The year was 1621 when many believe the first thanksgiving
meal was celebrated with the abundant harvest that had ended the famine that
resulted in many deaths across the pilgrim population. This is what Americans
have been celebrating this weekend! Not being American myself, I was curious as
to why such a holiday was celebrated more so here than in Canada. The history
of how this holiday was a triumph over an epidemic of famine among a population
brings hopeful light onto many global health concerns we have today of food
insecurity and diseases associated with such. It is each year that we are given
this rebirth of hope needing to be cherished as well as reflected upon in how
we can use this new-found hope to address our current health situations across
the world. By learning through historical events, we can identify ways to
reduce food insecurity, create bountiful harvests and agricultural practices.
There is a much needed movement needing to be had to detach
ourselves from the marketing holiday that it has come to be towards one of humbleness,
a moment to reflect on what the history books would say about the year 2016 and
thanksgiving. Perhaps it is time to create a new holiday that celebrates a new
day of health, a new solution to a problem we currently have. For example, as
we sit in traffic jams this weekend to reach many different destinations for
that thanksgiving feast, the stress thousands of vehicles have on our climate
that impact our current health concern of warming temperatures. Or even perhaps
once we finally get to our destination, reflecting on where our food has come
from and the trickling down effect on the small scale farmers of where the brussel
sprouts, potatoes, and ingredients in the pumpkin pie have come from. How can
we address these issues? How can we create a movement away from such a heavily market-created
holiday towards one of reflection and inspiration in order to address many global
health concerns we have today? 
Amy, I am fascinated by history and Thanksgiving/early American history is my favorite. The health history surrounding this time is amazingly awful. The hygiene habits of the pilgrims left much to be desired. They also brought numerous diseases to the Native American population. We focus on the positives like religious freedom and new opportunities when in reality, the pilgrims and Native Americans suffered greatly.
ReplyDeleteAnother aspect of Thanksgiving is the globalization of food. Americans received so many of their food items from the New World. Items like cocoa, potatoes, etc were not part of the main diet until globalization occurred. Also, health can be negatively affected during this time of year. As was mentioned in last Tuesday’s class, Americans can gain upwards of 5 lbs during the holiday season. This is not healthy! I hope the social togetherness and good feelings balance out the negative health effects of eating so unhealthily.
Hi Erin, you are so right regarding the globalization of food and what we currently consume at a traditional Thanksgiving meal. I think what is important is being aware of this and the impacts your decisions have not only during this time, but in all our consumption patterns whether it be clothing, food, or even technologies. For example, counterfeit goods that we often purchase without conscious reflection on the global impact these products have; for example, poor working conditions in developing countries, health risks in not going through quality control systems (both yourself and people around you), and even unfair trade. I know this is far away from thanksgiving and food but it all relates to globalization just you have mentioned!
DeleteThanks for commenting :)