This will be the first Thanksgiving I’ll celebrate knowing that my 10th great-grandfather, William White, was a Mayflower passenger and signed the Mayflower Compact. He died that first winter, so my 10Th great-grandmother was there for the first celebration.
There is a lot of fake news we learned in school that wasn’t accurate about that so-called “First Thanksgiving.” Here is what I learned from the Wampanoag, the Indians who helped the Pilgrims.
“…most people do not know about the first Thanksgiving because the Wampanoag and Pilgrims did not sit down for a big turkey dinner and it was not an event that the Wampanoag knew about or were invited to in advance.” (Tim Turner, Cherokee, manager of Plimoth Plantation’s Wampanoag Homesite.)
The Pilgrims sent out four hunters in the morning who brought back an abundance of fowl (could have been turkey, but who knows). Besides feasting, the men had target practice with their flintlocks. The natives were alerted and set out to ensure the Pilgrims were not under attack. That was when the Wampanoag invited or co-hosted themselves to the festivities. Massasoit, the Chief, sent out a team who brought back five deer to add to the meal. Fortunately, he did, because the number of Indians was two to three times the size of the settlers.
The food included venison, seafood, waterfowl (not to mention of turkey), maize bread, pumpkin (not pumpkin pie), and other squash.
The natives later did not look at Thanksgiving as a celebration, but as a day of mourning because of their treatment at the hands of the white man.
“At noon on every Thanksgiving Day, hundreds of Native people from around the country gather at Cole's Hill, which overlooks Plymouth Rock, for the National Day of Mourning. It is an annual tradition started in 1970 when Wampanoag Wamsutta (Frank) James was invited by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to give a speech at an event celebrating the 350th anniversary of the Pilgrims’ arrival and then disinvited after the event organizers discovered his speech was one of outrage over the “atrocities” and “broken promises” his people endured.”
Frank James was supposed to address the crowd at the 350th anniversary of the Pilgrims' arrival, but the organizers learned what he would share from the Indian perspective. They canceled him. The message he was supposed to give contained this statement:
“This action by Massasoit was perhaps our biggest mistake. We, the Wampanoag, welcomed you, the white man, with open arms, little knowing that it was the beginning of the end.”
I certainly understand their feelings, but I have learned that it’s best to not look back at all of the injustice done to us. Letting go of the injustice in my life has freed me to enjoy life better. Take, for example, my friend Donna. She is Japanese American and was born in a relocation camp that the government were so kind to set up after telling them they had to leave their homes and businesses within six days. These were American citizens who were unjustly treated. Many of the Nisai Japanese were bitter over their plight. Donna’s parents tried to put a positive spin on things and make the best of the situation. After their release, the family had to start over again. They worked hard and were steller American citizens. Donna and all of her siblings went to college, earned degrees, and had a career.
As I was watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade, I saw a float made by the Wapanoag Indian tribe whose ancestors had to put up with the mistreatment of the white man at Plymoth. The chiefs were smiling and waving at the crowd. Apparently not all Wapenoag descendants view the Plymouth setters in the same way. Some forgave and moved on. This is not to say we should ignore injustice, but as time passes, we do ourselves a favor by forgiving and living a productive life.
Regardless of what historical view we have of Thanksgiving, the idea is for us to be grateful for what we have. I know I am.
