It’s a holiday filled with family, food, and gratitude. Aromas of deliciously-plump ham and freshly-baked pumpkin pie invigorate the atmosphere of happiness and joy. Having family and relatives sitting around a homemade meal with turkey as the main dish is the epitome of modern-day Thanksgiving.

But for some, it’s a reminder of the grim past.

The genocide, enslavement, and oppression of the indigenous people of America, known as the Native Americans, are reminders about the history of their people and their land while the rest of America enjoys days off and a celebratory meal.

Learning about Thanksgiving in grade school has always been a pleasant occasion. Making turkey hands, coloring in print-outs of cornucopias, and writing letters about how thankful we are sums up the usual holiday activities. But the only history ever taught was about explorer Christopher Columbus, who “discovered” America in 1492. A century after he landed on what he presumed was India, European colonists took over what was later revealed as a “new world.” Because of that, Native Americans are also constantly given the mistaken title of “American Indians.”

My grandparents and parents had that chance to escape from the holocaust in Cambodia, created by the people known as the Khmer Rouge. They were able to find a safe haven from the massacre and restart life in “the land of opportunity.” The Native Americans, indigenous people of America, had nowhere else to go. As their homeland was seized and their rights expropriated, fleeing elsewhere was not a viable option.

To create a modern-day holiday during this time of year, during the terror and fear they faced in the past, and to celebrate it, is reprehensible.

It wasn’t until high school when I became aware about the actual events that happened during the so-called “discovery” of America. Native Americans were stripped of everything: culture, lives, freedom. It’s what happens to civilizations that become colonized by more-developed societies, especially those who have a paternalistic view of the world.

Why is it that, as children, we are taught by the filtered education that runs through our country? Then again, why would we speak of the horrific, unpleasant history to them at such a young age? It makes sense to sweeten it up a little when they’re young, but we can’t forget to teach them of the brutal and realistic history as they grow.