5 minute read
Celebrating Friendsgiving
CELEBRATING FRIENDSGIVINGBecause Thanksgiving is an American “Holiday” Based on Taking and No Thanks Given
by Vee Castillo
“In November 1621, after the Pilgrims’ first corn harvest proved successful, Governor William Bradford organized a celebratory feast and invited a group of the fledgling colony’s Native American allies, including the Wampanoag chief Massasoit.” But is this accurate?
Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday in the United States. History.com says that the Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Native Americans shared an autumn harvest feast that is now acknowledged as Thanksgiving. Their story goes something like:
AMERICA’S HISTORY HAS BEEN ROOTED IN TAKING WITH NO THANKS GIVEN
The one thing we know about America is that their version of the truth is always inflated with misconceptions- at the very least. I wasn’t there but, Insider.com’s reports of the past seem more accurate, based on America’s deep, dark, and hideous soul.
Their version of events for the celebration of Thanksgiving does support an alliance between English settlers and the Wampanoag; however, as we know, colonizers came to America and the Caribbean, to steal and kill. Though there was an alliance, Insider reports:
Potawatomi.org states that Thanksgiving had nothing to do with the above, but instead, everything to do with the Dakota War of 1862, and I must say, this too sounds in line with America’s twisted soul:
“The formation of Thanksgiving as an official United States’ holiday, did not begin until November 1863 during the Civil War. President Abraham Lincoln officially established the holiday as a way to improve relations between northern and southern states as well as the U.S. and tribal nations. Just a year prior, a mass execution took place of Dakota tribal members. Corrupt federal agents kept the Dakota-Sioux from receiving food and provisions. Finally at the brink of death from starvation, members of the tribe fought back, resulting in the Dakota War of 1862. In the end, President Lincoln ordered 38 Dakota men to die from hanging, and he felt that Thanksgiving offered an opportunity to bridge the hard feelings amongst Natives and the federal government.”
Do we really think that America has a nice history of white/english people being open and welcoming to black and brown people?
Is any holiday in America not elevated by capitalism and over spending? Is there any part of America that wasn’t invaded by, tortured by, and infected with disease by colonizers?
WHAT IS FRIENDSGIVING?
They say that friendsgiving took over the Millennial generation. Millennials aren’t here for America’s false accounts of unity.
Friendsgiving is a happy medium between wanting to celebrate abundance and giving thanks, but not wanting to celebrate it on a day based on, and celebrated in-brutality.
This day, rooted in love, has no formal date of celebration. Many celebrate the week/weekend before the actual “holiday”, others have thrown away the actual “holiday” and only celebrate Friendsgiving, be it on the date of the actual “holiday” or any date near it, and others have thrown both of these away in the month of November and enjoy feasts with friends whenever they want.
FRIENDSGIVING, A FORM OF MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT?
For many, going home for the ‘“holidays” is stressful a heck. Many suffer from conditions like: anxiety, depression, OCD, S.A.D, and so on. Many families are similar, full blown judgement and opinions no one asked for, begin to fly across the table. That is stressful to so many and so, Thanksgiving becomes an obstacle. The easier, non triggered approach is to still celebrate love and appreciation, with friends.
Study Finds (.org), says that 7 in 10 Americans prefer Friendsgiving over Thanksgiving because they want to avoid family fatigue. In a Thanksgiving survey by Sabra, they found that 58% of young Americans dread the thought of family Thanksgiving celebrations because of all the personal questions that will come their way.
IN CLOSING
As the culture in America continues to shift, as truths continue to surface, as traditions rooted in brutality die, celebrations like Friendsgiving will take over and become a new tradition.
It’s a weird celebration anyway. America, celebrating “thanks” since the 1600’s. Which means celebrations were being had during slavery.
And instead of thanking enslaved people for their contributions to build America, and not gathering up to unleash a massacre on the ones doing the enslaving, America passed law after law, leading to more oppression.
In the Huff Post, Writer and descendant from the Black Indian tribe of Florida, Nicole Breedlove titles her article: “Happy National Genocide Day (Thanksgiving) Day!”. In this article, Nicole shares lessons by William B. Newell, a Penobscot Indian and former chairman of the Anthropology Department at the University of Connecticut. Mr. Newell, who states that in 1637 when the dead body of the white man was found on a boat :
“Gathered in this place of meeting, they were attacked by mercenaries and English and Dutch. The Indians were ordered from the building and as they came forth were shot down, The rest were burned alive in the building. The very next day the governor declared a Thanksgiving Day. For the next 100 years, every Thanksgiving Day ordained by a Governor was in honor of the bloody victory, thanking God that the battle had been won.”
Because of Thanksgiving’s origins, present day, many of the conversations at the dinner table lead to emotional brutality; it’s no wonder the culture is shifting. Nicole closes with the perfect ending to her piece and therefore, I’ll quote it for this ending:
“So when you sit down to dinner this year, look at your family, serve the food and tell each other what you are most thankful for, think about the origins of Thanksgiving. Think about the countless Native Americans who lost their lives so you can carve a turkey and get the best deals on Black Friday. Say a prayer for them, especially the children, who died simply because of the color of their skin.”
