Thanksgiving conveniently happened to occur right after we finished Todorov’s Conquest of America. Coincidence? I think not. Therefore I’m dedicating this reflection to the irony of the unifying nature of Thanksgiving and the hypocrisy of the holiday.
Thanksgiving is the day we commemorate that wonderful day when Native Americans and pilgrims feasted together at the same table, celebrating the fruits of their labor. It is believed that this first meal was more of a harvest feast, rather than a meal of thanksgiving. This tradition only developed later on in American history, while the colonists were busy conquering the native heathens that helped them survive those first winters so many years ago. Only at this time, were they giving thanks for the good fortune that they had received. So what exactly is behind these heartwarming feelings that bring us together on this holiday? I would argue that we’re all just tired and need a break because, frankly, it can’t be that we’re celebrating the history of Thanksgiving.
Just as the Museum of the American Indian demonstrated, Thanksgiving is another portrayal of how the United States has not taken responsibility for the genocide of the Native Americans. We try to redeem ourselves with the exaggerated story of Thanksgiving, which is seen in what our youth is told about the holiday. We teach elementary school children that Thanksgiving is about how two different groups of people came together to share a meal and count their blessings together. However, history tells us that this is not entirely accurate, and also not the full story of Thanksgiving. Why is the United States still unable to confront its demons? Regardless, Thanksgiving is a nice holiday to celebrate because of the values we currently associate with it, as long as we ignore its murky history.
I think America does this with almost anything it feel guilty about. We happily ignore the part isn't pretty, give it a shiny face, and smile at it. The Revolutionary War? When do we ever hear about the awful things that Revolutionaries did to Loyalists? It's something that gets glossed over as we focus on the romantic idea of a group of ragtag rebels beating the skilled army of the tyrannical king. Nobody wants to hear about all the Loyalists that had their homes stolen from them, the unlucky ones that were murdered, or the even unluckier ones that were deported to Canada when the story of Paul Revere is waiting in the wings.
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