Thanksgiving and Native American Heritage Month

November 13, 2019 | Uncategorized

Thanksgiving is celebrated in November in the US, and so is Native American Heritage Month: https://nativeamericanheritagemonth.gov/about/.  

Those of us who are not Native have much to learn from Native peoples about gratitude. As we approach the Thanksgiving holiday, consider sharing the Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address at your gatherings. The Haudenosaunee (also known as the Iroquois Confederacy or Six Nations ‚Äî Mohawk, Oneida, Cayuga, Onondaga, Seneca, and Tuscarora)  open and close every social and religious meeting with the Thanksgiving Address. It is also said as a daily sunrise prayer and is an ancient message of peace and appreciation of Mother Earth and all her inhabitants.     
 
There are many online resources for debunking the myths surrounding Thanksgiving (look for ones written by Native people). The Indigenous people who were living on the lands invaded by the “pilgrims” are the Wampanoag. Here’s an interview with Ramona Peters, the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Cultural Preservation Officer, about how the Wampanoag people think about the Thanksgiving myth: 
 

Resources for Children and Youth: 

Traditional Native American Tales retold by Native Authors: https://www.whatdowedoallday.com/native-american-folktales-for-kids/?fbclid=IwAR3gc39qaZz1hHe4w-XqIPa32h8srvxIT_L794aI87iRZBymS96PI86gHcc

Decolonizing Thanksgiving. (Joan Broadfield) When celebrating Thanksgiving, it is important to acknowledge the culture of first peoples and to stay away from the whitewashed ‚ÄòPilgrims and Indians‚Äô story.  From Books for Littles, this blog post contains a brief list of children‚Äôs books countering the myth of the ‚ÄòFirst Thanksgiving.‚Äô http://www.booksforlittles.com/thanksgiving/?fbclid=IwAR35go8OkJuxTJO440UQpZDfk6lV4YBzvpsxtuDt4xJXglQBsmp-Mg1PWx0

Giving Thanks: A Native American Good Morning Message, by Jake Swamp, is a special children’s version of the Thanksgiving Address, a message of gratitude that originated with the Native people of upstate New York and Canada, still spoken at ceremonial gatherings held by the Iroquois, or Six Nations.

Book: https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/books/giving-thanks-by-chief-jake-swamp/

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PE2YHTSQVgY

Resources for Adults and Educators: 

‚ÄãThanksgiving: A Native Perspective, Ed: Doris Seale (Santee/Cree), Beverly Slapin, and Carolyn Silverman (Cherokee/Blackfeet). This sourcebook of essays, speeches, stories and activities will help teachers and students think critically about what has been, and continues to be, taught as the ‚Äúfirst Thanksgiving.” http://oyate.org/index.php/component/hikashop/product/372-thanksgiving-a-native-perspective?Itemid=11

Alison Cagle, Celebrate Indigenous History This Thanksgiving: Here’s how to authentically honor the holiday. Sierra Magazine, 2018
 

Cultural Survival,  8 WAYS TO DECOLONIZE AND HONOR NATIVE PEOPLES ON THANKSGIVING

Teaching Tolerance, Teaching Thanksgiving in a Socially Responsible Way

Alexis Buntin, Bioneers, Three Ways to Decolonize Thanksgiving

United American Indians of New England, The Suppressed Speech of Wamsutta (Frank B.) James, Wampanoag  

The Souix Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen, By Sean Sherman https://sioux-chef.com/