto Rican singer and
actor.
25 Christmas.
26 Kwanzaa begins: seven-day African American family festival
in recognition of traditional African harvest festivals.
30 Rizal Day: Date of execution of Dr. Jose Rizal (1861-96),
Filipino reformer and writer.
31 New Year's Eve • World Peace Meditation.
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Calendar originally compiled by Daphne Muse. Revised and updated this
year by Meg Hamill, Mahin Ibrahim, and Julieta Santana.
Drawings by students in the LaFayette School Mentoring Program in Oakland
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