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Many people might find it jarring on Thursday morning by how President Donald Trump offered the nation a Happy Thanksgiving in the form of a tweet in which he vowed to "build the WALL" designed to keep future refugees and immigrants out of the country. (Cover detail: New Yorker/Christoph Niemann)
There are many versions of the historic event, endless ways--both personal and political--to interpret its meaning, and books filled with various perspectives and reasons about why and how people should (or should not) celebrate the U.S. holiday known as Thanksgiving.
However, one of the most widely recognized interpretations of the U.S. holiday, is based on the narrative of how early European settlers--many of them fleeing their home countries following religious persecution or otherwise looking for a new and better life--were nurtured from the struggles of living in a harsh new land by the Indigenous people already living on the continent when they arrived.
It is that notion of the holiday, perhaps, why many people might find it jarring on Thursday morning by how President Donald Trump offered the nation a Happy Thanksgiving in the form of a tweet in which he vowed to "build the WALL" designed to keep future refugees and immigrants out of the country.
\u201cHAPPY THANKSGIVING, your Country is starting to do really well. Jobs coming back, highest Stock Market EVER, Military getting really strong, we will build the WALL, V.A. taking care of our Vets, great Supreme Court Justice, RECORD CUT IN REGS, lowest unemployment in 17 years....!\u201d— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump) 1511436512
While many pointed out that his predecessor, Barack Obama, should be the one credited for most of the nation's economic benchmarks in the current moment, others were quick to point out the ugly irony of his mention of the wall:
\u201cTrump using Thanksgiving to call for his \u201cWALL,\u201d apparently without irony. Missed the part of the Pilgrims\u2019 story where they scale one. https://t.co/T88aoAKSNL\u201d— Stephen Spaulding (@Stephen Spaulding) 1511436877
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
There are many versions of the historic event, endless ways--both personal and political--to interpret its meaning, and books filled with various perspectives and reasons about why and how people should (or should not) celebrate the U.S. holiday known as Thanksgiving.
However, one of the most widely recognized interpretations of the U.S. holiday, is based on the narrative of how early European settlers--many of them fleeing their home countries following religious persecution or otherwise looking for a new and better life--were nurtured from the struggles of living in a harsh new land by the Indigenous people already living on the continent when they arrived.
It is that notion of the holiday, perhaps, why many people might find it jarring on Thursday morning by how President Donald Trump offered the nation a Happy Thanksgiving in the form of a tweet in which he vowed to "build the WALL" designed to keep future refugees and immigrants out of the country.
\u201cHAPPY THANKSGIVING, your Country is starting to do really well. Jobs coming back, highest Stock Market EVER, Military getting really strong, we will build the WALL, V.A. taking care of our Vets, great Supreme Court Justice, RECORD CUT IN REGS, lowest unemployment in 17 years....!\u201d— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump) 1511436512
While many pointed out that his predecessor, Barack Obama, should be the one credited for most of the nation's economic benchmarks in the current moment, others were quick to point out the ugly irony of his mention of the wall:
\u201cTrump using Thanksgiving to call for his \u201cWALL,\u201d apparently without irony. Missed the part of the Pilgrims\u2019 story where they scale one. https://t.co/T88aoAKSNL\u201d— Stephen Spaulding (@Stephen Spaulding) 1511436877
There are many versions of the historic event, endless ways--both personal and political--to interpret its meaning, and books filled with various perspectives and reasons about why and how people should (or should not) celebrate the U.S. holiday known as Thanksgiving.
However, one of the most widely recognized interpretations of the U.S. holiday, is based on the narrative of how early European settlers--many of them fleeing their home countries following religious persecution or otherwise looking for a new and better life--were nurtured from the struggles of living in a harsh new land by the Indigenous people already living on the continent when they arrived.
It is that notion of the holiday, perhaps, why many people might find it jarring on Thursday morning by how President Donald Trump offered the nation a Happy Thanksgiving in the form of a tweet in which he vowed to "build the WALL" designed to keep future refugees and immigrants out of the country.
\u201cHAPPY THANKSGIVING, your Country is starting to do really well. Jobs coming back, highest Stock Market EVER, Military getting really strong, we will build the WALL, V.A. taking care of our Vets, great Supreme Court Justice, RECORD CUT IN REGS, lowest unemployment in 17 years....!\u201d— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump) 1511436512
While many pointed out that his predecessor, Barack Obama, should be the one credited for most of the nation's economic benchmarks in the current moment, others were quick to point out the ugly irony of his mention of the wall:
\u201cTrump using Thanksgiving to call for his \u201cWALL,\u201d apparently without irony. Missed the part of the Pilgrims\u2019 story where they scale one. https://t.co/T88aoAKSNL\u201d— Stephen Spaulding (@Stephen Spaulding) 1511436877