Thanksgiving takes place on October 14th here in Canada, but in the United States of America, it takes place on November 28th this year. Why is the same holiday, on different days, and is this holiday different in both countries? Canada and USA are very similar, culturally, we aren’t that far apart, and follow the same traditions. But the origin of Thanksgiving in both countries are different, and that is where we begin to understand this holiday.
I will begin with our Canada. In Canada, Thanksgiving is all about the harvest season. Celebrating and utilizing the food produced during the harvest. It was also intended as a day of public thanksgiving and prayer as was established in 1789. It was a day to recognise God’s blessings. It is said the first thanksgiving feast took place in the Eastern Arctic in 1578. It was held by Sir Martin Frobisher and his crew in what is now Nunavut, and it was to celebrate and give thanks for their safe arrival. Thanksgiving though started to be observed as an annual event on November 6, 1879. Though it would be parliament that would set the date each year afterwards, for the unifying purpose of giving thanks, and celebrating any anniversaries regarding the British monarchy. So each year, the date for thanksgiving would be different, and sometimes fall in line with the American thanksgiving. Not till January 31, 1957 parliament has proclaimed it to be on the second Monday of October as a “a day of General Thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed.” Across Canada, thanksgiving is given a different level of importance. It is a statutory holiday in all provinces except Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia. It’s ironic it isn’t considered a statutory holiday in Nova Scotia, because the iconic North American turkey, squash, and pumpkin as a feast specialty was introduced in Nova Scotia in the 1750s. Anyways, in Quebec, thanksgiving is known as ‘Action de grâce’, but it isn’t held to the same importance, because it’s origin in Protestant and Anglo-nationalist culture. Catholicism is practiced widely across Quebec and among francophones. The rivalry between the Catholics and the Protestants goes way back in Canadian history. Though, now you understand where Thanksgiving is rooted in Canada, now let’s take a look at where it's rooted in the USA.
In the USA, thanksgiving is on the fourth Thursday in November. Its’ based on the colonial Pilgrims’ 1621 Harvest meal. Here is the key difference: Pilgrims. Also, another thing that signifies American Thanksgiving, is American Football. The NFL hosts Thanksgiving special games, and I’m not going to go into who’s playing, and the standing currently in American football, but we need to acknowledge that Americans can become passionate about American football the way Canadians become passionate about ice Hockey. Now, the Pilgrims were the Plymouth colonists from England, who’ve shared a meal with the Wampanoag people. It serves the same purpose as the Canadian thanksgiving, such as giving thanks to the Lord for a successful harvest season, and an overall day of prayer, but the American thanksgiving is rooted in colonial oppression. It has become controversial in recent years, because of the way it glosses over colonial-Indigenous relations, and the bloody history that happened on Indigenous lands. Of course, Canada isn’t exempt from its colonial history, but the American thanksgiving marks an anniversary to colonial relations, and therefore, quite problematic. Though it said that the Wampanoag people formed an alliance with the Pilgrims, therefore, it’s a sort of celebration of unity, and harmony, as the Wampanoag people have helped the Pilgrims establish themselves at Plymouth colony. This holiday itself does have a problematic history rooted in the colonial agenda, and it's important to recognize this side of it. One last point, why is Thanksgiving on the 4th thursday of November, the answer is simply good old American capitalism. In 1939, under lobby pressure, President Franklin D. Roosevelt extended thanksgiving later in November, to allow retailers to have enough of a window for all their autumn special sales, and generally, to keep the economy running with purchases of fall decor and pumpkin spice lattes. Even though pumpkin spice lattes weren’t necessarily a fad back in the 1930s, hypothetically speaking.
Now you know what makes the difference between Canadian and American Thanksgiving, and why we celebrate it on different dates, and to what purpose. I hope you learned a thing or two, and you know more about this holiday other than making a turkey arts and crafts project with the shape of your hand! On this day, whether you are religious or not, Christian or otherwise, I would recommend you take a moment to recognise personal blessings in your life, and to also enjoy the magical autumn weather. Make sure to drink lots of lattes! Till the next blog, stay warm young minds 😉🍂
Sources:
https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/thanksgiving-day
https://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/history-of-thanksgiving
https://www.delish.com/holiday-recipes/thanksgiving/a34349517/why-do-we-celebrate-thanksgiving-on-fourth-thursday-november/
