To the Editor:

It has come to my attention through friends who work in the New York City public schools that this year, due to the fact that Orthodox Easter is May 5, and Roman Catholic Easter is on March 31, New York City public school students and staff will not have off on Orthodox Good Friday as they have had in the past when the holidays were a week apart, for example, or when Orthodox Easter happened to coincide with the school system’s spring break. It is not fair that the Orthodox Christian faithful should have to use up a sick day, personal day, or vacation day for the most solemn religious holiday of the year, especially when the holidays of other religions are being added to the school calendar of days off every year. It seems like discrimination against Orthodox Christians – the community, the Archdiocese, and the Archbishop should know about it and help take a stand so that we’re not thrown under the proverbial bus as second-class citizens compared to other religions when our faith goes back to the very beginnings of Christianity. We should all contact the New York City Department of Education and demand that the schools add Orthodox Good Friday to the calendar of days off.

Antigone Pappas

Queens, NY