Re-Thinking Thanksgiving: A Native American Perspective on an American Holiday

This lively, content-based presentation will give an overview of the history of this very misunderstood holiday.  Based on the only primary source document that chronicles the “First Thanksgiving” and using a quiz-style format (the audience will take the ‘quiz’ prior to the presentation), participants will learn accurate and culturally appropriate information about the English settlers at Plymouth and the Wampanoag, the Native people who inhabited that area.

The PowerPoint presentation will discuss the actual events of 1621 in Plymouth, the relationship between the English settlers and the Wampanoag and how this story became the holiday we know today.  The concept of thanksgiving held by many Native Americans will be emphasized throughout. 

Although they were not present in Plymouth in 1621, connections to the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) concepts of Thanksgiving will be discussed so participants will understand how Native People view Thanksgiving today.

https://talkingturtlestories.com/