DEI Casts a Pall Over Thanksgiving

While millions of families will be gathering tomorrow to celebrate Thanksgiving, public education as well as colleges and universities have unleashed their DEI thought police to counter the traditional narrative much like their attempts to rewrite the history of Christopher Columbus.

• Washington University in St. Louis (WashU): Hosts annual “Decolonizing Thanksgiving” events aimed at re-examining the holiday’s narrative from an Indigenous perspective and discussing how to reshape traditions to be more inclusive.
• California Institute of Technology (CalTech): Through its Center for Inclusion & Diversity, CalTech has publicly called on its community to “rethink, relearn, and evolve our understanding of Thanksgiving traditions,” and encourages recognition of the National Day of Mourning.
• University at Buffalo: Organizes “Tough Topics” sessions that directly address questions like, “Is it right to celebrate Thanksgiving and America’s history of settler colonialism?”

• University of California, Davis: The California History Social Science Project hosted a Zoom call entitled “Decolonizing Thanksgiving in the Classroom” which was directed at K-12 educators.

The University of Michigan (U-M LSA Center for Social Solutions) and the University of the Pacific have also actively promoted guides and events that center Native voices and historical accuracy, urging students to acknowledge Native lands and support contemporary Indigenous struggles.

This movement isn’t confined to college campuses. K-12 districts, such as Arlington Public Schools in Massachusetts, have scrapped stereotypical activities like making “Pilgrim hats” and are actively working to expand their curriculum to include Indigenous perspectives.

Despite President Trump’s efforts to eliminate DEI in education, it still lives in some areas of the country, proving that it will take a lot more work to return education to its core mission.