Wednesday, November 24, 2004

Happy Thanksgiving?

Thanksgiving used to be the best family-reunion holiday for a secular American family. Now has been exposed to have racist associations. Are there any national-historical holidays that don't? Independence Days celebrate triumph over a former ruling power. Memorial Days try to assign meaning to the premature deaths of fighters for some cause deemed worthy. Religious holidays affirm one belief system's legends and myths, leaving out all the others. Defining boundaries seems to be a painful process, both for individuals and for groups, but don't we need them? I thought diversity means valuing differences, not erasing them.

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