Thanksgiving Day, a humbling day that is most often spent with loved ones. The people you hold closest sit around a table and express their gratitude for one another by all gathering for dinner. Of course we all know why we celebrate this holiday, it was the day the pilgrims sat down with the Native Americans and shared a meal together. According to popular belief, it was a peaceful and beautiful celebration, and everyone lived in perfect harmony. Sadly, that is far from the truth.
This story began in 1614 when a group of English Explorers took a group of Patuxet Natives for slavery back in England. The spread of smallpox nearly wiped out the native population. One of the few survivors was Squanto, an English speaking native who taught them how to corn and fish to where they became friends. He attempted negotiating a peace treaty, but they retaliated, resulting in one of the bloodiest Indian wars ever. Eventually the Pilgrims did end up negotiating a peace treaty with the Wampanoag Nation.
It wasn’t until 1637 when Thanksgiving came around. The annual Green Corn Festival (the day we recognize as Thanksgiving) was a gathering by the Pequot Tribe. 700 of the celebrating men, women, and children were sleeping when they were ordered to leave their quarters by mercenaries. Once the tribe cooperated, they were brutally massacred by the mercenaries. The next day the Governor of Massachusetts declared “A Day of Thanksgiving” because of the massacre of 700 innocent people.
This type of massacre was frequent afterwards, the allied Native Americans would feast with the Pilgrims to celebrate. It took a while for them to make it an official national holiday. So how can we respect how devastating it was?
The easiest way to respect the cultures who look at this day as a day of mourning and devastation is to tell others. Bring it up online, bring it up at dinner. You don’t have to be a buzz kill to bring up matters that actually affect people.
Respect the culture by not appropriating in the means of celebration. Respect the culture when you decorate and celebrate this holiday.
Native Americans undergo an immense amount of drug abuse and oppression as it is. The easiest way to support the current oppressive is to simply donate. Here is a list of organizations to donate to. We need to respect and understand the cultures we interact with.
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