Opinion: On American Thanksgiving

There is a lot of myth surrounding the holiday of the American Thanksgiving. The history and the legacy of it is convuluted. The story is typically told and starts with Pilgrims came to Plymouth Rock, Massachusetts and their harrowing tale as they braved the perils of a new environment that they knew nothing about. The survivors are are able to brave through the winter thanks to the help of a kindly Native American named Squanto, who in turn connects the Plymouth colony to the chief of a neighboring Native American village. This in turn leads to their mutual collaboration that results in the Native Americans and the settlers of Plymouth to share the land for many generations...

Except for the fact that this story is not true.

The presence of the Native Americans was established before the arrival of the Colonists. The Pilgrims were religious heretics in Great Britain that were seeking freedom to practice their religion. Yet what many history books do not touch on or describe are the realities and the stark misrepresentations of the relations between the Pilgrims and the Native Americans who were settled in what is today Massachusetts. All stories are myths...the truth and the false. Myth does not necessarily mean false because any story that describes the origins of a particular thing in our world is considered one. Knowing the falsehoods, the historical inaccuracies of the narrative passed down from generation to generation is necessary for the United States as a whole to create a more honest, and hopefully a more perfect union. We must come together to build an American myth that is accurate of what was and speaks to what we wish to become.

The United States is made up of the land that was inhabited by over 534 Native American ethnic identities and counting. These identities had different langauges, customs, and traditions. Many of them formed alliances that came and went. They had commercial interests and means of trading for goods desired. The various nations of the Native Americans also were not idly living in nature but were developing complex ways of life and building relationships with the land itself. There is a false idea that pervades the history books that Native Americans of North America were all hunter-gatherers. Not only does it put the state of hunter-gatherer groups in a lower status to their peers, it also completely paints a broad picture that all Native Americans are the same. While they may share similar experiences...especially in regards to settlement interactions from various European nations...it is pertinent to recognize that the story of Native Americans started long before any European power came in contact with them.

According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, the modern story that was passed down from generation to generation in the United States had its origins during the Civil War Era. "Thanksgiving Day did not become an official holiday until Northerners dominated the federal government. While sectional tensions prevailed in the mid-19th century, the editor of the popular magazine Godey’s Lady’s Book, Sarah Josepha Hale, campaigned for a national Thanksgiving Day to promote unity. She finally won the support of President Abraham Lincoln. On October 3, 1863, during the Civil War, Lincoln proclaimed a national day of thanksgiving to be celebrated on Thursday, November 26." The fact that much of the lore that is used to develop Thanksgiving is an exaggerated account from those who were not a part of the narrative is a telling sign of how critical we should be concerning the holiday. Transparency requires us to stop and be reflective of the roles that Colonists have had in shaping the affairs of the continent. The Wampanog and several other Native American nations were all but entirely wiped out. Their descendents continue to live on and are braving the struggles of being the last survivors. The recognition of the true history of colonialism in the United States is a controversial topic that will certainly get you stared at any family function.

There is always something to learn and I would be lying if I said I was an expert on these topics. Here is what I have gathered throughout my own personal reading. The history of colonization in the United States is already a muddled mess because our history books tend to focus more on the British Empire's efforts to colonize the continent and how the Colonists rebeled against them. This in turn completely ignores the impacts of these efforts on Native Americans who were engaging with the British at that time. It also completley ignores another important reality. Before the British came to what was coined as the "New World", there was already a presence of other European powers. In Iceland and Greenland, Nordic settlers were settling. The Spanish, the French, and the Dutch were already at work colonizing North America. Those Native Americans who encountered them were met with hostile treatment as well as false generosity. Many of them were enslaved and forced to endure inhumane treatment. The Spanish and the French were already

taking Native homelands away and making them adopt European dress, demeanors, and religious identities. Even as certain powers were pushed back and others (such as the newly established United States) began to take hold...this hostility towards Native Americans continued. It would culminate in the continental United States efforts to round up the various Native American communities and pushing them onto land that was hostile and next to impossible to subsist on. Up until the 1970s, Native children were taken from their parents and were abused physically and mentally while they were shamed and punished for speaking their language and practicing their religion.

The legacy of the United States of America is not without its dark elements. The national holiday it uses to observe its accomplishments are often guilded with the "glory" of the country rather than also recognizing the harm that was done. Today, the holiday is a time for people of a variety of backgrounds to come together and enjoy meals with their families and friends. But we would be remiss if we did not also take the time to truly understand the legacy of what truly happened across the United States for hundreds of years and what goes on to this day.

Perhaps one day, when the United States truly comes to understand the legacy of the harm it caused to millions of people...we will begin to have an actual Thanksgiving that commemorates the uniting of various nations. The ironic story behind the Thanksgiving story traditionally told is that it is a celebration of different nations coming together to enjoy a bountiful harvest and to express their gratitude and friendship. What would happen if we actually took the first steps towards this reality? If we made better changes and began treating each other the way we want to be treated...and passed legislation that honored these goals...what kind of world would we live in?

Believe it or not, this starts with us and how we live and interact in the world around us. The time for us to connect and bond over a new story is now. Our actions ripple throughout time and space. If we create and honor new traditions, new legacies, and understand the entirety of the history that came before us...perhaps we can celebrate a Thanksgiving story with a myth that is worth remembering. It all starts with our neighbors, our friends, and our families.