Students at Humboldt State University in Arcata, California, wanted the name “Thanksgiving Break” renamed to “Fall Break” because the former “is damaging to Native Americans.”
According the school’s student newspaper The Lumberjack, they got their wish.
Michael Ramirez of the group Unified Students of Humboldt (and a member of the Konkow Maidu, Wintun, Hupa and Yurok tribes), said that “Thanksgiving Break” is a “colonized moniker.”
He added that the November holiday “shed[s] a positive light on the colonization of America.”
Ramirez said that because HSU sits on Wiyot land, it is important to not overshadow traditional ceremonies with stories centered around Europeans.
Nick Camacho, a junior, said many families may have trouble coming to terms with the new name. Still, he said it is important to remember that the United States began with colonialism.
RELATED: My professors have started calling Thanksgiving break ‘fall break.’
“[The Unified Students of Humboldt] felt that naming and exemplifying that moment of history was a bit insulting,” Ramirez said. “It was insulting to take this tragedy and use it to exemplify unity.”
Freshman Carla Quintero said the usual story is used to cover up the historical one.
“The whole story is kind of messed up,” Quintero said.
“This is the narrative told as a part of colonization,” Ramirez said. “The insidious part is that the indoctrination is done at an early age.”
Ramirez also notes that he wants to eliminate the words “was” and “were” when talking about Native American history — “We’re still here,” he says.
Uh, Mr. Ramirez? When people discuss history, the past tense typically is used, no matter the culture.
RELATED: The real meaning of Thanksgiving.
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