Pagan Practice

Indigenous People’s Day | Steph Littlebird | @artnerdforever 

Every November, people across the United States encounter two simultaneous cultural touchpoints: Indigenous Peoples Month and the national holiday of Thanksgiving. On one hand, November is a time intentionally dedicated to recognizing the history, cultural continuity, resilience, and sovereignty of Indigenous Nations. On the other, Thanksgiving often arrives wrapped in a romanticized, mythologized story about peaceful beginnings that glosses over centuries of colonization and trauma.

Bringing these two observances into conscious dialogue invites reflection: not guilt, but responsibility; not shame, but awareness; not erasure, but visibility. This article dives deeply into the origins and significance of Indigenous Peoples Month, the complexities of Thanksgiving, the ongoing crisis of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW), practical ways to reframe the holiday, and a grounding gratitude ritual.

This is by no means even remotely comprehensive enough of a breakdown of all the history, violence, and current state of affairs of Indigenous folx of the US, but rather our little contribution of knowledge, acknowledgment and hope to instill a little more empathy for our Indigenous siblings. We encourage you to reflect and research on your own this rather convoluted mix of histories.

🔸A More Complete History of Indigenous Peoples Month🔸

Although November is now widely recognized as National Native American Heritage Month (also called Indigenous Peoples Month), the journey to this official designation spans more than a century and reflects ongoing Native-led advocacy for visibility and self-representation.

Early 20th Century Indigenous Leadership

The earliest recognitions came from Indigenous leaders themselves. In 1915, the American Indian Association, led by Dr. Arthur C. Parker (Seneca), formally declared an “American Indian Day.” Several states adopted their own commemorative days shortly after — though these early recognitions often reflected paternalistic ideas rather than Indigenous self-determination.

The Shift to Federal Recognition

In the civil rights era of the 1960s and 70s, Indigenous activists, educators, and tribal nations pushed for national acknowledgement that reflected Indigenous histories and modern realities.

• In 1976, Congress authorized the first official Native American Awareness Week.
• By the late 1980s, these proclamations expanded into month-long observances celebrating Native heritage, sovereignty, and cultural contributions.
• In 1990, President George H. W. Bush declared November as the first official National Native American Heritage Month.

Why November? The 11^th Month’s Contemporary Purpose

The month was intentionally chosen to align with traditional harvest periods and Indigenous veterans' commemorations. It is a time historically associated with reflection, transition, and honoring.

Today, the month serves several intertwined goals:

• Education: correcting historical inaccuracies and showcasing Indigenous scholarship
• Visibility: uplifting Indigenous languages, governance systems, foods, arts, and innovations
• Acknowledgment: addressing the impacts of colonization, assimilation policies, and ongoing structural inequities
• Support: advocating for Indigenous rights, land stewardship, and sovereignty

Organizations such as First Nations Development Institute emphasize that Indigenous Peoples Month is not only a time for celebration but an invitation to deepen understanding and take meaningful action year-round.

🔸Why Thanksgiving Is Historically and Culturally Problematic🔸

Many people grow up learning a simplified version of the 1621 harvest feast between the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag. While a feast did occur, the mainstream narrative hides far more than it reveals — and this is why Thanksgiving can be painful or harmful for many Indigenous people.

1. The Myth Erases Real History

The traditional Thanksgiving story portrays English settlers and Wampanoag people as harmonious partners sharing a meal. In reality:

• The Wampanoag had already endured waves of catastrophic disease introduced by Europeans before the Pilgrims arrived.
• Early alliances were strategic and fragile, formed in the context of survival and colonial expansion.
• Violence, kidnapping, land seizure, and exploitation were defining features of the colonial period.

The popular tale functions as a national origin myth that centers settlers, marginalizes Indigenous agency, and avoids accountability.

2. Thanksgiving Overlooks the Consequences of Colonization

After the 1620s, colonial expansion accelerated rapidly:

• Indigenous lands were seized through warfare, forced treaties, and legal manipulation.
• Hundreds of Indigenous Nations were displaced, eradicated, or forced into new territories.
• Boarding schools and assimilation policies attempted to destroy Native cultures, languages, and identities.
• Generations of Indigenous families suffered from forced removals, broken treaties, and loss of sovereignty.

None of this is reflected in the Thanksgiving myth — which is why the holiday can feel dismissive or painful to many.

Queen Liliʻuokalani, the last Queen of Hawaii
Prisma Bildagentur | Universal Images Group via Getty Images

3. For Many Indigenous People, Thanksgiving Is a Day of Mourning

Since 1970, Indigenous activists and allies have gathered in Plymouth, Massachusetts, for the National Day of Mourning, a demonstration honoring Indigenous ancestors and acknowledging ongoing oppression. For these communities, Thanksgiving represents:

• survival in the face of genocide
• remembrance of ancestors and land
• resistance against erasure
• calls for justice, sovereignty, and truth

4. The Myth Reinforces a One-Sided National Identity

By portraying colonization as peaceful and cooperative, the Thanksgiving story:

• erases Indigenous resilience
• normalizes settler entitlement to land
• discourages learning about actual tribal histories
• masks ongoing injustices that Indigenous communities continue to experience today

Re-examining Thanksgiving isn’t about taking away joy — it’s about introducing truth.

🔸The Crisis of Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW): A Deeper Understanding🔸

No effort to honor Indigenous Peoples Month is complete without acknowledging the ongoing crisis disproportionately affecting Indigenous women, girls, and Two-Spirit people.

Matoaka Land Back | Steph Littlebird | @artnerdforever

A Crisis Rooted in Historical and Structural Violence

Rates of violence against Indigenous women are among the highest in the world. This is not coincidental; it is the result of:

• the legacy of colonial violence
• jurisdictional gaps that prevent proper prosecution
• chronic underfunding of tribal justice systems
• state/federal confusion about authority on tribal lands
• racism and systemic discrimination in law enforcement
• lack of media coverage and public attention

Key Realities

• In some regions, Indigenous women face murder rates over ten times the national average.
• Thousands of Indigenous people are missing or murdered, but data collection is inconsistent or incomplete.
• Cases are often misclassified due to racial misidentification of victims.
• Tribal nations frequently lack jurisdiction to prosecute non-Native offenders, even when crimes occur on tribal land.
• Families report widespread neglect, slow response times, and lack of follow-up from law enforcement.

Including MMIW awareness within the narrative of Thanksgiving reframing connects historical harms to present-day injustices, ensuring that gratitude is not detached from reality and inviting action and course correction, remembrance, and responsibility.

Reframing Thanksgiving: Why It Matters

Transforming Thanksgiving from a mythologized colonial story into a day of gratitude and truth is not erasure — it is restoration.

1. Honors Indigenous Sovereignty and Continuance

Indigenous Peoples are not historical footnotes; they are living nations with thriving cultures, governments, traditions, and social systems. Reframing Thanksgiving shifts the spotlight from Pilgrims to the original stewards of the land.

2. Aligns Gratitude with Responsibility

True gratitude requires action. Examples include:

• supporting Indigenous-led nonprofits
• purchasing from Indigenous artisans
• amplifying Native voices
• educating oneself and others

3. Fosters Intergenerational Truth-Telling

Children and adults alike benefit from honest history. Reframing Thanksgiving:

• encourages open conversations
• teaches accuracy over myth
• builds empathy
• prepares future generations for justice-oriented citizenship

4. Replaces Performative Gestures with Year-Round Engagement

Thanksgiving is one day. Indigenous communities exist every day. Reframing channels energy into ongoing support rather than one-time acknowledgment.

🔸Practical Ways to Redesign Thanksgiving — With Actual Impact🔸

1. Begin with an Accurate Land Acknowledgment Using Native Land Digital

To acknowledge land respectfully and accurately, use 👉 https://native-land.ca/

Native Land Digital (NLD) is an Indigenous-led nonprofit mapping Indigenous territories, languages, and treaties worldwide. Its mission is grounded in education, awareness, and Indigenous data sovereignty.

Using native-land.ca allows you to:

• identify the Indigenous nations whose lands you occupy
• learn the languages, treaties, and histories of those nations
• deepen land acknowledgments beyond generic statements
• connect with local Indigenous organizations or tribal governments

📚 Replace Myths with Indigenous-Authored History and Media

Use books, films, articles, and curricula created by Indigenous people to replace outdated narratives.

🌽 Honor Indigenous Foodways

Include traditional crops (corn, beans, squash, wild rice, cranberries, salmon, bison) and acknowledge the original stewards of the land.

🗣️ Make Truth-Telling a Family Tradition

Spend a few minutes before the meal acknowledging history honestly.

✊🏽 Support Indigenous Communities Materially

Donate, volunteer, support Native-owned businesses or artists, or advocate for policy change.

💖 Practice Reciprocity with the Land

Return something — offerings, planting, volunteering, or ecological stewardship.

🗓️ Commit to Year-Round Engagement

Let Thanksgiving be the opening of a year-round commitment to Indigenous communities.

Listen, Decolonize & Heal | Gloria Lucas | @nalgonapositivitypride

🔸Want to practice something more personal? Expanded Gratitude & Reflection Personal Magick Ritual (with MMIW Honoring)🔸

This ritual is designed to honor Indigenous peoples, remember Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW), and cultivate gratitude and reciprocity.

Materials Needed:

• Candle (red recommended to honor MMIW, but if no colored candles are available white or natural color will suffice)
• Bowl of water
• Dish of earth or salt
• Natural offerings (seeds, cornmeal, herbs, or flowers)
• Paper & pen
• Optional red cloth or flower (symbolizing MMIW)

✨ Step 1: Prepare the Space — Create a Place of Witness

Arrange your items in a calm, intentional space. Place the candle symbolizing MMIW as a focal point. If using a red flower, place I next to it. Take a few deep breaths.

🕯️  Step 2: Light the Candle — For Visibility

“I light this flame in truth, gratitude, and remembrance.
May it honor Indigenous women taken from their families.
May their stories never be forgotten.”

💦 Step 3: Water Reflection — For What Has Been Lost

Gaze into the bowl of water and reflect:

“For the women who are missing.
For those taken.
For those denied justice.
I hold space for you.”

🧂 Step 4: Earth Grounding — For Responsibility

Touch or hold the earth/salt:

“I ground myself in responsibility.
May I honor this land and its First Peoples with my actions.”

🪴 Step 5: Gratitude Offering — For Reciprocity

Place seeds, cornmeal, or herbs on the earth or in your natural offering dish:

“I offer back to the land in gratitude and respect.”

🤐 Step 6: Witness for MMIW — Red Silence

Hold a minute of intentional silence:

“I witness you.
I will not look away.”

✊🏽 Step 7: Commitment to Action — Transform Gratitude into Protection

Write one concrete act of support on paper and say:

“Gratitude becomes action.
Action becomes honor.
Honor becomes protection.”

🌬️ Step 8: Close the Ritual — Carry It Forward

Extinguish the candle with reverence using a candle snuff or an intentional breath:

“May my steps honor the Indigenous women of this land.
May my gratitude carry forward.”

Smoke Signals (1998) | Miramax Films

🔸Recommended Reading & Resources🔸

Articles & Essays

• Taíno Survival: Back into History – https://www.americanindianmagazine.org/story/taino-survival-back-history
• Rethinking How We Celebrate American History — Indigenous Peoples’ Day – https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/national-museum-american-indian/2020/10/12/indigenous-peoples-day-updated2020/
• This Culture, Once Believed Extinct, Is Flourishing – https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/culture-once-believed-extinct-flourishing-180970101/

Exhibitions

• Infinity of Nations: Mesoamerica & the Caribbean – https://americanindian.si.edu/exhibitions/infinityofnations/mesoamerica-caribbean.html

Organizations

• NDN Collective – https://ndncollective.org/

Books

• An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States – Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz
• Ceremony – Leslie Marmon Silko
• Red Earth, White Lies – Vine Deloria Jr.

Sources & Further Reading

• First Nations Development Institute — “4 Reasons to Rethink Your November”
  https://www.firstnations.org/news/4-reasons-to-rethink-your-november/#:~:text=Celebrate%20year%2Dround.,the%20contributions%20of%20American%20Indians
• First Nations Development Institute — “National Native American Heritage Month”
  https://www.firstnations.org/national-native-american-heritage-month/#:~:text=November%20is%20National%20Native%20American,National%20Native%20American%20Month%20resources
• Bureau of Indian Affairs — Missing and Murdered Indigenous People Crisis
  https://www.bia.gov/service/mmu/missing-and-murdered-indigenous-people-crisis
• National Institute of Justice — Violence Against American Indian & Alaska Native Women
  https://www.nij.gov/topics/crime/Pages/violence-against-american-indian-alaska-native-women-men.aspx
• Native Women’s Wilderness / MMIW Awareness
  https://www.niwrc.org/mmiwr-awareness

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