Many of us grew up learning the story of Columbus Day. Before the 1960s, Christopher Columbus was mainly recognized as a revolutionary European explorer, who discovered North America. However, as time went on, through studying Columbus’s diary and protests by Native Americans, we now know that Columbus was a tyrant, not somebody to celebrate. Native Americans were highly mistreated and people failed to recognize that. After this revelation, many began to acknowledge the struggles Native Americans went through and continue to face, and began to learn more about their history. With that, multiple states replaced Columbus Day with Indigenous People’s Day, to commemorate the natives of our land, and recognize their impact. So as we learned the truth about the origins of Columbus Day, which we no longer acknowledge, it is important to apply the same mindset to other holidays with questionable origins. Despite holidays such as Valentine’s Day and Thanksgiving having unfortunate histories, many people still celebrate them without thinking if it is still ethical to do so.
With Valentine’s Day approaching, everyone will be consumed with buying chocolates and gifts. However, every gift given is a reminder that none of us know the dark origin behind Valentine’s Day. Instead, we blindly celebrate it because it is what we are encouraged to by our capitalistic society.
Valentine’s day was originally a Pagan holiday that celebrated fertility. The holiday consisted of men getting overly drunk, sacrificing animals and abusing the women to ripen fertility. During one of the celebrations, the Roman emperor at the time martyred a saint with the name Valentine. Since then, Valentine’s Day has been known as a day to commemorate Saint Valentine.
Understanding these twisted histories is crucial in knowing what you are actually celebrating. If we continue to celebrate holidays without knowing their significance it makes us complacent in ignorance. There is nothing wrong with showing our love for the people we care about, however doing it on a day that once promoted the mistreatment of women is hypocritical. Expressing our feelings and affection is important to recognize, but blindly following the status quo and not understanding the true meaning behind the things we do can contort our perspectives.
Valentine’s Day is not the only example of this. Thanksgiving, for example, is portrayed as an unification between Pilgrims and Native Americans. However, this narrative ignores the injustice and violence the Indigenous people endured. Thanksgiving’s integration into American culture allows many to ignore its true history. What we consider as a day filled with gratitude is truly a day filled with injustice. In comparison to Valentine’s Day, Thanksgiving has been reconstructed into a celebration of gratitude while its twisted origins are left silenced.
Reconsidering these holidays does not mean we can not partake in shared love or gratitude, but it encourages awareness and understanding of the things we celebrate. If society had not replaced Columbus Day, the Native Americans would have continued to be overlooked. Looking back on this example, it is crucial to question other holidays with troubling histories, especially if they caused injustice amongst people.
