by Dominique M., Assistant Editor-in-Chief Macy’s Day Parade. Steaming turkey. Family surrounded by the table. By now, you are probably envisioning Thanksgiving and all that comes with it. What if I were to replace your ideals of this holiday with the actual meaning of the holiday? The celebration of death. Fresh land for the taking. European settlers praising their “new” America together. Does hearing these descriptions change your notion of the holiday at all?
For many people, it is hard to separate what we currently do to celebrate certain holidays from what their actual purpose is. Moreover, even when we do find out the rationale for holidays like Thanksgiving or the 4th of July, we tend to overlook it. After all, why should you have to change your traditions when you feel like the reason why they started isn’t your fault? Basically, should you be held responsible or even stop your celebrations because of the hellish activity that happened prior to you enjoying it? I wonder if maybe that could be our privilege at work that prevents us from even thinking of the past. If we think back to elementary school, I’m sure we can all remember creating a turkey out of a handprint and dancing around the classroom with feathered hand bands. But, what I don’t remember is learning about the history of the holiday or even how disrespectful it is to parade around in someone else’s culture. Should we be more angered at the school systems for preventing this information into our tiny childlike heads or should we be angry for the teachers who were unwilling to show us the truth? It is no secret that America has a long-standing history of covering up things and refusing to acknowledge our history. Not only is that reflected in our education of generations, but it is reflected in just about everything we do. From the covert forms of police brutality to the disparities in sentencing for minorities, a large problem has continually prevailed. So when we are sitting in our happy homes on Thanksgiving afternoon enjoying a meal that was thoughtfully prepared, should we feel ashamed? Should we be thinking about the thousands of natives that were slaughtered in the name of a new world? Should we be in a such a state of bliss when they were in such pain giving our “founders” what they wanted? When pondering these ideas, does it make you wonder about what else we aren’t being taught and what else we aren’t being told? I challenge you to look at your textbooks and inquire as to what is being left out. After all, a conflict is always told in three ways. One way is one person’s interpretation. Another way is the opposing person’ view. Finally, the third way is the truth. So, ask yourself: which way am I being taught? No longer should we just accept what we are given; rather, we should be researching on our own to discover what is truly being hidden. When you choose to ignore the inquisitive voice in the back of your head, I want you to ask yourself if you are neglecting yourself of a much needed lesson or if you are neglecting those who will continue to be disenfranchised by the ignorance that you are allowing to prevail. After all, “nothing is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity”. Just ask Dr. King.
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December 2018
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