What Thanksgiving means and doesn’t mean to me
I will not celebrate…
some fictitious kumbaya dinner my ancestors had with the Native Americans before trying to infect them with smallpox
the genocide that followed
the idea that when my family boarded the Mayflower they were interested in spreading religious freedom
the myth of “American exceptionalism” that assumes this nation is inherently better
more just
more free
more fair
than any other place
the lie that our democracy is inevitable
that we don’t have to work for it
fight for it
write for it
not wait for it
the insanity that the Second Amendment means we are safer from the government when we pose the greatest danger to ourselves
the bullshit idea that immigrants are bringing crime to our nation when we are killing ourselves at a faster clip than they ever could
the fantasy that our nation is rooted in “freedom and justice for all” and not racism, sexism, misogyny, and slavery