SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
"Black Friday is a commercial nightmare, which is why, for the past decade or so, I've usually spent it at one of the many protest rallies at Walmarts around the country," writes Peter Dreier (Photo: Wikimedia/cc)
What I'm Thankful For: Food Workers and Anti-Hunger Activists
Happy Thanksgiving to all (except the Walmart board of directors)
Nov 23, 2017
I recently heard someone say that Thanksgiving is our least commercialized national holiday. That seems true.
Thanksgiving isn't about buying and giving gifts. It is about getting together with friends and family (even the ones you don't like), being grateful, and being forgiving.
It is a secular holiday, available to all, regardless of beliefs. You can say a prayer around the Thanksgiving meal if you want, but it isn't obligatory.
If we overlook the Pilgrims/Indians mythology (a prelude to genocide), Thanksgiving is really about the harvest, which could be translated today into recognizing the people who bring us our food -- the farmers, farm workers (thank you United Farm Workers, Dolores Huerta and Cesar Chavez, and today's Coalition of Immokele Workers), food processing workers (today's counterparts to the meatpacking workers described in Upton Sinclair's The Jungle and the cannery workers in John Steinbeck's Cannery Row), grocery workers (thank you United Food and Commercial Workers), and the restaurant workers (thank you UNITE HERE).
Thank you to Eric Schlosser's Fast Food Nation and Frances Moore Lappe's Food First for reminding us about the conditions under which food gets from farm to table.
Thanksgiving also reminds us (like the Elijah Cup at Passover seders) to think about the millions of Americans, and billions of people around the world, who are hungry. Thank you to all the soup kitchens that feed the hungry and the anti-hunger groups that challenge the root causes of hunger -- inequality, poverty, corporate agribusiness, and the concentration of landownership around the world.
This isn't to ignore the worker exploitation within the turkey and cranberry industries (or the self-promotional Macy's parade in New York), but Thanksgiving just seems more benign than the crass commercialism of profit-seekers around Christmas, Mothers Day, and Valentines Day.
Of course, the day after Thanksgiving, Black Friday, is a commercial nightmare, which is why, for the past decade or so, I've usually spent it at one of the many protest rallies at Walmarts around the country organized by the workers rights group OUR Walmart. They've put that day-of-protest on hold this year, but I hope they renew it soon. I miss the solidarity of standing with labor and community allies protesting the country's largest private employer of miserably-paid workers.
So, Happy Thanksgiving to all (except the Walmart board of directors).
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Peter Dreier
Peter Dreier is the E.P. Clapp distinguished professor of politics at Occidental College. He joined the Occidental faculty in January 1993 after serving for nine years as Director of Housing at the Boston Redevelopment Authority and senior policy advisor to Boston Mayor Ray Flynn. He is the author of "The 100 Greatest Americans of the 20th Century: A Social Justice Hall of Fame" (2012) and an editor (with Kate Aronoff and Michael Kazin) of "We Own the Future: Democratic Socialism, American Style" and co-author of "Baseball Rebels: The Players, People and Social Movements That Shook Up the Game and Changed America" (2022).
I recently heard someone say that Thanksgiving is our least commercialized national holiday. That seems true.
Thanksgiving isn't about buying and giving gifts. It is about getting together with friends and family (even the ones you don't like), being grateful, and being forgiving.
It is a secular holiday, available to all, regardless of beliefs. You can say a prayer around the Thanksgiving meal if you want, but it isn't obligatory.
If we overlook the Pilgrims/Indians mythology (a prelude to genocide), Thanksgiving is really about the harvest, which could be translated today into recognizing the people who bring us our food -- the farmers, farm workers (thank you United Farm Workers, Dolores Huerta and Cesar Chavez, and today's Coalition of Immokele Workers), food processing workers (today's counterparts to the meatpacking workers described in Upton Sinclair's The Jungle and the cannery workers in John Steinbeck's Cannery Row), grocery workers (thank you United Food and Commercial Workers), and the restaurant workers (thank you UNITE HERE).
Thank you to Eric Schlosser's Fast Food Nation and Frances Moore Lappe's Food First for reminding us about the conditions under which food gets from farm to table.
Thanksgiving also reminds us (like the Elijah Cup at Passover seders) to think about the millions of Americans, and billions of people around the world, who are hungry. Thank you to all the soup kitchens that feed the hungry and the anti-hunger groups that challenge the root causes of hunger -- inequality, poverty, corporate agribusiness, and the concentration of landownership around the world.
This isn't to ignore the worker exploitation within the turkey and cranberry industries (or the self-promotional Macy's parade in New York), but Thanksgiving just seems more benign than the crass commercialism of profit-seekers around Christmas, Mothers Day, and Valentines Day.
Of course, the day after Thanksgiving, Black Friday, is a commercial nightmare, which is why, for the past decade or so, I've usually spent it at one of the many protest rallies at Walmarts around the country organized by the workers rights group OUR Walmart. They've put that day-of-protest on hold this year, but I hope they renew it soon. I miss the solidarity of standing with labor and community allies protesting the country's largest private employer of miserably-paid workers.
So, Happy Thanksgiving to all (except the Walmart board of directors).
Peter Dreier
Peter Dreier is the E.P. Clapp distinguished professor of politics at Occidental College. He joined the Occidental faculty in January 1993 after serving for nine years as Director of Housing at the Boston Redevelopment Authority and senior policy advisor to Boston Mayor Ray Flynn. He is the author of "The 100 Greatest Americans of the 20th Century: A Social Justice Hall of Fame" (2012) and an editor (with Kate Aronoff and Michael Kazin) of "We Own the Future: Democratic Socialism, American Style" and co-author of "Baseball Rebels: The Players, People and Social Movements That Shook Up the Game and Changed America" (2022).
I recently heard someone say that Thanksgiving is our least commercialized national holiday. That seems true.
Thanksgiving isn't about buying and giving gifts. It is about getting together with friends and family (even the ones you don't like), being grateful, and being forgiving.
It is a secular holiday, available to all, regardless of beliefs. You can say a prayer around the Thanksgiving meal if you want, but it isn't obligatory.
If we overlook the Pilgrims/Indians mythology (a prelude to genocide), Thanksgiving is really about the harvest, which could be translated today into recognizing the people who bring us our food -- the farmers, farm workers (thank you United Farm Workers, Dolores Huerta and Cesar Chavez, and today's Coalition of Immokele Workers), food processing workers (today's counterparts to the meatpacking workers described in Upton Sinclair's The Jungle and the cannery workers in John Steinbeck's Cannery Row), grocery workers (thank you United Food and Commercial Workers), and the restaurant workers (thank you UNITE HERE).
Thank you to Eric Schlosser's Fast Food Nation and Frances Moore Lappe's Food First for reminding us about the conditions under which food gets from farm to table.
Thanksgiving also reminds us (like the Elijah Cup at Passover seders) to think about the millions of Americans, and billions of people around the world, who are hungry. Thank you to all the soup kitchens that feed the hungry and the anti-hunger groups that challenge the root causes of hunger -- inequality, poverty, corporate agribusiness, and the concentration of landownership around the world.
This isn't to ignore the worker exploitation within the turkey and cranberry industries (or the self-promotional Macy's parade in New York), but Thanksgiving just seems more benign than the crass commercialism of profit-seekers around Christmas, Mothers Day, and Valentines Day.
Of course, the day after Thanksgiving, Black Friday, is a commercial nightmare, which is why, for the past decade or so, I've usually spent it at one of the many protest rallies at Walmarts around the country organized by the workers rights group OUR Walmart. They've put that day-of-protest on hold this year, but I hope they renew it soon. I miss the solidarity of standing with labor and community allies protesting the country's largest private employer of miserably-paid workers.
So, Happy Thanksgiving to all (except the Walmart board of directors).
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good.
News & Opinion
Trending
Common Dreams, Inc. Founded 1997. Registered 501(c3) Non-Profit
Privacy Policy