Horrifying. Im 38 years old and I didnt know about this until a few minutes ago. Wow. Weve been fooled. Again. William Newell, a Penobscot Indian and former chair of the anthropology department of the University of Connecticut, claims that the first Thanksgiving was not a festive gathering of Indians and Pilgrims, but rather a celebration of the massacre of 700 Pequot men, women and children. In 1637, the Pequot tribe of Connecticut gathered for the annual Green Corn Dance ceremony. Mercenaries of the English and Dutch attacked and surrounded the village; burning down everything and shooting whomever try to escape. The next day, Newell notes, the Governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony declared: A day of Thanksgiving, thanking God that they had eliminated over 700 men, women and children. It was signed into law that, This day forth shall be a day of celebration and thanksgiving for subduing the Pequots. Most Americans believe Thanksgiving was this wonderful dinner and harvest celebration. The truth is the Thanksgiving dinner was invented both to instill a false pride in Americans and to cover up the massacre. Was Thanksgiving really a massacre of 700 Indians? The present Thanksgiving may be a mixture of the 1621 three-day feast and the Thanksgiving proclaimed after the 1637 Pequot massacre. So next time you see the annual Pilgrim and Indian display in a shopping window or history about other massacres of Native Americans, think of the hurt and disrespect Native Americans feel. Thanksgiving is observed as a day of sorrow rather than a celebration. This year at Thanksgiving dinner, ponder why you are giving thanks. Indeed.
Posted on: Thu, 27 Nov 2014 07:14:37 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015