Muzna I'm also against the "kunwey ke mendak" mentality and being reclusive. I myself have grown up with friends from different religions: Jehovah's Witnesses, Jews, Catholics, Protestants, Athiests but we all had our own religious traditions and none of us felt compelled to compromise on our own religions or practice each others religion even though we respected each others right to practice what they wanted...
We in Great Britain believe in multi-culturalism rather than the melting-pot culture, we believe in integration rather than assimilation. In our country a Sikh wouldn't be expected to eat Halal/Kosher meat to appease a Muslim/Jewish countryman and a Muslim wouldn't be required to attend Mass to appease a Catholic. We have freedom in this country in the truest sense.
It seems that in the USA you don't have the freedom of multi-culturalism, you are expected to assimilate, even if that's not directly said it's expected of everyone. We have true freedom in Britain, much more than Europe or America, Europe and America harp on about their freedoms but it's all superficial and hypocritical, one is expected to compromise and assimilate. It's the same as in India where Muslims are only slightly tolerated if they follow a Vishwa-Hindu-Parsad dictated Islam.
I'm not against Christmas, I think it's wonderful when Christians celebrate it and I've wished merry Christmas to every white/Christian person I've come across today but we all have our own festivals, Muslims should celebrate Eid, Jews Hanukkah etc.
I commend you for making Eid special for your kids but a lot of Muslim parents in the West don't, their kids have tonnes more fun at Christmas whilst Eid is hardly celebrated with a quick breakfast of sawaiyan, embarrasing clothes (flappy shalwar-kamiz or gaudy sherwanis) and a bit of eidi, and then both or one of the parents heads to work after eid prayers.,,
...There's no Eid carols, no lights and decorations, no wrapped presents, no cards, no games/fun-fairs, no nice food (no choc cake or turkey/cranberry-sauce/roasties, just horrid desi food which is too sweet/too-hot/too-greasy), no joy...
I can relate to that, pretty spot on. in the US its pretty much the do as the romans do mentality.