An Open Letter to the Austrian Holiday Gods

Dear People Who Set Holidays (and let's be honest, there's probably a Magistratische Abteilung somewhere responsible for this),

There are many people who are much more qualified than me to speak on the matter of Ausländerfeindlichkeit. I'm neither an Austrian nor an immigrant - just one of the "good" Ausländer who happens to be living here for awhile. And although I know and love many aspects of this country, I don't feel like it's my place to enter into its larger societal debates -- that's something y'all need to figure out for yourselves.

I have only one small point to make. Eid-al-Adha should be a national holiday.

Yes, I know you're a Catholic country (or rather, a "Catholic" one), and your holidays are decided by the Church calendar. But let's be honest: no one in Austria goes to church anymore. I once went to a Sunday Mass in Austria. The church was cold, dark, and empty. There were only five other worshippers there, all over the age of 60. It was probably one of the most depressing things I've ever witnessed. So I understand why none of your young people can explain to me what happens on the various holidays, so that I can match up the German words with the Catholic calendar in my head.

You might be historically Catholic, but it's not like the schools and workplaces would be empty if Christihimmelfahrt or Mariaempfängnis was no longer a national holiday because all of the devout Catholics would have to take the day off for church. In fact, I can bet that no one would really notice.

But do you know who is devout in Austria? Muslims. You know, the people you call "Ausländer" but are actually Austrian citizens as well. Muslims, who are trying to keep up their traditions in a land that can be quite hostile to them. Muslims, who apparently make up a large percentage of the students at my school, because the building felt incredibly empty today on Eid.

I'm not telling you to give up your Catholic heritage. (You've already done that long ago.) I'm just telling you that it's difficult to teach a class that has only four students, because the other fifteen are at home celebrating Islamic Pesach.

Plus, it would be another day off, and I know how much you love holidays. You could even give it a few window days and turn it into something really great.