Story perspectives

Thanksgiving Reimagined: Pilgrims' Radical Roots Exposed

11/28/2025

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Summary

Story summary

Amanda Montell, The Nation writer, argues the Pilgrims and Puritans were radical Protestant cultists shaping American culture.
She says they aimed to establish a theocracy rather than escape persecution.
Montell argues their doomsday beliefs fuel modern anti-intellectualism and a tendency to follow strong leaders.
She urges a Thanksgiving political reckoning, and The Nation published a second essay advocating a radical reinterpretation of Thanksgiving linked to abolitionist activism and anti-racism.

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Story summary

Amanda Montell, The Nation writer, argues the Pilgrims and Puritans were radical Protestant cultists shaping American culture.
She says they aimed to establish a theocracy rather than escape persecution.
Montell argues their doomsday beliefs fuel modern anti-intellectualism and a tendency to follow strong leaders.
She urges a Thanksgiving political reckoning, and The Nation published a second essay advocating a radical reinterpretation of Thanksgiving linked to abolitionist activism and anti-racism.