Editor’s note: The following article is an op-ed, and the views expressed are the author’s own. Read more opinions on theGrio.
Most people celebrate white Thanksgiving.
When a group of indigenous Americans accepted a dinner invitation from the invaders who would spend the next century murdering the natives’ families, stealing their land and erasing their history, it was a momentous occasion …
For white people.
It was not the first time the indigenous Americans had attended an all-white party — the Wampanoags had been in contact with Europeans for more than a century and already spoke English when the evangelical Christians showed up. Cultures from Africa to South America already celebrated fall harvests and thanked their gods long before the inaugural Wypipo Picnic. Plus, the menu at the Caucasian cookout was the same food that the natives ate every day (probably with less seasoning, though).
Black Thanksgiving is different.
When Black families come together on the fourth Thursday in November, our celebration has nothing to do with Pilgrims, pumpkins or free real estate. Ours is less about colonizing and is much more cousin-centric. But, if you don’t know which one your family observes, theGrio has put together this handy-dandy quiz to let you know which holiday you have been celebrating.
1. What is Thanksgiving?
- A potluck
- An inside-the-house cookout
- The pregame meal before the Bayou Classic
- A time for honoring the ancestors’ recipes
2. What does Thanksgiving commemorate?
- The Pilgrims’ first annual diversity, equity and inclusion dinner
- When dressing was invented.
- The end of HBCU homecoming season
- Oh, now you need a reason to come to see your family?
3. What do you wear to Thanksgiving dinner?
- Attire that fits somewhere between “play clothes” and “school clothes”
- A “living room…
Read the full article here
