Lowes, the hardware mega-store, made an early December Dilemma appearance when its Holiday 2007 catalog advertised “Family Trees,” not “Christmas Trees.” The American Family Association, a conservative Christian organization, sent out an action alert to its members, prompting Lowes to email the chain en masse, and ask why the term “Christmas” is not used to describe the trees. “Lowe’s evidently did not want to offend any non-Christians, therefore they replaced “Christmas tree” with “Family tree.” Of course, if Christians are offended that is evidently ok,” the alert said.
A visit to Lowes’ website reveals that in some cases, they may be trying for a middle ground: this item description simply calls it a Saratoga Spruce Pre-Lit Tree, while a similar item listed here calls itself a Saratoga Spruce Pre-Lit Christmas Tree.