Wisconsin Democratic gubernatorial frontrunner Francesca Hong declined to disavow a deleted 2020 social media post calling for the cancellation of Thanksgiving and appeared to stand by its underlying critique during a CNN interview.
In a now-deleted November 2020 post on X, the Madison state representative wrote: “Cancel Thanksgiving. Should have done this in 1621. If it takes a worldwide pandemic for us to realize we should stop celebrating colonialism and the original superspreader event that killed Indigenous folx and women, so be it.”
The post resurfaced as Hong, a democratic socialist backed by the Democratic Socialists of America, has emerged as the overwhelming favorite to win the August 11th Democratic primary for governor.
Asked directly by CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on “The Source” whether she still believes Thanksgiving should be canceled, Hong responded: “I’m a chef, and one of the first meals that I made that was for the community when I was 16 was a Thanksgiving meal. You know, I always think my hospitality background and owning a restaurant for seven, eight years that bringing folks around the table to share conversation and build community is always a good thing.”
“But Thanksgiving is also a time that’s incredibly painful for many people in our communities,” she continued. “And so, I think there I wanted to make sure that people understood that there are multiple views. But views can evolve, and the position that I’m running for right now, and I think my background as a chef, will actually help me become a better governor that’s able to bring more people to the table.”
Hong did not retract the original post’s characterization of the holiday or fully renounce its message, instead framing it as an acknowledgment of differing perspectives while noting that views can change. She never, however, said that her views had actually changed.
Hong has also faced scrutiny over past comments on other holidays. In a December 2019 post, she reacted to an IT technician changing her work computer background to snow and Christmas trees by writing, “I feel slightly attacked…”
On Valentine’s Day in 2022, Hong posted: “I miss working in a restaurant every day…except on VDay. As if we weren’t invisible enough to those who don’t recognize the emotional & physical labor of service work, the worst of humanity comes out from folks ‘celebrating’ on another day capitalism tells you how to show love.”
