Was Christopher Columbus A Hero Or A Rapist?

Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492 and although it was a courageous thing to do he was a terribly religious person who desecrated the natives and only reached the western continents by luck. Columbus today is treasured among most Americans rightfully so considering many think he is the one responsible for colonization. Although contrary to what most believe Columbus was a marauding rapist who disrespected the natives and who America did not need or want. As Columbus reached the islands of south America he was greeted by the native Taino people who he characterized as being incredibly generous and nice to his party. However Columbus did not return the favor. To the people whom he shared the land with and was given many gifts, he soon began to attempt convert them and claim them as slaves as he realized they were technologically inferior. On Columbus' first voyage he sent back to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella saying he had “ found very many islands filled with people and all

So when I was first shown how bad of a person he was and what he had actually accomplished It seemed unbelievable that a man who had been worshiped by toddlers could be so hated among high school humanities students. Yet looking at the facts it is easily shown how unneeded he actually was. As I learned what crimes he had committed against the native people, even though the Queen had specifically asked him to treat them with respect, Columbus became less and less of a superhero in his time. This begged the question of was all that genocide and killing worth what America has accomplished today? Personally, I would say no because if the Taino people were asked i'm sure they would agree that Europe could definitely had become just as powerful without the expansion into the new world and the genocide of their neighbors and