Exploring Columbus (Great Man or Racist Oppressor?)

"Dad, why does America celebrate Columbus Day?"

"Well, Billy, in 1492, Christopher Columbus sailed from Europe to America and founded the very first settlement in the New World. His arrival marks the beginning of America as we know it."

"But didn't he discover America by accident, dad?"

"Columbus believed the Earth was a sphere. He thought he could reach the Far East by setting off on a westward course. Though he stumbled upon what is now the Bahamas by accident, he was still a great explorer and a great man, Billy."

"A great man, dad, or a racist oppressor?"

"Pardon me, son?"

"When Columbus came to America, he brought with him the greed of the white European males who subsequently colonized America for the dough. They fought and killed the Indigenous Peoples who were already here and took their land and their gold. Columbus eventually died a very rich man."

"Well, Billy, an unfortunate part of human history involves countries invading their neighbors to take control. This has happened in many parts of the world, including Europe, which has a long history of war. But remember that Indigenous Peoples were also prone to war and fighting to expand their control well before Europeans arrived."

"Well, Columbus is also responsible for many germs and diseases that Europeans brought to America, causing untold suffering and death among the people who were here before us."

"Have you been drinking too much caffeine lately, Billy?"

"America's history of environmental destruction can also be laid at Columbus' feet, dad. As soon as the Europeans colonized America's pristine lands, they cut down the trees and plowed up the fields. Can you say soil erosion, dad?"

"Son, did I ever tell you that you take after your mother's side?"

"And what about slavery?

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the facsist indian groups her ein denver, including ward churchill, did their best to threaten and intimidate the italians out of celebrating their heritage. in the end, though, the parade went off without a hitch.

My family is of Italian descent, and I have to say, even if the day were eliminated as a federal holiday, it would still be celebrated in those communities. Maybe we should eliminate it as a federal holiday, so those same people complaining won't also have a paid day-off to come and protest it. ;-)

But, to those who point to Columbus' flaws, the others had flaws, too. If you want to eliminate Columbus Day, you need to eliminate a lot of other federal holidays, too. To err is to be human, and they were all flawed. Gov't employees receive too much time off with pay, anyway.

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