Thanksgiving in After the Mayflower

In Quality of After the Mayflower, I critiqued the storytelling aspects of the first episode of PBS's We Shall Remain series. Now I'll concentrate on the content.

For the basic story of After the Mayflower, A Truer Picture of Native America gives a good summary. For further reading on the subject, see

Tisquantum, Massasoit, and Hobbamock
King Philip's War

Note:  In some cases, I've quoted or paraphrase what I heard on After the Mayflower. In other cases, I've interpreted it. But everything here comes from After the Mayflower, not another source. If other sources disagree with these interpretations and implications, that's a problem for another day.

According to After the Mayflower, the Wampanoag Indians knew that the strangers (white men) often killed or enslaved Indians.

Wow. Right there is a strong rationale for the Indians' hostility toward the English. The Anglos were invading their homeland without permission with the intent to kill or enslave them. I'd say that was sufficient justification for the Indians' acts of warfare--even their preemptive strikes.

To reiterate, the English knew or should've known that the Indians considered them trespassers. That they had no moral or legal right to land without getting the inhabitants' permission. Therefore, any adversity they suffered was basically their own fault.

The medicine men who tried to cure the smallpox epidemic of 1617-1619 were called "powwows."

In the show, Massasoit calls on "Gitche Manitou" for help.

The Pilgrims found the Wampanoag village of Patuxet empty--houses fallen to ruin, fallow fields, human bones on the ground. They built New Plymouth on the site. This documentary doesn't say it, but some claim they dug up the graves and took the Indians' possessions.

Many of the Wampanoag wanted to wipe out the Pilgrims, but Massasoit urged caution.

Again, this is interesting if you think about it. The Indians were aware that their way of life was at risk. They knew that the English had wreaked havoc before. Although Massasoit made a reasonable choice--to accommodate the English--the other Wampanoags were ultimately right. They would've been better off if they had eliminated the colonists from their shores.

The Wampanoags were paying steep tribute to the Narragansetts, and knew the Pilgrims came from "a land of wealth and might." The Pilgrims obviously needed help against any hostile Indians. Therefore, the Wampanoags and Pilgrims agreed to a mutual defense pact. Massasoit considered this a treaty with the force of law.

The first Thanksgiving happened partly to celebrate this alliance. So the touchy-feely talk of thanking the Creator was something of a smokescreen. The reasons behind the feast were largely practical, not spiritual.

For more on the subject, see Native Documentaries and News.

Below:  "So what if we've killed or enslaved Indians before? We're Englishmen, so we can do whatever we want."