The “white AF” version of Thanksgiving is a lie that promotes the myth of white supremacy. That fairy tale ignores the utter ignorance, ineptitude and incompetence of those early colonists, who were on the verge of death, and had to resort to cannibalism just to semi-survive. The white-washed telling of this story also deletes the absolute arrogance and savagery those colonizers displayed by repaying the indigenous folk who literally saved their lives (by teaching them survival skills) by stealing their land, killing off most of them and displacing the rest.
So, I completely understand the army of Blackfolk and others who want nothing to do with the late November tradition known as Thanksgiving.
That said, hear me out on why we SHOULD celebrate Thanksgiving.
REASON 5 – Stop giving colonizers credit they don’t deserve
Rejecting Thanksgiving based on the BS, fairy tale version they indoctrinated us with during our youth, at its core, gives colonizers a credit they absolutely don’t deserve. It suggests they invented or created the idea of giving thanks. Y’all know they didn’t (more on that later). Just like they didn’t form and found Christianity. Just like they didn’t invent a gazillion inventions they stole credit for because it was against the law for centuries to give patents to Blackfolk. Just like they didn’t create New Age religion/spirituality or yoga or countless other things they act like they invented, even though the world’s people of color gifted them to the planet. Let’s stop giving them credit they don’t deserve.
REASON 4 – Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater
I understand rejecting the value system of colonizing people. But rejecting the notion of Thanksgiving is like throwing out the baby with the bathwater. We can “Just Say No” to the white nationalist propaganda version of the “first Thanksgiving” without also rejecting the act of giving thanks.
REASON 3 – Thanksgiving (gratefulness) is a superpower
Without going into the science of it, gratefulness (giving thanks) offers proven mind, body and spirit benefits. There are thousands of articles on this subject you can check out at your leisure. And they all show that you are better individually and we are better collectively when we live and move in a space of gratefulness and thanksgiving. For many, when they reject the holiday of Thanksgiving they also turn their backs on the spiritual practice of giving thanks and being grateful. Doing so allows colonizers to steal even more from us than they’ve already pilfered.
REASON 2 – We have much to be thankful for
Despite all that has been done in attempts to defile, destroy and demean Black people, still we rise. Not only were we (via our ancestors) the givers of religion, art, science and civilization to the world, we’ve had every dastardly deed known to humanity perpetrated upon us, yet we still built America. European powers wouldn’t exist without our gifts. And like author Joel Kotkin says in his classic book “Tribes: How Race, Religion and Identity Determine Success in the New Global Economy,” and I’m paraphrasing, “Of all people on the planet, Black people have absolutely everything they need to be a global force… except unity.” But that unity is impossible to attain without us having the eyes to see all that we have to be thankful for – our skills, abilities, traditions, experiential lessons, spiritual insights borne over thousands of years, ancestral resources, the spirit of Ubuntu (I am because we are) in our DNA there whenever we choose to recognize and tap into it, and the energy and power and brilliance of each other.
REASON 1 – We invented the notion of giving thanks
As alluded to already, Mr. and Mrs. Colonizer did not invent the spiritual practice of giving thanks. We did. In fact, every culture founded by people of color had their versions of “Thanksgiving.” African nations often referred to these practices as the “Festival of First Fruits,” which is literally what Kwanzaa means. But Black, Latinx and Asian folk have always taken time out of their lives to offer up thanks to God and the ancestors for various blessings (Which is why we know who the ancient Hebrews were. It was their own Festival of First Fruits which facilitated what we now know as the season of Pentecost and the birth of the first Christian church). These communal gatherings of “thanksgiving” often happened after crops were harvested. Community members thanked the creator for blessing them with the food needed to nourish their minds and bodies. Our people gave thanks after births, during and after weddings and at funerals, thanking God and the ancestors for the time spent with and contributions made by those who made their transitions. And since we all know all humanity traces its roots to Africa, it was folk who looked like us who were the first to utter the words “Thank you, Lord.” Your people and mine were the first to recognize the benefits of being thankful. Thanksgiving and gratefulness were so important, they were made integral parts of every ritual, personal or corporate, that we were part of. I mean, haven’t colonizers colonized enough? Rejecting Thanksgiving allows them to colonize yet another thing that is authentically African.
BONUS REASON
And when you think about it, when Blackfolk (conscious/progressive or not) celebrate Thanksgiving, we’re not gathering in our homes and re-enacting the Barry Goldwater-Richard Nixon-Snow White-Jerry Farwell version of events; we’re celebrating family and friends. We’re gathering together in fellowship and community. We’re joining hands and lifting up words of thanks for what the Creator and/or our loved ones have done for us. We’re recalling the blessings that flowed our way over the past year. We’re thanking Spirit for those of our family who made their transition and remembering them fondly. We’re offering words of joy about the new babies born, graduations witnessed, knots tied, promotions gained, businesses started, illnesses overcome, and any number of additional miracles and praise reports. Ain’t “nare” Black family I know saying a “got-damn” thing about pilgrims. Rather, every Black family I know is participating in one of the most ancient of African rituals – fellowshipping over a good meal and recalling our blessings.
And yes, we need to count our blessings every day. But let’s not boycott the one day most folk actually do it.
