How To Talk To Your Children About Thanksgiving's Ugly History

This week, schoolchildren across the country will come home from elementary and preschool armed with cutout paper turkeys and stories excitedly recounted about the first Thanksgiving, all those years ago in Plymouth, Mass. At school, most will learn the traditional narrative of hungry Pilgrims aided by friendly Native Americans, who shared their bounty with their less-fortunate immigrant neighbors.

But while this heartwarming story may be historically accurate, what happens next to these 17th century Native Americans and their descendants is usually left out of the classroom. Strikingly, Thanksgiving is often the only time of the year when Americans think about the history, however partial, of Native Americans. But aren’t we missing an opportunity to use this holiday as a springboard to really talk to our children about Native American history and cultures?
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