Truthsgiving 2024
We hope to get 350 registrants this year!
HONORING THE PAST: Recognizing Indigenous existence & honoring ancestral lives and their sacrifices.
CELEBRATING THE PRESENT: Indigenous Peoples are still here – with their resilient voices and heart.
BUILDING A FUTURE: Creating a future for the next generations to come.
Sign up for the 2024 TRUTHSGIVING Virtual 4 miler to support Rising Hearts and ReNew Earth Running’s kinship and efforts in informing every participant about what Truthsgiving is and means through the lens of our collective, and gain a new perspective, rather than celebrating so called Thanksgiving for the romanticized reasons we grew up knowing from textbooks and an inaccurate historical narrative. Expand your knowledge and become an ally/friend with Indigenous Peoples, support the voices, movements and heart work. We hope to also give more visibility and support those in the #LANDBACK movement and work, to uphold Indigeneous Sovereignty, Treaty Rights, and to protect the lands where Indigenous knowledge can care, protect, preserve and restore the lands to their most natural, thriving being. And we can all be part of that.
November is Native American / Indigenous Heritage Month - please remember that you can be an ally and co-conspirator everyday of the year and your support can go beyond just Indigenous Peoples Day for November. We can celebrate, honor, amplify, uplift and celebrate Indigenous Peoples everyday and any day.
Read more about Truthsgiving from Jordan's blog perspective here and ways to take action and support
Click here for the "True History of Thanksgiving" article from DoSomething.org
2024 5TH TRUTHSGIVING Virtual 4 + 2 miler
The unfortunate first contact between the Wampanoag and European colonizers in 1621 would be the beginning of a centuries-long legacy of colonial violence. A white myth written off as a friendly feast celebrating the union of “Indians” and pilgrims was actually a violent encroachment by colonizers on Indigenous lands. Colonizers who came ashore with disease and savage ways of being, overhunted the wildlife, mismanaged the land, and resorted to murder and cannibalism to survive. In a near state of total starvation, colonizers were fed by the true stewards of the land. The favor would never be returned. Instead, the beginning of a genocide project would ensue where the majority of Indigenous peoples in the coastal areas of Turtle Island would be wiped out from murder and colonizer-brought diseases. It was not until 1637, that the Massachusetts Bay Governor would proclaim a celebration in the name of God for the massacre of 700 Pequot people. A feast would be had for the success of manifest destiny, a white supremacist wet dream, wherein white people advance a racist agenda of eradication and enslavement of Black and Indigenous people.
In 2020, the colonial project has evolved beyond the power of 13 colonies into a system that extracts and exploits finite resources, encourages state-sanctioned executions, trafficks people of the global majority into for-profit prisons, violates treaties, and denies aid amidst a pandemic that is disproportionately killing Black and Indigenous peoples. Truthsgiving will be a day of mourning, a grounding in our collective survival, and a commitment to never again feed what kills.
The colonial holiday, Thanksgiving 2024 is right around the corner, during a month that acknowledges Native American / Indigenous people – Native American Heritage Month. We first need to acknowledge that the very foundation of Turtle Island (North America), so-called, the United States of America began with genocide, disease, wars, pillage, violence, rape, and enslavement since 1492. Then we must recognize and acknowledge that our Black relatives were forcibly removed from their homelands, enslaved, and brought to the islands in the Caribbean and to North and South America. The foundation of this country, was off the genocide of Indigenous Peoples, attempts to completely eradicate our ancestors and stole our lands that were governed by our own relatives as Sovereign Nations. This country was built by enslaved Black people. Both of our communities have experienced these similar traumas and injustice due to colonization, white supremacy, systemic oppression, and racism – all mechanisms we still experience to this day.
We would like to present you with a new perspective of what Thanksgiving means and represents. Due to the abundance of false narratives of Native people and inaccurate information in school textbooks, there is a certain lens that we are viewed through. These opinions and beliefs are rooted in discriminatory behaviors and attitudes that are continuously perpetuated through systemic racism and white supremacy. This day is another holiday, like Columbus Day and Halloween, and other narratives, that is problematic and harmful to Native people. Native relatives and allies are taking the steps needed to correct this narrative, to decolonize these holidays and expose the truth about these holidays so that we can remove them, replace them, and perhaps, celebrate Native people and accomplishments rather than being constantly reminded of these injustices and historical trauma. We can’t continue to romanticize and normalize racism and the stereotypes that exist for Native people. So, please, we encourage you to take a deep breath, come to this space with an open mind, learn something new, and become an ally to our communities.
Join the RISING HEARTS virtual team (6 participants will be selected to win a free pair of On Running shoes and other swag).
Add the Indigenous lands you're on to your bib!
2024 Truthsgiving shirts are available - PURCHASE by 11/13, to receive in time for the event. Orders made after, will be printed and shipped on a daily basis.
Tuscarora WoodWorks Medals
First 25 registrants for the 2 mile and 4 mile!
Hand crafted wooden medals by Tuscarora Woodworks, 50 available for a $15 donation that contributes to the overall donations to Beneficiaries!
Medals are handmade by Tuscarora WoodWorks: www.tuscarorawoodworks.com
For BEST CHANCES to receive your medal by 11/27:
Enter your current shipping address correctly (and include your apartment or suite number if applicable)
Be sure to make your purchase before 11/18/24
Any purchase after that, will go out as soon as possible.
Fast deliveries are dependent on accurate information. Weather or rerouting delays can happen, so we thank you for your understanding!
About Tuscarora WoodWorks:
Tuscarora WoodWorks is an Indigenous owned and operated business located on the sovereign territory of the Tuscarora People. We have been in operation since 2013 and continue to grow to meet the needs of our clients. We specialize in unique Native art and craft items. Most everything is made right here in our shop, but we do carry items made by other Haudenosaunee people across Haudenosaunee Country.
At Tuscarora WoodWorks, we craft more than products; we share the stories and heritage of the Haudenosaunee people. Rooted in the values of unity, tradition, and sustainability, we aim to honor our ancestors while supporting the future of our community. From engraved lacrosse sticks to Tuscarora Raised Beadwork, every piece we create is a reflection of our deep connection to the land, culture, and craftsmanship passed down through generations. Through our work, we preserve cultural traditions, empower future generations, and share the beauty of our artistry with the world, promoting a message of peace, respect, and friendship.