Reply to Should so called “thanksgiving” be a national day of mourning?

Forum Index » Off-Topic

Reply to "Should so called “thanksgiving” be a national day of mourning?"

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Discussion tangent:

Something I realized after reading "Guns, Germs and Steel" was that, even if the European explorers and setters arrive in the Americas with nothing but kind hearts and friendly intentions, they still would have pretty much wiped out the indigenous population within the same time frame; the diseases they brought with them would still have spread just as much in such a vulnerable population.

Another tangent - I'm teaching 5th grade social studies and we are just discussing European explorers and settlers of the "new world" right now. I never had such an easy time getting student (these are ESOL students) to understand the term "epidemic" before, or why so many Native Americans were susceptible to the diseases the Europeans brought.  Talk about "lived experience".

Anyhow,

Thanksgiving is our only truly American holiday, that everyone can celebrate regardless of religion.  It doesn't have to have anything to do with Native Americans, though. It can just be a day of thanks for food and family.[/quote]

I guess our ancestors shouldn’t have pushed the fake pilgrim story then.

The 4th of July is a “truly American holiday”. 
[/quote]

The fake pilgrim story was invented in the mid to late 1800s as way to bring the country together.  Now we're taking the story apart.  But we have nothing to replace it with.  Similar to the wider parallel.[/quote]

We could collectively look at it as a chance to bring ALL of the country together instead of just the white, male colonizers. Day of mourning *and* healing. 
[/quote]
We have enough depressing days of mourning and reflection in this country. Can’t we have any damn fun anymore? This country has become so depressing. [/quote]

Yes, you can blow off your fingers for fun on the 4th. Indulge in excessive consumerism on Xmas. Worship the pigskin gods on Super Bowl Sunday. Get your sugar rush on Easter. Get drunk on new years. If you’re not already having fun you’re doing it wrong.

Plus, you are an adult. Welcome to life. It’s not all fun. 
[/quote]

Thanksgiving isn’t going to become a national day of mourning. It’s going to continue to be a family holiday where people eat too much turkey and pie and watch football. Welcome to life. Cope harder.[/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics