A cold-blooded killer has developed into a national hero and celebrated on Oct 10th each year. Christopher Columbus is the name of the man, who has been developed into a national figure and hero because of his discovery of the new world. Most Americans are taught in the fifth grade that Christopher Columbus was the man who sailed the ocean blue in 1492. That, however, is not the whole picture. His accomplishments do not discard his past or everything else that made him the man he was. His discovery of the Americas does not sugarcoat the fact that he was a cold blooded man who carried out acts of genocide and caused a great deal of suffering for the native people, in order to obtain lands he believed were his. He is responsible for the deaths of many innocent lives. …show more content…
His intrusion of the new land he had found, brought diseases and caused the deaths of many, as he began to wipe out a majority of the native population. Christopher Columbus is an icon that should not be celebrated as he exploited the native people, introduced numerous European diseases to the new land he had discovered, and carried out acts of genocide.
Christopher Columbus should not be celebrated as he exploited the natives and carried out acts of murder. Christopher Columbus is not just the “hero” who discovered the New World. His actions following his discovery of the Americas were cruel and unjust. As governor in 1495, Columbus instituted a tribute taxation system, requiring every native that exceeded the age of fourteen to fill a small hawks bell with gold (Freeland and Tinker 31). Those who did not fulfil the Spaniards expectations regarding tribute were punished with the severing of one's hands causing them to die a slow painful death from the excessive bleeding (Freeland and Tinker 26) . About 10,000 were killed from this system alone (Churchill). This was a brutal, yet simple way for Columbus to obtain riches and gold, by using the people who knew the land best. This allowed Columbus to obtain great riches, as it ensured great wealth for both Spain and himself. The natives were given the choice between death or attending to the spaniards physical or financial desires and needs. Columbus was responsible for his very own army that was free to rape the native
women and girls as they pleased (Freeland and Tinker 36). The soldiers were known for “misbehaving”, or in other words, raping (Ozborne). The natives were taken advantage of by Columbus’s men for sexual and economic reasons. On top of that, Columbus was also responsible for enslaving the natives. Following Columbus’s third voyage to the Americas, he began selling females as young as nine years of age into sex trade (Ozborne). He exploited young native girls and native women through sex trade. He exploited not only the native women and girls, but all genders, enslaving them and forcing them to work for Spanish encomenderos (Freeland and Tinker 41). This was basically a program that was used to “reward” the basically indentured people for their work, which was “not forced”, and gave them safety in return. The natives were exploited for their riches, the sexual desires of both Columbus’s men and buyers, and for their physical labor, in order to enhance his own wealth and benefits. He is not only responsible for the exploitation of the natives, but also for exposing them to diseases and refraining them from any form of treatment. Christopher Columbus was responsible for introducing new European diseases to the Americas, causing the deaths of millions. The epidemic and disease spread through the invasion of the Europeans, was responsible for the most deaths of the natives (Freeland and Tinker 36). Christopher Columbus and the other Europeans brought new disease to the Americas that the natives were not immune to (Ozborne). This caused widespread epidemic causing the deaths of so many natives. This was the result of Christopher Columbus’s presence in the Americas. What contributed more to their deaths was the fact that the natives were denied access to food and traditional medicine (Freeland and Tinker 37). Without food and any form of medicine the natives were left with nothing to fight the epidemic at hand. Columbus and his men’s actions eliminated the slim chance of survival they had once they became ill. Under Christopher Columbus the natives were exposed to new diseases and denied any resource that could heal them. Christopher Columbus is responsible for the deaths of a vast majority of the natives as his presence brought widespread epidemic and for his decision to deny any resources that might have treated the illness, as well as the murders of innocent lives. Christopher Columbus is not a man who should be celebrated because of the acts of genocide he carried out. Columbus brought seventeen ships filled with over a thousand armed men on his “Second Voyage” (Freeland and Tinker 36). He invaded the islands, killing and murdering the native people, as well as destroying the land. Groups of natives, of all ages and genders, would be round up and slaughtered by the Spaniards, with not a single body left alive (Churchill).
Some explorers were not looking for land to claim, but faster routes. Columbus went exploring trying to find a faster way to Asia/India for spice trading. The reason for this was because his country was receiving Asian Spices from Muslims(Document 3). In order to get the spices from the Muslims, high prices had to be paid since it was exchanged from person to person. Columbus went sailing and found an area that had inhabitants who looked like people he has never seen before which he assumed were Indians. Columbus saw they had foods he never had before and he started trading with them. He brought over foods such as the Irish Potato, Florida Oranges, Colombian Coffee, and French Vanilla Ice cream, for trading purposes(Document 6). All of those
Columbus’s “intentions were far from selfless.” (Myint, 2015, Para. 5). The greed was immense as Columbus believed in the entitlement of ten percent of all the treasures that were plundered. Nothing was shared with the crew. Natives were also mutilated and enslaved. If the natives did no collect enough money they lost limbs, some also lost their lives. A hero would not hurt innocent people trying to survive.
Although Columbus was increasing the wealth and strength of Spain, he was “a catastrophe for the indigenous inhabitants of the lands” (Belasco 67). He had no remorse for the natives as he proceeded to establish plantations, enslave them, slaughter them, and create a new colony called Espanola on their lands. According to Schuman, Howard, Barry Schwartz, and Hannah d’Arcy, Christopher Columbus “deserves condemnation for having brought slavery, disease, and death...
Who is Christopher Columbus? You may already have prior knowledge of him, but if you do not, Christopher Columbus was a Spanish explorer who made four voyages to the Americas. His voyages led to the Columbian Exchange and colonization. Many cultures, ideas, technology, and foods were spread between the Americas, the “New World,” and Europe, Africa, and Asia, the “Old World”. Even though many great things were exchanged between the Old World and the New World, many diseases from Europe were introduced to the Natives. Does this make Christopher Columbus a hero, or a villain? The answer is not that debatable. A closer look must be taken at Christopher Columbus 's life to be able to judge such things. This essay will take a look at his life,
Christopher Columbus does not deserve to be honored as a hero with his own holiday. Close to 500 years, people have praised Christopher Columbus and also celebrated him as though he was the one who truly founded America. Teachers teach students that he was a great man, also how he found treasures and land known as America. Students are also taught about the names of his three ships he used on his first voyage. However, they did not teach us the truth about Christopher Columbus, and his so called “discovery”.
Despite being one of the most renowned explorers in history, Christopher Columbus’ legacy remains controversial. The debate on whether Columbus should be celebrated has captured news headlines for decades. While many view him simply as a gifted Italian navigator who laid the seeds for the colonization of the New World, history paints a much more complicated picture. His journal entries and eye-witness testimony reveal Columbus to be a man of intolerance and indifference towards those deemed inferior to himself. Christopher Columbus’ treatment of Indigenous’ people, in addition to his ethnocentric worldview, allows for the conclusion that he should not be idolized as a hero in the modern age.
Christopher Columbus was a cruel, delusional, and self-centered man who does not deserve high praises for the discovery of America.
Christopher Columbus is a mythical hero or in other words, not a true hero. The story of Christopher Columbus is part of the many myths of Western civilization. Also the story of Christopher Columbus represents the power of those that are privileged and in most cases white European men that have written this mythical history. Zinn (2009 exposes the truth about Columbus through eyes of the people who were there when he had arrived which were the Native Indians (p.481). Columbus had kept a personal journal for his voyage to describe the people and the journey. What was evident throughout his journal was the Native Americans were very nice, gentle and kind hearted people (Zinn, 2009, 481). As Zinn suggests Columbus spoke of the Native Americans as” they are the best people in the world and
While discovering the New World he brought smallpox with them that wiped out most of the native people living there. Although, Columbus did never mean to do that intentionally, he did basically kill hundreds of people. In the article “Columbus Doesn’t Deserve a Holiday” the author says “Within 70 years of his arrival, of the hundreds of thousands of Arawak Indians on the Bahama Islands only hundreds remained.” Even with the small number of native’s left after the smallpox, Columbus brought them back and put them on sale. They started with 500 native’s, but 200 died on the way there. Not only did Columbus kill hundreds, he also destroyed a natural, peaceful place. He just took people out of there land and called it his. After reading this one might not believe Columbus is the hero we all think of.
However, people tend to forget the other side of Columbus, the side that lusted after gold and resources that often belonged to the native inhabitants he came across in his exploration. In his insatiable greed, he and his crew committed countless atrocities, such as torture and killing of defenseless natives. Columbus’s discovery of these new lands has profound and negative effects as future colonists arrive. “Zinn estimates that perhaps 3 million people perished in the Caribbean alone from raids, forced labor and disease” (Zinn, 1980). Columbus was seen as a cruel man, who saw the peaceful inhabitants as right for the conquering and lead to the devastation of the native population, yet is celebrated every October.
For generations upon generations, students have been taught about the “hero” Christopher Columbus who had discovered our new world. However, to say he was a hero would not exactly be the truth; Columbus was an eccentric man who cared much more about his profits than the well being and even lives of the natives. It is documented in journals that he and his crew had slaughtered entire villages at a time, and that he had even killed people just for the point of testing how sharp his sword was. Not only did Columbus and his crew have a thing for violence, on multiple accounts crew members wrote down every single successful rape of women; and used the voyage to help begin a slave export for the royalty of Spain.
For more than five centuries Americans have lifted Christopher Columbus to heights of greatness and god-like. We celebrate his life as though he was a man that had done us a great favor. In resent years Christopher Columbus has come under scrutiny, his life and works being questioned more than celebrated. There have be many great men and women that contributed to the building of our great nation but they do not receive anywhere as much recognition as Columbus. When a person begins to study the actual accounts of the "finding of the New World" they begin to wonder if Columbus should adored or hated for his actions. As a child I was taught that Columbus was a great man that had accomplished great things for the sake of humanity, but in reality his agenda was not to better humanity but to better himself. He found the Americas by mere chance and he did not even know of what he found. We give him credit for "finding" the Americas but history tells of the people, that he called Indians, already inhabiting the foreign land. So you decide whether or not Christopher Columbus should be revered a hero.
Have you ever been forced to do something you don’t want to do? Well maybe you have,but have you ever had your hand cut off because you didn’t do the thing that people made you want to do? I’m asking these questions because Christopher Columbus did these things to the Natives of America.That’s why I think we shouldn’t celebrate Columbus Day at all.He enslaved Natives to mine gold and if they didn’t he’d cut there wrists.Columbus also spread disease(such as smallpox) throughout America killing even more Natives. Finally though Columbus had butcher's cut the Native people up,to just feed their own dogs.On that same gruesome note Columbus ordered his men to cut the Natives in half to test the sharpness of their blades.
Christopher Columbus, was he a hero, or villain? For about 500 years, people have praised him and celebrated his life as though he was someone who did good for us. Schools teach students that Columbus was a great man, found gold and pearls, and discovered new lands. Students are even taught the names of Christopher Columbus' three ships he used on his first voyage. However, they grow up not knowing the truth about Christopher Columbus, what he really did to 'accomplish' his tasks. I simply believe that schools should show both sides of Columbus' story, so that students can be aware of the facts behind the 'discovery' of Early America.
“In 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue”, is the rhyme embedded in children’s heads in the first lesson of US history. However, beyond the discovery of the New World, Christopher Columbus receives no other mentions. Especially no one acknowledges that he was the reason Native Americans were mistreated and kept as slaves. Although Christopher Columbus’ actions are not all honorable he should still be celebrated during Columbus Day as a brave explorer who risked his and his crew’s lives to find a new way of travel and land. His efforts bridged a gap between the New and Old World and helped feed Europe, which immensely impacts our society. Because of his dedication and bravery to be an explorer Christopher Columbus Day should be celebrated.