Everyone’s got an opinion but the opinions of this article represent the writers opinion and no one else.
‘Landing of Columbus’ by John Vanderlyn (Public Domain)
It’s been reported to me, many Americans today have chosen to erase the existence of Columbus Day in favor of Indigenous Peoples day. What is the reason for Columbus Day, Why should it be changed, and why is Columbus Day so much more important than any other day?
The only benefits of Columbus Day that affect the average American are ‘Find a Daycare’ day and ‘No Bank’ holiday. That’s it. Nothing Special. Yet, it seems to influence the vast majority of Americans on social media in 2018. Why are so many people butthurt about the name ‘Columbus’?
To many, Columbus Day represents a day that celebrates the achievements of what Cristoforo Colombo had on the great nation of The United States of America. And to that I say, BULLSHIT!
This holiday was acknowledged by Benjamin Harrison, the 23rd President, to bring awareness to the American people of the landing of the ships and explores of the New World. This is important to remember; the ships touched the soil of the Americas for the first time by one of the highest ruling power… the Spanish.
Many scholars believe that that Columbus was born in the Republic of Genoa (Northern Italy) and spoke Ligurian. Columbus was in search of the best route for spice when he stumbled upon the Americas. I still remember chuckling at the image of text from middle school when the teacher said that Cristoforo was astonished by the amount of gold in the Native Americans noses.
All-in-all, Columbus Day is not a day of remembrance nor should it be a day of remembrance for the one and only Cristoforo Colombo, but a day in remembrance for the true heroes of the voyage. The main reason why the Europeans/Spaniards were able to land on the fertile grounds of the Americas. The trading vessels named the Niña, Pinta, and Santa Maria. (NiPitS)
If anyone were to claim that Columbus was an illegal immigrant and colonized the new Americas, they are 100% incorrect and must be challenged. Also, if he were to be an ‘illegal immigrant’ to the Americas due the fact that there were already native people thriving off the soil of the Americas, one must assume that the modern-day illegal immigrant matches his motives for coming to the new found lands.
Cristoforo did not know of the prosperity of the native people and thus didn’t sent his children to cross the border to live a better life. He didn’t try to use a system that wasn’t in place to have the freedom to build a better life for himself nor his descendants. He was not a migrant but a conquer, which is not any better in our modern eyes yet was acceptable in those times.
We all have a family history that goes deep, deep, deep, and has a dark whole where we wish was invisible, but we can’t/shouldn’t change the past. Instead we must learn from where we came and appreciate what we have today despite the fact.
I love the bed I sleep in, fast-food I eat, and society I live in, and nothing is going to change that. Sure there are leaders of the United States that I disagree with but I accept what I am given because the majority of my peers chose these individuals to represent me. It’s not a perfect world, but it’s the world that I have been raised in, and I will make the best of it.
Cristoforo landed the ships that he was in command of on the land that I currently call my home and for that, I say thank you. His actions afterwards are not the actions that I condone but understand that the times were different.
Columbus Day is not a day to honor the leader of the fleet but to commemorate the findings of this great Nation.
NakeyLibertarian 