What Are You Thankful For???

 

Good Morning Lovies. I hope you all had a great sleep, as I am sure most of you probably fell into your "turkey coma" yesterday; at some point. Today, some may be gathering for their dinners, or some may be fortunate enough to be enjoying their second massive meal of the weekend; either way, I hope you enjoy the day and company more than anything else. 

As y'all know, I choose not to call this day by what the government calls it; as there is nothing to be celebrating about the history of this day... here nor in the States!!! 

(Thanksgiving here in October, nor the one in November for our neighbours in the South). 

Don't get it twisted, I know we all have things/moments and people in our lives that we absolutely should be thankful for; but there definitely shouldn't be a date where we gather and celebrate a day that has such a horrid history to it; no matter how much it is "white-washed" in the history books... we ALL know, those books are written to suit the narrative of our government and will NEVER tell the true story. 

Again, I don't care how uncomfortable my words or writing is making people feel because first, I am not here to appease you and two, people should not be "comfortable" with what happen and continues to happen!!! I will continue to shout out the truth. No one is going to shut me up, nor will I ever conform to anyone's ways. Isn't the mantra... if you see something... say something??? Well I AM SAYING SOMETHING!!! (In fact, I am saying MANY 'somethings".)

The books taught us all that the first thanksgiving meals were a celebration of the Indigenious people and the white man... (It was initially a festival of the lands known as the "Harvest Festival", that was changed by the white man, removing the Native traditions to the celebrations and adding slowly, the traditions of what suited their ways). Here is Canada it is taught that in 1578 Martin Frobisher, an English explorer landed his ship on what is now known as Nunavut; they broke bread and had their "communion" to give thanks for arriving safely when they got to what is known as Newfoundland now. 

Forty-eight years later, Samuel de Champlain on November 14, 1606, held a huge feast between his French colony and the local Mi'kmaq; where the Mi'kmaq introduced them to the cranberry, which is loaded with Vitamin C, saving many of the French from scurvy; which was an epidemic at the time. There is much more written about it, with the narrative shining a "beautiful sentiment" on this day, but I don't buy it; never will, never have!!!

(No matter what they say about the Canadian history being different from the American, it isn't... at the end of the day, both were feasts of colonization!!!)

WHAT THE HISTORY BOOKS ARE NOT TELLING YOU...

In the USA, they are taught that the first Thanksgiving was simply a feast between the Pilgrims and the Native Americans, being thankful for helping them having a successful first harvest. Yes, the Pilgrims arrived on the Mayflower in 1621 and DID hold a 3-day feast, which was attended by the Wampanoag tribe; but it's not the poultry, potato, stuffing, pie eating meals we have these days... and according to the true history of the day, this traditional celebration was held by the Native Americans who were thankful for a prosperous harvest...

As we all know, the Pilgrims on the Mayflower were NOT the first white men to land on American soil; those who came approximately four years earlier, brought with them diseases that the Native Americans had never dealt with before... making them weak and killing them off rapidly; making it very easy for the colonizers to take over the lands... abducting and selling the Native Americans into slavery.

So this alreadt debunks the narrative of the tribes and Pilgrims coming together in unison to celebrate some feast willingly. Ousamequin, who was the leader of the Wampanoag Tribe made an alliance AFTER hearing the Pilgrims shooting off their guns celebrating; misinterpreting the gunfire as impending war. These 3 days of festivities were not all feasts, it was traditionally fasting and praying first. 

This happened for over a decade and a half before Massachusetts Colony Governor John Winthrop declared that day as THANKSGIVING after he had volunteers MURDER 700 Pequot people. The date varied until President Abraham Lincoln declared it as the last Thursday in November. (This was made official in 1863).

I join the Native Americans and acknowledge the day as a stark reminder of what is considered to be the genocide of millions of the Native people, the theft of the Native lands and how the white man felt it was their right to rob an entire nation of their culture and way of life. (Let's not forget how people even to this day, mock the Native Americans by wearing things like the leaddresses... which is part of their sacred dress).

I will end this very long blurb with some wise words from Sean Sherman, (founder and CEO of The Sioux Chef):

"THE THING IS, WE DO NOT NEED THE POISONOUS PILGRIMS AND INDIANS NARRATIVE. WE DO NOT NEED THAT ILLUSION OF THE PAST UNITY TO ACTUALLY UNITE PEOPLE TODAY. INSTEAD, WE CAN FOCUS SIMPLY ON THE VALUES THAT APPLY TO EVERYONE:
TOGETHERNESS, GENEROSITY AND GRATITUDE. AND WE CAN MAKE THE DAY ABOUT WHAT EVERYBODY WANTS TO TALK AND THINK ABOUT ANYWAY: THE FOOD!
PEOPLE MAY NOT REALIZE IT, BUT WHAT EVERY PERSON IN THIS COUNTRY SHARES, AND THE VERY HISTORY OF THIS NATION, HAS BEEN IN FRONT OF US THE WHOLE TIME. MOST OF OUR THANKSGIVING RECIPES ARE MADE WITH INDIGENOUS FOODS: TURKEY, CORN, BREAD, PUMPKINS, MAPLE, WILD RICE AND THE LIKE. WE SHOULD EMBRACE IT!!!"

With that in mind, I hope you all take a moment and remember what is really important on this day. Be mindful of the origins, the TRUE origins of this day... as a Harvest Festival!!! Sure, give thanks for what is important... family, friends, loved ones but please take a moment and remember what atrocities took place for us to even be sitting around a table today!!!

~Phoenix