By: Joncara Marshall  (Whetstone Contributor)

It’s a modern dilemma that perhaps every head of an organization has to deal with.

But it’s not the bottom line. It’s how to craft a Christmas season message without offending an increasingly diverse population.

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The Whetstone/ Melissa Boyd

Wesley College President William Johnston sends holiday cards to faculty, members of the community, alumni and friends of the college.

But the president says that he has no problem with saying “Merry Christmas.”

“Because of our Christian heritage we tend to lean toward that greeting,” he said, referring to Wesley’s Methodist roots.

Some students at Wesley said that it wasn’t insen

sitive to say “Merry Christmas” instead of “Happy Holidays.”

“I don’t think that it is insensitive, but it’s best not to assume [that they celebrate Christmas],” said senior Nick Hancock.

Hancock celebrates

Christmas but says that he also has celebrated Hanukkah with a friend.

Last year, the Black Student Union, an organization that discusses events and issues in the minority community, held a Kwanzaa celebration.

“We [BSU] wanted the student body to experience a new holiday other than Christmas,” said Keeyana Talley, president of BSU. “We received a lot of positive feedback from the event, and we are thinking of ways to celebrate all December holidays in the future.”

Kiana Long, a junior and BSU member, agreed with Talley about the event’s success.

“Last year was a nice turnout,” she said.

She also said that saying Merry Christmas is not insensitive.

“You may not know what someone celebrates,” she said.