All - Leep Calendar

In the Hindu faith, Chaturthi celebrates Lord Ganesha. Sankashti Chaturthi (Sankata Chaturthi) occurs on the fourth day of Krishna Paksha (the dark lunar or waning phase of the moon). If this Chaturthi falls on a Tuesday, it is called Angarki Sankashti Chaturthi. Devotees observe strict fasting during daylight until darshan (the sight of the moon). Prayers to Lord Ganesha precede the breaking of the fast. PLEASE NOTE: We use the Indian civil calendar, the official holiday calendar in India. The Hindu faith has many calendars, each specific to different regions and tribes, with dates and celebrations marked by differing positions of the sun, moon, and stars. Names of months and holidays and the corresponding dates in the Gregorian calendar may vary widely from one calendar to the next. Determine the proper calendar before attending local events.

Africa

Jun

Sauntering Day, World: June 19

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World Sauntering Day encourages people to stop and smell the roses, that is, slow the pace of life and enjoy it. It is believed that World Sauntering Day started in the Grand Hotel in Mackinac, Michigan, in 1979, the hotel with the longest porch in the world. W.T. Rabe created the event as a response to the increasing popularity of joggers in the area to encourage appreciation of the world around us by taking things slow. World Sauntering Day is currently unsponsored.

Africa

Jun

Say Something Nice Day: June 1

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Say Something Nice Day occurs June 1 each year as a response to bullying and a lack of courtesy in current society. This day is also for remembering special people in one’s life and apologizing to people one wronged in the past. Say Something Nice Day originated in Charleston, South Carolina. Inspired by the book “Say Something Nice: Be a Lifter at Work,” the Charleston and North Charleston mayors, together with some Baptist churches, created the National Say Something Nice Day in the hopes of kindness reciprocity.

Africa

Jun

Scams Awareness Month, Ntl. (UK): June

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Each year millions of people in the United Kingdom fall prey to scammers via the phone, online, mail, and doorstep. These scams rob consumers of thousands or even billions of pounds and leave scars, including emotional trauma and loss of confidence. Scams Awareness Month seeks to provide the people of Wales, England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland with the tools, reasoning, and education necessary to spot and avoid scams. The Citizen’s Advice website includes hundreds of resources and activities to help you become savvy about scams.

Africa

Jun

Scleroderma Awareness Day, World (1940): June 29

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World Scleroderma Awareness Day is set aside during World Scleroderma Awareness Month to bring awareness to this autoimmune condition through fundraising events and public outreach. Scleroderma is an autoimmune disease that causes the skin and internal organs to thicken and tighten, leading to organ failure and death. This medical condition has no cure. The date marks the anniversary of the death of Swiss painter Paul Klee on June 29, 1940. He died from the disease.

Africa

Jun

Scleroderma Awareness Month, Intl.: June

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Initiated in the United Kingdom, Scleroderma Awareness Month seeks to unite organizations worldwide to increase awareness of this rare autoimmune condition. Scleroderma is a rare, chronic disease of the immune system, blood vessels, and connective tissue. Two and a half million people worldwide have scleroderma, with over 12,000 in the United Kingdom. It is an autoimmune condition, meaning the immune system becomes overactive and attacks healthy tissue.

Africa

Jun

Sea Turtle Day, World: June 16

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Sea Turtles live much of their early life at sea, not returning to nesting grounds for up to 20 years after hatching. A group of different turtles, sea turtle species can range from about 70cm/40kg to the giant leatherback at 180cm and 500kg. Sea turtles don't have teeth, and only one out of every 1,000 born survive to adulthood. Sea turtles can swim thousands of miles in most oceans worldwide. The biggest threat to their existence is humans when hunted for food or through the plastic waste we discard in the oceans. Plastic bags resemble jellyfish, which turtles eat, and other waste forms barricades, making it impossible for hatchlings to reach the sea. Currently, six of the seven species are threatened. World Sea Turtle Day is a global awareness campaign highlighting the conservation of these gentle giants and the threats of human activity, specifically plastic, to their existence.

Africa

Jun

Seafarer, Day of the: June 25

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International Day of the Seafarer emphasizes the economic importance of 1.5 million seafarers worldwide and encourages young people to consider a maritime career. Initiated by the International Maritime Organization, this event began in 2011. Image: Fishing boat leaving the harbor in Bahrain.

Africa

Jun

Secure Your Load Day, Ntl. (2010): June 6

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Robin Abel's daughter was seriously injured by an unsecured load, and Paul Reif, whose son Matthew was killed by an unsecured load on June 6, 2010. Together they created Secure Your Load Day. The event aims to raise awareness about the dangers of unsecured loads and educate the public on the importance of properly securing items in their vehicles. The initiative encourages drivers to follow these guidelines: Tie down the load with rope, netting, or straps. Cover any items not enclosed with a sturdy tarp or net. Refrain from overloading the vehicle and distributing the weight evenly. Regularly check the pack during the trip to ensure everything remains secure. Be aware of any local regulations regarding load security and adhere to them. Secure Your Load Day seeks to reduce the number of accidents, injuries, and fatalities caused by unsecured loads on the road.

Africa

Jun

Selfie Day, Ntl: June 21

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National Selfie Day celebrates the pictures one takes of oneself on their cellphone. It began as a fundraising event in Texas to support local charities in the Dallas/ Fort Worth area; this event began in 2014.

Africa

Jun

Sexual Violence in Conflict, Day for the Elimination of: June 19

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Rape of both men and women has been used as a weapon in war as long as war has existed. Each year the United Nations seeks to raise awareness of its use in combat and its devastating effects on its victims and promote accountability from its perpetrators. Today is the anniversary of the resolution's adoption. From the Resolution of June 19, 2015, adopted by the General Assembly: "Noting that civilians account for the vast majority of those adversely affected by armed conflict, that women and girls are particularly targeted by the use of sexual violence, inter alia by terrorist and extremist groups, including as a tactic of war to humiliate, dominate, instill fear in, disperse and/or forcibly relocate civilian members of a community or ethnic or religious group, and that sexual violence perpetrated in this manner may in some instances persist after the cessation of hostilities, and recognizing that men and boys are also victims of sexual violence in conflict, Condemning in the strongest terms all sexual and other forms of violence committed against civilians in armed conflict and post-conflict situations, inter alia, rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, enforced sterilization, or any other form of sexual violence of comparable gravity, Recognizing the importance of providing timely assistance and increasing access to health care and other multi-sectoral services for survivors of sexual violence and of promoting their rehabilitation and non-stigmatization."

Africa

Jun

Shaheedi Arjan Dev (S) (1606) : June 16

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Today is the anniversary of the Martyrdom of Guru Arjan Dev Sahib, who was born on what would today be May 2, 1563, in the Gregorian calendar. Arjan was the fifth of the Ten Gurus of Sikhism, achieving that title on September 16, 1581. He was assassinated on June 16, 1606, and was the first Sikh guru martyred. Guru Arjan Dev Ji is noted for: a) Compiling the hymnal foundation of the Guru Granth Sahib b) Contributing 2218 hymns to the Sri Guru Granth Sahib c) Authoring Sukhmani Sahib Bani (Prayer for Peace) d) Compiling the Adi Granth (Sikh Bible) e) Building the Golden Temple f) Developing the Amritsar g) Founding the Masund system

Africa

Jun

Shavuot (J): June 2

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Shavuot (Shavuos), also known as the Feast of Weeks or Pentecost, is a Jewish observance on the sixth day of Sivan. It commemorates the wheat harvest and the day God delivered the Torah on Mount Sinai, which united the tribe of Israel. Part of the Shalosh Regalim, it is a Biblical festival that calls for pilgrimage; Shavuot wraps up with the Counting of the Omer. Shavuot and Passover are linked to each other. Passover recounts the sparing of death to the firstborn son of the Hebrews by God. Shavuot celebrates the giving of the Torah and the unity of the twelve tribes as one people serving God. Shavuot is celebrated as a single-day holiday in Israel. Traditions include women and girls lighting candles in the evening and public readings of the Torah at the temple.

Africa

Jun

Sickle Cell Day, World: June 19

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World Sickle Cell Day is celebrated on June 19 of each year, is recognized globally, and was created by the United Nations by resolution. Sickle Cell is an inherited blood-based disorder affecting hemoglobin, the characteristic of blood that makes it red. Symptoms include anemia and extreme pain when red blood cells stick together and block blood flow and oxygen in small blood vessels. This event is separate from Sickle Cell Disease Awareness Month, observed in September in the United States.

Africa

Jun

Six Day War Begins (1967): June 5

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The Six-Day War continues to resonate as a foundational event creating the current facts in Israel. It marks the beginning of the complete military occupation of the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and the Golan Heights, occupations that continue today via containment, siege, and direct interference with the added strategic tools of massive walls, no man's land, home demolitions, checkpoints, targeted strikes using missiles, tanks, bulldozers, naval and aircraft, a two-tiered legal system, Jewish only colonies, and Jewish only roads throughout the occupied land. The Six-Day War was a stunning military victory for the Israeli army. On that, everyone agrees. Historians have since removed the idealized thinking surrounding this event, the chief being that the state of Israel was under imminent threat of attack and needed to strike first. It was not. In reality, back-channel talks occurred between the United States and Egypt over the Sinai, the portions conquered by Israel in 1967. Egypt would regain the Sinai between 1973 and 1981. Israel continues to control the Gaza Strip, West Bank, and Golan Heights, each of which is an Occupied Territory under International Law. The Six-Day War was a strategic operation to expand Israel's land holdings (referred to by the settler movement as Erez Israel) and military supremacy in the Middle East. The West Bank is home to one of the largest aquifers in the Middle East, and the Gaza Strip sits atop natural gas reserves. The result of the Six-Day War is the ongoing and expanding occupation. There are several excellent books written in the past decades that benefit from declassified historical documents on this issue: Ilan Pappe's "The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine" Benny Morris' "The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem Revisited" Jimmy Carter's "Peace, not Apartheid." David Hirst's "Gun and the Olive Branch: The Roots of Violence in the Middle East." Rashid Khalid's "The Iron Cage: The Story of the Palestinian Struggle for Statehood." Tom Segev's "1967: Israel, the War, and the Year that Transformed the Middle East." The First part of Prof. Ilan Pappe's lecture on the Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine is below. The 40-minute four-part series is viewable here: http://www.youtube.com/user/ilanpappevideos.

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