A highlight of American history, a familiar scene painted in our minds: A group of Pilgrims prepares a huge feast for Indians who helped them survive their first winter. The Pilgrims and the Indians sit together at the table and peacefully share a meal.
This image is painfully inaccurate. But this is just another piece of American history that has been tampered with to fit our nation’s Eurocentric ideals. Thanksgiving has continuously perpetuated the myth of the discovery of America. Stories taught at elementary schools are an extremely diluted version of the interaction between the two groups, and undermines the Native American struggle and commemorates the genocide of an indigenous peoples.
As an immigrant, I can somewhat comprehend how my people’s self-determination and agency has been destroyed by colonial and imperial powers. I feel outright guilt in participating in this day. However, at the same time I am reminded of my privilege. Who am I to object to this holiday when there are people in this world who die from starvation? Although thanksgiving has now become more about being grateful for our blessings and less about the Native Americans, it is not necessarily how this holiday came to be.
First of all, the Pilgrims did not introduce the concept of thanksgiving; Native American tribes have been celebrating autumn harvest feasts for generations. Thanksgiving came to be a national holiday when former president Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national day of "Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens," to be celebrated on the last Thursday in November.
While Americans celebrate giving thanks, many may not know that this day was originated on a massacre. In 1636 a white man was murdered and found dead in his boat, and this incident was naturally blamed on the Pequot tribe. In retaliation, European settlers burned Pequot villages. Troops under John Mason (an English Mayor), killed hundreds of Native American women, men, and children. The day following the massacre, Governor William Bradford of Bay Colony wrote that from that day onwards there should be a day celebrating the subduing of the Pequot tribe and thanking God for the bloody victory.
Another misconception is how many people think that the Europeans appreciated Squanto’s help, who learned English from the settlers and taught the Pilgrims to harvest. But what we don’t learn in history class is that Squanto was sold into slavery as a young boy and had struggled for many years to return to Cape Cod. And upon his return, he was faced with the brutal reality of his tribe being destroyed in either battle or disease.
Painting a fairytale image of the Native American history undercuts the oppression they went through in result of the European migration in America. It’s easy to use them when it’s convenient to hide the ugly truth of our American history. But when its time to stand for Native Americans and their rights as human beings – there’s a lack of involvement.
It is paralyzing to comprehend the millions of lives lost over the trail of tears, of those murdered at Standing Rock, and of so many whose culture and pride has been stripped away in internment camps.
As we sit down at the dinner table to celebrate feasts with our friends and family, let us not forget that our life is owed to the Native American people who where murdered to give us space in this nation.
