Many countries in the New World and elsewhere officially celebrate as a holiday the anniversary of Christopher Columbus ' accidental arrival in the Americas, which happened on October 12, 1492. The landing is celebrated as Columbus Day in the United States, as Discovery Day in the Bahamas, as Día de la Raza in many countries in Latin America, as Día de las Américas in Belize and Uruguay, as Día del Respeto a la Diversidad Cultural in Argentina, as Día de la Hispanidad and Fiesta Nacional in Spain, and as Giornata Nazionale di Cristopher Columbus or Festa Nazionale di Cristoforo Colombo in Italy and in the Little Italys around the world. These holidays have been celebrated unofficially since the late 18th century and officially in various …show more content…
Columbus Day was first enshrined as a legal holiday in the United States through the lobbying of Angelo Noce, a first generation Italian, in Denver. The first statewide Columbus Day holiday was proclaimed by Colorado governor Jesse F. McDonald in 1905, and it was made a statutory holiday in 1907. In April 1934, as a result of lobbying by the Knights of Columbus and New York City Italian leader Generoso Pope, Congress and President Franklin Delano Roosevelt proclaimed October 12 a federal holiday under the name Columbus …show more content…
In time for the observation of Columbus Day in 2004, the final volume of a compendium of Columbus-era documents was published by the University of California, Los Angeles 's Medieval and Renaissance Center. Geoffrey Symcox, the general editor of the project, asserted: "While giving the brilliant mariner his due, the collection portrays Columbus as an unrelenting social climber and self-promoter who stopped at nothing— not even exploitation, slavery, or twisting Biblical scripture— to advance his ambitions… Many of the unflattering documents have been known for the last century or more, but nobody paid much attention to them until recently… The fact that Columbus brought slavery, enormous exploitation or devastating diseases to the Americas used to be seen as a minor detail – if it was recognized at all – in light of his role as the great bringer of white man 's civilization to the benighted idolatrous American continent. But to historians today this information is very important. It changes our whole view of the
The credit for this change of view can be given to Washington Irving, who wrote a biography based on Columbus in 1828. This biography romanticized him and gave people the idea that he was this courageous hero who despite people’s claims that he’ll never succeed, ended up discovering what lies past the Atlantic. This biography gathered the momentum needed to catapult the collective opinion of Columbus higher in America. As time passed, more biographers wrote about him which resulted in groups forming, particularly the Knights of Columbus. They’re the group that pressed for a nationally recognized Columbus Day, which passed in
Some of the problems when studying history are the texts and documents that have been discovered are only from perspective. Furthermore, on occasion that one perspective is all there may be for historians to study. A good example of this textual imbalance can be found from the texts about the discovery of the New World; more specifically, the letters of Christopher Columbus and Pêro Vaz de Caminha during their voyages to the New World. Plenty of the text from this time is written from the perspective of the Europeans, as the Indigenous population did not have any written text. What this means is that it provided only one perspective, which can drastically hinder how history is interpreted. Columbus’s letter of his first voyage to the Caribbean
Columbus Day was not always a federal holiday. Traditionally, the holiday was observed on the 12th of October locally. Columbus Day first became a holiday in Colorado in 1906. Through lobbying by Angelo Rose, Generoso Pope, and The Knights of Columbus, Columbus Day became a federal holiday in 1937. It was signed in by Franklin Roosevelt. Since 1970, the holiday has been observed on the second Monday of October. Columbus Day had lobbying against it as well. During the early days before information was not easily available, it was said that the holiday would be used to spread Catholic influence. In later years during the Information Age, arguments such as Columbus 's character or the genocide and slavery of the Indians became widespread arguments against the celebration of the holiday. There are also many arguments as to why the holiday should be kept. Columbus 's voyages led to the colonization of the New World. His expeditions spurred the Age of Exploration, where many European countries continued to invest in exploring for shorter and faster routes to India and the Orient, and new territories to claim. His voyages also led to the Columbian
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”.
The name of the article is PRO/CON: Should we celebrate Christopher Columbus?It was made By Silvio Laccetti, McClatchy Tribune, and Los Angeles Times Editorial Board adapted Newsela staff. On 10/06/2017. There are monuments and teachers that are being destroyed. Many people died during Columbus time and when people think of Colombes they think of all the people that he killed. There are parks playgrounds and schools that tribute Christopher Columbus. The article says we should the accomplishment he made. The Los Angeles California City Council have joined with other cities to replace Columbus Day with a holiday called Indigenous Peoples Day. because of the controversy of Columbus, a lot of people
In some respects, we can attribute the founding of America and all its subsequent impacts to Christopher Columbus. Columbus a hero in the United States, has his own holiday and we view as the one who paved the way for America to be colonized. 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 contributes profound and negative effects as future colonists arrived. “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.
Other than what was taught in primary education I knew little of Christopher Columbus. I certainly did not know the truth. Educators and school board officials provided a faulty historical account of Christopher Columbus growing up. Most youth raised in America grew up with nursery rhymes and bedtime stories fictionalizing the heroic efforts and swash-buckling adventures of Columbus’ and men alike making their thievery and lack of concern for human life acceptable. All Americans including the Native and African Americans who were indirectly affected by Christopher Columbus via the slave trade and destruction of their people, observe Christopher Columbus Day. If this is so, why don’t we have a Hail Hitler Day? Hitler, though many see him as a terrible man, was simply doing what power hungry individuals have done for centuries. He simply took a page out of Christopher Columbus’ book destroying the weak and enslaving those left standing. In the case of Christopher Columbus quest for gold, he went to extreme measures to ensure he would get every last golden flake that glittered in Hai...
Many Americans honor Christopher Columbus Day as a holiday that celebrates his discovery of the New World on October 12, 1492. Some make the argument that Columbus is not to be considered a hero because of his actions. However, this day celebrates his discovery but not his mistakes after. His findings brought new knowledge to the Old World, profited many countries, and improved life conditions of many people. Before his voyage some thought if sailing West all one would find is India, however Columbus’ expedition found
Meanwhile, they make up all kinds of details to tell a better story and to humanize Columbus so that readers will identify with him” (1). On American textbooks, Christopher Columbus was portray as the first person who discovered America, but it is actually a lie that Columbus is the first America’s “great” hero. In my opinion, American textbooks put more emphasis on making significant heroic character rather than giving a true detail of history. Also, it provides a mythical hero and covers up anything that shows in the history of the America in a negative light and made them look bad. Explorers who reached America before Columbus are well underplayed. They should stick to the facts of what Columbus really did and should focus on as many accurate details of Columbus’ life, without overcompensating for his
Document three contradicts, “...holidays should be days that bring a sense of pride and togetherness for ALL Americans…”Columbus Day” fails that test on all accounts,” (3). However, this statement is not true. Columbus Day celebrates Italian-Americans and all people of the Western Civilization, which includes all Americans. According to The Buffalo News, Columbus is very sentimental for the Italian-Americans that live among our country. Christopher Columbus Day displays the important roles of Italian-Americans in our society, and how they suffered a lot of discrimination in the early years of immigration (The Buffalo News). Therefore, Christopher Columbus Day should not be repealed because it symbolizes the greater whole of the Italian-Americans. This holiday shows them that they had a significance in the building of our civilization as we know it today. How can we take a holiday away from a culture who deeply believes in what it symbolizes? Christopher Columbus Day not only reaches out to Italian-Americans, but this national holiday also reaches out towards all people of the Western Hemisphere. Without Christopher Columbus, progress on the standings of this half of the world would have likely not been carried out. Therefore, Christoper Columbus Day should not be abolished because the day represents many important people other than Christopher
For the past eighty years, Columbus Day has been a federal holiday celebrated on the second Monday of October. On that day, we celebrate the great and noble explorer, Christopher Columbus, and all of his epic voyages and groundbreaking discoveries. That's the narrative we mostly hear about. But is that really the truth? It appears as though the actual story of Christopher Columbus is far worse than the romanticized versions we often hear. The morality of Columbus' values, actions, and character are questionable. The things he did and his motives for doing so were quite atrocious. His actions, if done in this day and age, would have been totally and completely unacceptable. Columbus should be judged by today’s standards. Therefore, we should not continue to celebrate Columbus Day because of the materialistic motives of Christopher Columbus, the horrendous acts he carried out against the indigenous people, and the legitimacy of his discoveries. (Dobbs, 1997)
It was largely established due to “intense lobbying efforts by the Knights Of Columbus, a Catholic fraternal benefits organization.” It was created to commemorate the landing of Christopher Columbus in the New World on October 12, 1492. Many americans hold the holiday as a way of honoring Columbus’ achievements while others celebrate discovery of the new world. However, in past years, many states and towns have changed what they celebrate. In 1992, in Berkeley, California renamed Columbus Day as “Indigenous People’s Day.” other towns in California, as well as several towns in “Wisconsin” and “Minnesota” have followed suit and changed the name of Columbus Day. Many tribal governments in the United States have abolished Columbus Day and Established Native American Day in its place. However, many other states and cities strongly disagree and support Columbus Day. An example would be New York City, which holds the largest celebration in the United States, the Columbus Day Parade, which draws around a million spectators each
In the years leading up to and including 1491 European explorers had been researching and studying the world, however they lacked a real understanding of the true size and geography of our planet. When explorers finally began setting out on their expeditions in the late 1400’s, the world began to experience serious change. Before Columbus is credited with the discovery of America in 1492, the Americas were untouched by Europeans, but within a few hundred years permanent settlements would be founded on American soil despite the presence of the native people.
Every year on the second Monday in October, people all across America, and also some foreign countries, celebrate a day commonly known as Columbus Day (usafederalholidays.com/). There have been many debates as to whether this was a well-deserved holiday to honor Columbus’ “achievements”. As I see it, I do not believe that he deserves a holiday due to many of his terrible attributes to history including but not limited to, murder, lying, cheating, and his misplaced judgment about his location. People are given holidays as a show of respect and honor towards their heroism and achievements, and none of the previous things listed above show any of those signs. Even Hitler did some great things such as, got Germany out of debt, helped growing families stay out of debt, and lowered the unemployment rate, but he was rightfully known for his terrible plan known as the Holocaust (topinfopost.com). In my opinion, these are the reasons why I believe Columbus does not deserve a holiday.
Columbus Day has been changed to “Indigenous Peoples Day” . Shortly after,this change Khsama Swant a Seattle City Council member speaks about these issues on the website www.npr.org . Many other states have changed Columbus day to Indiginoeus Peoples’ Day because of the upsetting history associated with Columbus.