Are Elementary School Thanksgivings Racist Or Just Outdated?

JeanneSager — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 14:35:00 GMT

Every November when I was a kid, we spent at least one day cutting out brightly colored "feathers" to afix to a band of brown construction paper and stick on our heads, another snipping white, yellow and black squares to form the "buckles" for our faux hats. But an increasing number of elementary schools are saying goodbye to the Thanksgiving play in favor of political correctness.

In Claremont, Calif., parents were fighting this week over a tradition that dates back to the days when little boys still played "war" and "cowboys and Indians" in their backyards and no one gave a second thought. Leading the charge is Michelle Raheja, whose mother hails from the Seneca tribe. The mother of a kindergartner and professor of Native American literature, Raheja called for an end this year to a four-decade long practice of five-year-olds dressing as Native Americans and walking to a nearby school to join another set of five-year-olds (dressed as Pilgrims, naturally) for a meal. Rajeha likened the practice to dressing children as slaves and slaveowners or Jews and Nazis.

On the other side? Parents like Kathleen Lucas, who is proud of her Choctow heritage, and prouder still that her son still wears the construction paper garb crafted last year in kindergarten when it was his school's turn to play the role of the Native Americans at the feast. She and other parents have complained that the school's decision to put the kibosh on costumes means they're bending too far for political correctness. Some parents have even accused Raheja, who called on several other professors to speak with her on the issue in front of the school board, of using her five year old to further her own political agenda.

I'll go out on a limb and guess the Native Americans didn't sport brown paper vests at the first Thanksgiving, but I will admit to seeing some merit to having the kids dress up as two distinct groups then bringing them together for the Thanksgiving lesson. It's a chance to learn about accepting each other's differences - especially in schools that lack diversity. Setting that aside, however, we need to stop glossing over the nasty bits of America's history regarding treatment of Native Americans. It may not be the lesson plan for Thanksgiving Day - it is, after all, a day for positive thinking. But where German children should spend a portion of their education on the Holocaust to understand their nation's past, we need to ensure our children learn about the Trail of Tears and the countless other atrocities we subjected fellow human beings to in the name of enlightenment and spreading the American ideals (hmmm, sound familiar, Iraq?).

Should part of that education include setting aside the paper head dresses too?

Image: Los Angeles Times (Kathleen Lucas' son in his construction paper outfit with a "Pilgrim" friend)

Strollerderby : Choctow

Are Elementary School Thanksgivings Racist Or Just Outdated?

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