In recent years, Thanksgiving in the United States has taken on a distinctive chiaroscuro (blending of light and dark). Replacing, or at least balancing, the heartwarming scenes of smiling, homogenous faces at a dinner table awash in extravagant abundance and good will, is a new awareness — a questioning of what exactly we Americans should be thankful for. Freedom From Want, Norman Rockwell For some, this new wakefulness extends deep into our history — as far back as 1492, when Columbus first visited the “New World”. In his landmark essay, The Rediscovery of North America, Barry Lopez offers a graphic…