Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images
This is the fourth installment of a continuing series in which American events are described using the tropes and tone normally employed by the American media to describe events in other countries.
WASHINGTON, D.C., United States—On Wednesday morning, this normally
bustling capital city became a ghost town as most of its residents
embarked on the long journey to their home villages for an annual
festival of family, food, and questionable historical facts. Experts say
the day is vital for understanding American society and economists are
increasingly taking note of its impact on the world economy.
The annual holiday, known as Thanksgiving, celebrates a mythologized
moment of peace between America’s early foreign settlers and its native
groups—a day that by Americans' own admission preceded a near genocide
of those groups. Despite its murky origins, the holiday remains a rare
institution celebrated almost universally in this ethnically diverse
society.
During the holiday, more than 38.4 million Americans
will make the long pilgrimage home, traveling an average of 214 miles
over congested highways, often in inclement weather. The more prosperous
citizens will frequently opt for the nation's airways, suffering
through a series of flight delays and missed airline connections thanks
to the country’s decaying transportation infrastructure and residual
fears of foreign terrorist attacks.
Once home, the holiday’s traditions encourage Americans to consume
massive quantities of food centered around the turkey, a flightless—and
some would say tasteless—bird native to the American continent. All in
all, 46 million
of these animals will be slaughtered for the feast, nearly 20 percent
of those raised each year. The average American will consume an almost unbelievable 4,500 calories, despite ongoing warnings about dangerous obesity rates nationally.
Virtually the only break from the eating comes when Americans gather
around the television to watch a special presentation of football, the
country’s most popular sport. If the brutal violence of the game seems
at odds with the holiday’s emphasis on thanks and good will, no one
seems to mind.
Though rooted in America’s ancient history, the celebration of
Thanksgiving today also reflects the transforming values of American
society. One relatively recent tradition is the head of state’s public “pardoning”
of a turkey—a sop to animal rights activists made somewhat moot by the
fact that the country’s president simply dines on a different turkey. To
outsiders, it can also seem like a somewhat macabre gesture since the
United States is one of the last developed countries to employ the death
penalty for humans.
Traditionally, the Friday and weekend
following Thanksgiving have been set aside for another American
institution—intense consumer activity and bargain shopping. (The
availability of deeply discounted goods is increasingly beginning even
sooner, sometime on the holiday itself, angering some purists.) More
than $59 billion will be spent over these days, though the exact figure
will be watched closely by economists looking for clues about the
country’s national mood and economic well-being. The event is known as
“Black Friday,” though contrary to popular belief, this is not due to
the injuries and deaths that periodically occur during retail stampedes.
In recent years, some experts have questioned whether the hidden
costs of the Thanksgiving holiday have become excessive; whether the
celebration is worth its massive environmental impact and the increased health risks
due to traffic accidents and overeating. Still, the majority of the
population holds fast to these pastimes. For them, they are part of a
rare, quintessentially American tradition in a modernizing society that
finds itself increasingly under the influence of the outside world.