“Columbus Day” and why people think “Indigenous Peoples' Day” should be celebrated instead.

For many Indigenous people all across the Americas, Christopher Columbus and therefore “Columbus Day” represents the violent history of genocide sparked by the Italian “explorer.” Columbus is famously credited for “discovering” the Americas, a continent that prior to 1492 had been inhabited by millions of Indigenous people for thousands of years.

While many different people have very different opinions about this world-changing event, it is a fact that Christopher Columbus and his “explorers” brought many deadly diseases, genocide, slavery, racism, and exploitation of these communities, therefore, decimating the population. It also seems to have created a lasting trauma still affecting Indigenous people nowadays.

On the other hand, there is also the fact that it was very common for everyone at that time, to seize the lands of other communities by horrible acts of violence such as murder, torture, and rape. And by “everyone” I also mean Indigenous people of different ethnic groups. They also murdered and tortured each other to get food and lands. One of the differences between Indigenous People and Columbus in that “fight” was that Columbus had guns and Indigenous People had weapons made out of wood.

Christopher Columbus first arrived at the Bahamas in search of China and India, and as a matter of fact, when he arrived in America he was certain that he had entered India. Throughout his four voyages, Columbus and his fellow Europeans murdered, tortured, exploited, and enslaved the Lucayan, Taino, and Arawak people. Columbus tribute system required all to provide a hawk’s bell worth of gold every three months, and evidently, Indigenous people were obligated to follow these regulations. Unfortunately, those who did not provide enough gold were subjected to cruel punishments. Columbus himself in the year 1500 recounted, “...girls … from 9-10… are… in… demand.”

After decimating much of the Indigenous population, Columbus began another form of abhorrent, brutality and sent ships to enslave African people beginning the Atlantic slave trade.

The first “Columbus Day” was celebrated in 1792, 300 years after Columbus’s landing and “reign of tyranny.” This celebration did not become an international holiday up until 1937, although it wasn’t and isn’t celebrated by many states.

Why is this switch to celebrating Indigenous Peoples Day so important to these people?

Because according to Indigenous people nowadays, “Columbus Day not only celebrates the man who initiated colonization but it erases the ‘truth’. This erasure of history is purposeful and continues to contribute to the marginalization of Indigenous people.”

Some people do not agree with this statement, but it is important to recognize that Columbus did start the Atlantic slave trade and that he began the Indigenous American genocide. The truth is also that the victims of these heinous atrocities have not only survived, but thrived, which is the kind of representation that Indigenous people so desperately need.

Bibliography

Why you should celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day, not C*lumbus Day. (2021, October 11). Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/CU3eRLKMAMr/?utm_medium=copy_link

Today is Indigenous Peoples' Day. 🧡 (2021, October 11). Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/CU5TaFspjgd/?utm_medium=copy_link