Thanksgiving from Many Perspectives

This week fourth and fifth graders had art class with our special guest speaker Ms. Lynn Allen of District 97's Multicultural Department. The topic of her presentation and student conversation was Thanksgiving from many perspectives, including the Wampanoag people; the native group that first interacted with the pilgrims upon their arrival to the Plymouth area. Expanding her presentation to cover historical artifacts and contemporary achievements of several tribes of native peoples, Ms. Allen asked students to consider how colonial expansion created many cultural conflicts as well as opportunities for sharing of resources and knowledge. As with any historical meetings of two different groups with unique beliefs and practices, interactions between settlers and native indians were cautiously navigated surrounding land ownership, right of inhabitance as well as food resources. When the Pilgrims first arrived they saw fields already cleared and home plots established with no sign of existing owners. Short of fresh food and with scarce reserves after a long journey, the settlers quickly claimed the surrounding area. Unknown to them, the land belonged to the Wampanoag people, and served as one area of a seasonal crop rotation system. Having different farming practices, the settlers had not considered that the former inhabitants might return to farm that particular area. Initial meetings were friendly, with Massasoit, the Wampanoag leader allowing the small group of settlers to stay and farm the land. Yet, many of the non-native seeds did not take to foreign soil and the harvest was a lean one. The initial Thanksgiving we memorialize probably did not feature turkey or cranberry sauce, but foods native to the area including seafood. It lasted over 3 days and was not the first of its kind; both indian and pilgrim people marked the change of season with a harvest festival. Sadly, within 50 years the pilgrims and indian people were at war over territory and similar conflicts arose all over the country and through the decades as more european settlers arrived. While many still celebrate this feast as an opportunity to give thanks for friends and family many First Nations consider Thanksgiving to be a Day of Mourning over the loss of many lives and native cultures across the centuries.

Facts to Share:
Half of the American states have indian or spanish names.
%70 of the foods and conveniences we enjoy around the world were initially cultivated by indian tribes such as chocolate, blueberries, tomatoes, many legumes, vanilla, strawberries, popcorn, latex rubber, deodorant, and shampoo.
Navajo Code talkers helped to secure an Allied victory in WWII by speaking their native language which was indecipherable to Axis interpreters.
Non-indian people cannot own eagle feathers because the hunting of our national bird almost lead to its extinction. Eagle feathers worn in the headdress of a Chief must be earned, with each feather noting an act of bravery or diplomacy.