As Thanksgiving approaches and many gather around the table with family and friends, it’s also a moment to pause and reflect on the fuller history of the observance — parts of which often go unspoken, yet still echo today.
The traditional story of Thanksgiving, one that involves the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag Nation breaking bread together over a peaceful feast, doesn’t give a full context of what actually occurred, and oversimplifying the story may do more harm than good.
The reality is the Pilgrims arrived in a region where Indigenous communities had already been devastated by disease brought by Europeans, and while a “great feast” between the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag did take place, it was more strategic than altruistic, and the colonial expansion and violence that followed would go on to deeply harm the Wampanoag and other Indigenous Nations.
While Thanksgiving celebrations have seemed to shift toward broader themes like togetherness and gratitude, softening historical realities or omitting them altogether ultimately does a disservice to the communities whose stories deserve to be remembered.
Some non-Indigenous people recognize this gap and want to seek cultural understanding, better honor history, and engage in more informed, respectful conversations, especially around this time of year.
In Omaha, Native communities continue to share their stories, celebrate their culture, and challenge the dominant narratives that have long overshadowed the truth.
I reached out to local Indigenous leaders and culture-bearers to discuss how people can have meaningful conversations around this topic.
Eli Rigatuso, who identifies as a two-spirit being who strives “to put goodness and love out into the world,” is a descendant of Menominee, Dakota, and Yankton-Sioux tribes. His grandparents left the reservation as a result of the Indian Relocation Act in the 1950s.
He said the history of Thanksgiving is complex.
“We pulled out this moment of goodness between colonizers and the Wampanoag people, but we haven’t expanded on the rest of the story,” he explained.
“Unfortunately, that’s what we do for whatever reason as human beings,” he said. “We want just the goodness. We don’t want to think about everything beyond that. It’s easier to romanticize it than it is to look at the pain involved.”
But if we don’t acknowledge the full story, he said we risk history repeating itself.
Healing Ribbons is a local nonprofit run by Indigenous women that creates spaces where Indigenous women, two-spirit relatives, and their families can gather, reconnect with culture and begin healing through art, regalia-making, sharing circles, storytelling, and community.
I connected with the organization’s Executive Director, Alex Lovrien, who said this is a time to pause.
“For many Indigenous people, this season is not a celebration, but a time for reflection and truth-telling,” she explained. “The popular Thanksgiving story overlooks the violence, displacement, and loss that Indigenous communities endured and continue to endure due to colonization.”
She emphasized that this is not an issue confined to history.
“It’s important to understand that Indigenous peoples are not figures of the past; we are living, thriving Nations with dynamic, rich cultures, families and contemporary realities,” she said. “Acknowledging the true history of this season allows space for healing, honesty, and relationship building. It invites people to reflect on the ongoing impacts of colonization.”
Lovrien added that people can engage more thoughtfully and respectfully with Indigenous culture and history during this season by learning about the Nations whose homelands they live on, approaching culture as a relationship rather than something to consume, and understanding that allyship means standing with communities — not speaking for them.
Rigatuso agrees, encouraging people to listen, reflect, and take action.
“I do think that it’s really important for non-Native folks to really listen,” he said. “Support organizations like Healing Ribbons and Bluebird Cultural Initiative. Give them money so that they can continue to do the good work that they do. They’re supporting Indigenous communities and healing.”
When it comes to having conversations with children, Lovrien said children are capable of learning truthful history when it is shared with care, compassion, and age-appropriate context, and points to storybooks written by Indigenous authors as a potential resource.
“It’s critical to incorporate books that highlight Indigenous joy, love, and humor,” Lovrien said. “For our communities, joy and laughter is a part of our resilience.”
She also encouraged people to attend Indigenous events, powwows, art shows, and community gatherings. The culture, she added, is very diverse.
“Every Nation has its own languages, teachings, protocols, regalia, and histories,” she said. “Even within Omaha, Indigenous people come from many different communities and tribal backgrounds.”
Lovrien said allies can help by stepping into conversations to challenge harmful narratives.
As Rigatuso put it, “If we pull our heads out of the sand and acknowledge all of it, and we are willing to see the harms caused and acknowledge the impact of those harms, then we actually can co-create a better world.”
That call for honesty underscores Rigatuso’s belief that two truths can coexist at once — and that it’s essential to acknowledge both sides of the coin. He doesn’t discourage people from celebrating, but rather challenges others not to bury the painful or uncomfortable parts of history.
“I make assumptions too,” he said. “That’s why I say I’m a flawed human. But I have to be aware of those things. And I think that that awareness comes from taking the time to learn, to dig deeper, to acknowledge that there were harms done. How can we be telling the truth about the world if we’re not owning all of the truth?”
As they say, history has a way of repeating itself, and sharing full truths helps us progress as humanity. Where there is truth, there is empathy, and isn’t practicing gratitude more meaningful when we have a deeper understanding of human struggles and how we arrived at this moment in time?
So yes, many will gather this week over food and laughter, to share in gratitude for the good in the world. And we can also remember and acknowledge the full story behind Thanksgiving, in all its complexity, so that the past is not forgotten.