What Are We Thankful For?
Originally published in: In Kuauhtlahtoa: Journal of Native Resistance, 2003.
While most people throughout occupied Ixachilan celebrated the “thanks-taking” hoax holiday, I found myself down in south Tejaztlan, in a small town just minutes from the border. The few days I was there, I took the time to contemplate the beautiful starry night sky and enjoy the pleasant weather. It is truly amazing to look up and see the splendor of the universe and ponder on how our ancestors perceived it. The city nights that I’m used to can never compare to what one can experience in a small town. I recall my happy childhood years, spent in rural Mexiko, and I will always remember the beauty of the night sky, covered completely with sparkling dots. Funny how it’s the simple things that one treasures and misses the most. I can honestly say that I miss the simplicity of looking up to the night sky and admiring while thinking of the insignificance of our human existence.
While I sat there surrounded by mesquites, nopales, and magueyes, I couldn’t help but think of my family, hundreds of miles away, who were at that moment sitting at the dinner table, enjoying a lovely turkey dinner and missing my company. It’s hard when your family doesn’t understand the path you’ve chosen. I choose not to celebrate that day in respect of our Ixachilankah brothers who were slaughtered in the name of god. Some say that there is no proof that the so-called “thanksgiving feast” ever took place between the pilgrim squatters and our Native brothers, but there is factual evidence of the genocidal activities carried out by the savage maniacal pilgrims.
This is not a day for celebration and festivities, but rather a time for remembrance, mourning, and prayer. As I write, I ask the energy of our ancestors to give me the strength to forgive and move forward with our movement, and to give me the courage to continue retracing the ways of our Ixachilankah ancestors. For those that don’t know, Ixachilan is the name our ancestors called the incorrectly named American continents, it means “great land.” Ixachilankah refers to the Native people who inhabit this great land.
Just steps from the imposed border on this great land, I found a deep sense of American patriotism displayed by so many Mexican Americans. It was quite something to be at the border and see so many American flags waving from moving cars driven by so many Mexicans, and it was very disappointing to see that many of the Immigration & Naturalization Service agents were also Mexicans. In fact, I only saw one white INS agent, the entire trip. Wake up Mexika!!!! Why are you participating in the persecution of our people?
We are the same Native nation of Ixachilan. We are the same people. We are Mexican. Tewatzin ti Mexikatl!!!! We must not allow the illegally placed borders on our ancestral native lands divide us anymore. Chicanos — Mexicanos — Mexika, we are Native People and Indigenous to this land of Aztlan and Anawak. We must reject the narrow-minded eurocentrist biased version of history that has been carefully and systematically forced on all of us to make us forget the truth of what has transpired in the past. Texas history class won’t teach you about the lynchings carried out by the Texas Rangers against Mexicans and other Native people. Nor will world history tell you how Columbus traded Native Caribal and Arawak women to his savage companions as sex slaves.
Yes, my brothers and sisters, we have been colonized, and it is truly a sad reality of our “modern” existence. We have been taught to forget the past and enjoy the wonderful material world that the master capitalist has provided for us. Just a reminder: “A people that forgets their past, is doomed to repeat it.” That is exactly what is going on with us. Over five hundred years ago, the entire continent of Ixachilan (north and south) was invaded, raped, and colonized. This was a crime against humanity. Yet, we have been told that it was for our own good, because our cultures were inferior to those of Europe. We have been given a false sense of freedom while the filthy rich reap the wealth of our labor on our native lands. I suppose now we are free to choose our master. Our ancestors told us that we belong to the land, and now we must pay colonizers in order to have a place to live. Capitalism is the modern form of colonialism, except now we can be part of the ruling class if we oppress our own. This is called assimilation.
When the gavas call you assimilated that means that you are one of them. They mean that you must think, dress, talk, and act like them. When you assimilate you forget who you are and where you come from. Mexicans and Chicanos are currently being assimilated at a greater rate than ever, especially now with this heightened patriotic war drama. The question is why? There are several reasons, but the most obvious is about controlling the masses. When you have control of the masses, you have the power to do whatever you want, like frame a country and bomb it. This is done in the “best interest” of the people.
If we really want the best interest for our Native people, we must understand that we are a colonized nation and that we are being illegally governed and manipulated by the descendants of the original invaders. It is no coincidence that the same people who stole our land and stripped our Native rights are the same people that have the wealth and are in control. It is much deeper than this, but there is something we can do within ourselves. We must first de-colonize our minds; then, we must de-colonize our spirit; only then can we think about de-colonizing our lands.
