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‘Saints & Strangers’: The Real Story of That First Thanksgiving?
“So many people celebrate Thanksgiving every year, but I think most people have no idea what the story is behind it,” said Kalani Queypo, a Blackfeet and Native Hawaiian actor who plays Squanto in the film. “Even people who are indigenous, we’re not taught that.”
Instead, Americans learn a dumbed-down version of the story, which often portrays Natives as one-dimensional people: savage, uncivilized and simple; or worse, a force to conquer. For example, most people recognize Squanto’s name, Queypo said, but they don’t know the details of his life.
A member of the Patuxet Tribe, Squanto was kidnapped in 1614 and sold into slavery. When he returned to New England in 1619 and found his tribe obliterated, he joined the Wampanoag and served as an interpreter and guide for the pilgrims.
“A lot of times we think of iconic people in history, and we wrap them up in a couple of sentences,” Queypo said. “People think of Squanto as the man who taught the pilgrims how to grow corn. This project was an opportunity for me to humanize him and really live with Squanto for a few months, to identify with his thought process and his limitations.”
Instead, Americans learn a dumbed-down version of the story, which often portrays Natives as one-dimensional people: savage, uncivilized and simple; or worse, a force to conquer. For example, most people recognize Squanto’s name, Queypo said, but they don’t know the details of his life.
A member of the Patuxet Tribe, Squanto was kidnapped in 1614 and sold into slavery. When he returned to New England in 1619 and found his tribe obliterated, he joined the Wampanoag and served as an interpreter and guide for the pilgrims.
“A lot of times we think of iconic people in history, and we wrap them up in a couple of sentences,” Queypo said. “People think of Squanto as the man who taught the pilgrims how to grow corn. This project was an opportunity for me to humanize him and really live with Squanto for a few months, to identify with his thought process and his limitations.”
Read more at http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/11/16/saints-strangers-real-story-first-thanksgiving-162325
