When Cedric Cromwell sits down with his family for a meal on Thanksgiving each year, the day holds a unique kind of significance.
“We are Americans as well, and so even today, I sit down at Thanksgiving with family,” he said. “I do have that Thanksgiving meal on that day with family but it gives me an opportunity to speak to the kids and the family about the truth of the day, and why that day is important to give thanks.”
Cromwell’s perspective illustrates the dual meaning that Thanksgiving holds for some Native Americans. The day is both a chance to ceremoniously express gratitude — a practice that existed in Native American culture before the Pilgrims arrived — and an opportunity to highlight the challenges the community faces today. Just as some are pushing to recognize “Indigenous Peoples’ Day” on Columbus Day, there is an effort to use the Thanksgiving holiday to bring an accurate representation of Native American history into mainstream American culture.
Cromwell said that it was important to both give thanks and highlight the brutal history Native Americans have faced.
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