Thanksgiving as a Bitter Reminder
For millions of Americans, Thanksgiving is a holiday most associated with turkey, family, and football. It is a time when we are to give thanks for the freedoms we take for granted the other 364 days of the year. In Seattle public schools however it is also a time for rememberance of 500 years of betrayal returned for freindship. At least that is what the school system is telling children as young as 5 or years old:
Dear Seattle Public Schools Staff:
We recognize the amount of work that educators and staff have to do in order to fulfill our mission to successfully educate all students. It’s never as simple as preparing and delivering a lesson. Students bring with them a host of complexities including cultural, linguistic and social economic diversity. In addition they can also bring challenges related to their social, emotional and physical well being. One of our departments’ goals is to support you by suggesting ways to assist you in removing barriers to learning by promoting respect and honoring the diversity of our students, staff and families.
With so many holidays approaching we want to again remind you that Thanksgiving can be a particularly difficult time for many of our Native students. This website http://www.oyate.org/resources/shortthanks.html offers suggestions on ways to be sensitive of diverse experiences and perspectives and still make the holiday meaningful for all students. Here you will discover ways to help you and your students think critically, and find resources where you can learn about Thanksgiving from a Native American perspective. Eleven myths are identified about Thanksgiving, take a look at #11 and begin your own deconstruction.
Myth #11: Thanksgiving is a happy time
Fact: For many Indian people, “Thanksgiving” is a time of mourning, of remembering how a gift of generosity was rewarded by theft of land and seed corn, extermination of many from disease and gun, and near total destruction of many more from forced assimilation. As currently celebrated in this country, “Thanksgiving” is a bitter reminder of 500 years of betrayal returned for friendship.
More ‘diversity’ education in public schools which only serve the purpose of convincing young children they live in a country founded by oppressors, for the sole purpose of oppressing others.
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This is why we homeschool our children.
Don’t get too upset. If you actually read what they’re saying, it’s not the school district teaching 5-year olds that Thanksgiving is a bitter occasion. The school district is trying to prepare their staff for what has been found to be the reaction of part of the public that they serve, nothing more, nothing less.
That some Native Americans find Thanksgiving to be a bitter reminder of 500 years of betrayal is not something the school district is responsible for; preparing their staff to deal with it is.
I have a problem with this type of language
“Eleven myths are identified about Thanksgiving, take a look at #11 and begin your own deconstruction.” It’s the “deconstruction” part that is most disturbing. That doesn’t mean to have a discussion on the matter, that means to re-educate or re-teach something according to the “new” acceptable politically correct way.
I would be interested in seeing the other 10 “myths” - my feeling is that they are not “myths” at all. Just PC talking points.
Again, we say no thank you to “deconstruction” and homeschool our children.