Unity Day is a holiday that is celebrated at different times and for different purposes throughout the world. In the United States, it is an observational holiday that is celebrated on October 21st and has been observed since 2011 to raise awareness about bullying. In Germany, this day is a commemorative holiday that is celebrated on October 3rd and commemorates the anniversary of German unification in 1990. In the Russian Federation, this day is observed on November 4th and is commemorative of Polish occupational forces being expelled from Moscow during the seventeenth century.
History
In the United States, this day was initially created in 2011 by Pacer’s National Bullying Prevention Center. Since its creation, several celebrities have participated on this day to raise the issue of bullying among young people. Some of these celebrities include Anderson Cooper and Ellen DeGeneres.
In the Russian Federation, Unity Day commemorates the uprising which liberated Moscow from Polish occupational forces on November 4th, 1612. Thirty-seven years later, Russian Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich declared this day a holiday. It was temporarily moved to November 7th when the Bolsheviks took power during World War I, but was eventually moved back to its original date in 2005.
Customs, Traditions And Celebrations
In the U.S., it is customary for people to wear orange shirts or ties, carry orange banners or wear orange ribbons to show support for this day. Additionally, there are usually many events celebrated on this day to raise awareness about the problem of bullying.
In Germany, this day is celebrated with a citizen’s festival called Bürgerfest and many state sponsored activities. Some of these activities coincide with the Oktoberfest beer festival, which also runs until October 3rd.
In the Russian Federation, this day is observed by different people in different ways. For some people, it is merely a day off of work. For others it is a religious feast day that honors Our Lady of Kazan. For others still, it is a day to recognize the accomplishments of national heroes.
Conclusion
Although Unity Day is celebrated for different reasons by different countries, there is a unifying theme that connects all of these unrelated holidays. And that theme is unity. This is true whether the unity ascribed is for young people recognizing the value of their peers, for ethnic groups to recognize the ties that bind us all together or for the people of a nation to work together as one group.
When is Unity Day? |
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| This year (2023) |
February 5 (Sunday) May 1 (Monday) May 22 (Monday) July 4 (Tuesday) November 4 (Saturday) November 29 (Wednesday) December 22 (Friday) |
| Next year (2024) |
February 5 (Monday) May 1 (Wednesday) May 22 (Wednesday) July 2 (Tuesday) November 4 (Monday) November 29 (Friday) December 22 (Sunday) |
| Last year (2022) |
February 5 (Saturday) May 1 (Sunday) May 22 (Sunday) July 5 (Tuesday) November 4 (Friday) November 29 (Tuesday) December 22 (Thursday) |