Columbus Day is a celebration of violence

By: Aaron Igdalsky

Posted: 10/13/08

As public school children and government employees enjoy today off, fewer and fewer states around the nation are "celebrating" Columbus Day. Though Columbus Day - which marks the anniversary of Christopher Columbus' arrival in the Americas - is a symbol of pride for some (namely Italian-Americans), for many more it is a symbol of violence, anger and shame. Columbus' deplorable actions should be condemned, not celebrated as a federal and state holiday.

In elementary school, we all learned that Columbus (born Cristoforo Colombo) was an Italian explorer who sailed under the Spanish flag in search of a quick route to India. He instead stumbled upon what are today known as the West Indies, and proceeded to colonize the region. What we didn't learn in elementary school was that Columbus enslaved countless natives and that his men raped and murdered many others. Most devastating to the Native Americans were the diseases that Columbus and his men brought to the Americas, especially smallpox. The Natives had never been exposed to these diseases, and thus had never developed any immunities against them. Several estimates suggest that more than two-thirds of the native population in America was eliminated within the first century after Columbus' arrival.

Many major American cities, particularly Denver, still have enormous Columbus Day parades which commemorate today's holiday. Those parades are, more than anything, an Italian-American pride parade. Italian-Americans celebrate that the man who discovered America was from Italy and they use that as an excuse to celebrate Italian pride. If Italians want to have an Italian pride day, that's fine, but it shouldn't be a national holiday; we don't close schools and government offices for the Puerto Rican Day Parade or the St. Patrick's Day Parade. Also, Italian-Americans should not be so proud of Columbus' achievements; there are far better role models from the Italian-American community to dedicate a day to.

Connecticut, in particular, with its strong Native American history, should not be celebrating Columbus Day at all. We should follow the lead set by states like Nevada, where today is not a holiday and schools and state offices are open for business. At the very least, Connecticut could follow the example set by South Dakota, which has renamed today's holiday "Native American Day" and rededicated its meaning to honoring and celebrating the history of Native Americans in this country.

Sadly, it is doubtful that the State legislature or Gov. Rell will ever change the way Columbus Day is observed here in Connecticut. There is a significant leaf-peeping industry in our state, which includes bed-and-breakfasts, hotels, restaurants, etc. Tourists come from around the U.S. and Canada to catch a glimpse of Connecticut's fall foliage, and Columbus Day weekend is by far the most financially important weekend during the leaf-peeping season. Much of our tourism industry depends on this weekend financially, and neither the legislature nor the Governor has the guts to offend those business people.

Let's be honest: very few people actually commemorate today in any special way anyway. Most people just look at it as another three-day weekend, paying no attention to what today means. Today is just another excuse for stores to have sales and car dealerships to run extra commercials. However, for members of the Native American community, today glorifies a man who wiped out an enormous number of their ancestors by means of murder, enslavement and disease. This viewpoint should be respected and honored, and Columbus Day should be abolished in Connecticut.