including the 186 who lie in graves at the Carlisle Indian
Industrial School after dying of disease, neglect or abuse; and
WHEREAS, The residents of this Commonwealth have the
responsibility to confront the history of oppression toward
Indigenous peoples and proactively recognize that the
Thanksgiving holiday, for many, is a reminder of the
introduction of colonization in North America and of the ensuing
genocide of millions of Native peoples, the theft of Native
lands and the condemnation of Native cultures; and
WHEREAS, In 1970, at a Thanksgiving celebration in Plymouth,
Massachusetts, an Aquinnah Wampanoag tribal leader who was
scheduled to speak was asked to censor his remarks after
compiling a speech that recognized the theft of Indigenous land,
graves and belongings committed by the Pilgrims after their
arrival in North America; and
WHEREAS, This Aquinnah Wampanoag tribal leader, Wamsutta
Frank James, withdrew as a speaker at the Thanksgiving event,
refusing to be silenced; and
WHEREAS, From this act of protest came a counter-
commemoration, now known as the "National Day of Mourning,"
which is recognized by both Native and nonnative people to
consider Thanksgiving from the perspective of Indigenous peoples
and draw attention to the genocide of Native people, theft of
their lands and assault on their culture; and
WHEREAS, Today, hundreds of years after the cross-cultural
feast many refer to as the "first Thanksgiving," Indigenous
peoples across the nation continue to fight for their rights and
spend the Thanksgiving holiday in mourning for the loss of
Indigenous life and culture, in protest against the racism and
oppression experienced by Indigenous peoples across the globe
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