Happy Black-Ass Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving from This Black-Ass Life! This week, we’re reflecting on tradition, honoring Native Americans, and trying to make the flyest mac ‘n’ cheese possible. We hope you enjoy this newsletter, Thanksgiving, and time with your family - however you define family!
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l. The Facts
What is a Black person do with a holiday that celebrates what historian Lewis Mumford laments as the beginning of White man’s dedication to “slavery, land robbery, lawlessness, culture-wrecking, and the outright extermination of both wild beasts and tame men” in America?
We all have that one cousin who reminds everyone that Thanksgiving is the ultimate celebration of Manifest Destiny, a “grotesque celebration of ethnocentrism built on genocide,” and an honoring of the damn near close extermination of Native People.
While your wokest cousin might be annoying, they right.
The origins of Thanksgiving is often debated, but it most likely falls between the Pilgrim story we heard in elementary school and the Mystic Massacre, where after English and Dutch colonizers shot, clubbed, and burned alive 700 men, women, and children from the Pequot Tribe in 1637. Massachusetts Bay Gov. William Bradford designated a "day of Thanksgiving” to celebrate. Deeeeeeeeppppp sigh.
Naive and/or horrifying origins aside, Thanksgiving became official official when good ole Abe Lincoln issued a 1863 proclamation calling on Americans to "set apart and observe the last Thursday of November as a day of thanksgiving.”
Abe did this during the Civil War and shortly after he issued the Emancipation Proclamation. Despite its association with the liberation of enslaved people, Black people have long debated how or even if they should celebrate the holiday.
Why is this important?
Black people are a people intimately caught in what MLK Jr. called “an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny … Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”
Knowing how painful and horrendous Thanksgiving is for our First People siblings, the question of how or if we join in a celebration that debases their humanity is an important one.
Essentially, how do we celebrate the traditions and rituals of a country that is built on the near genocide of the native population and is currently sustained by rampant racial, gender and economic inequality while also enjoying some greens?
What Can My Black Ass Do? Honor Native People.
We don't have the answers to the questions we pose, but we do think we can all benefit from getting smart. Check out this Decoded episode on why everything we know about Thanksgiving is capital “W” Wrong.
From supporting organizations that advocate for Native American communities to acknowledging the inequalities that still exist today, here are 7 thoughtful ways to be an ally to Native Americans on Thanksgiving (and beyond).
Here are more organizations you can support with your time and money in honor of Native Americans.
ll. Other Things
Traditions and Black-Ass recipes
Speaking of problematic traditions, let me (Jumoke) tell you about how I cannot let this Paula Deen mashed potato recipe go. That wench is a racist, but Jesus Christ Lord of Host if she don’t be putting her feet in these recipes. I (Mitu) also confess that her greens recipe is🔥. Though we all know she snatched these recipes from her Black-Ass chef Dora.
For non-problematically-sourced recipes, we recommend The Kitchenista! She’s a Black-ass home trained chef and you will wow your family with her classic mac recipe. If you want to switch it up try this cajun one or this one with mushrooms.
Since we’re in a confessing mood - our all time favorite post-Thanksgiving tradition is watching Netflix/Hallmark/Lifetime/Harlequin Christmas Rom-Coms. These very anti-feminist, anti-women, and terribly-made movies make.us.so.happy.
The best trope is the one with the successful woman who leaves her high-paying fulfilling job in the city to go back to her small town and then reconnects with the loser she left in high school while also rediscovering the spirit of Christmas. Laugh! Out! Loud! Unlike previous years, Black people are also all up in these movies this holiday season and we’re ready to watch this, this, and this!
Speaking of post-Thanksgiving traditions, get ready to honor the reason for that season, Mariah Carey. Watch A Christmas Melody, listen to her FABULOUS new album, and loop her iconic Merry Christmas album.
Our Black-Ass song of the week (Mitu):
You know what this week means: enjoy.
Things we are looking forward to / things we are not looking forward to:
Speaking of stealing, I mean “discovering,” I (Jumoke) spent last week in Hawaii (shout out to OG Freedom Fighter Queen Liliʻuokalani) and I thought I was on team #nonewmilk, but I’m here to tell y’all that macadamia milk is IT. Dear Whites, do what y’all do, “discover” macadamia milk and bring it back to me in the mainland.
I (Mitu) look forward to bopping to Tyra’s “Be A Star” remix because it is genuinely GREAT.
lll. Not a Black-Ass text, but we’ve found our long lost baby
this snowy day reminded me of the most insane video of all time pic.twitter.com/GVPqUsdgi0
— bobby (@bobby) January 8, 2017
Stay Black, thrive, moisturize in this trash weather, and we’ll hit your inbox next on November 5.