Columbus Day
For some he’s a hero; to others a villain

By Karen Francis
Staff writer

GALLUP — Columbus Day has been a federal holiday since 1934 when Congress, by joint resolution, requested the president to proclaim the second Monday of every October as “Columbus Day.”

The honoring of Christopher Columbus for establishing lasting contact between Europe and the Americas continues to be celebrated today 515 years after he landed on San Salvador Island.

Many Native Americans, however, do not believe that a man who brought disease and colonization to the people who already inhabited the land should be honored.

Rumors circulated that some UNM-Gallup students would be protesting on Monday, and at least two protests were being planned in Tuba City, Ariz., by area youth. In Tuba City, one group stated that it planned to protest in front of McDonald’s on Columbus Day while another said it would protest in front of Taco Bell.

One of the leaders of the Tuba City protests said that his group does not believe Columbus Day should be celebrated.
“It’s all just a celebration of death and imperialism,” he stated.

In Flagstaff, Ariz., a candle light vigil against genocide at City Hall was being planned for Monday evening. Klee Benally from Indigenous Action Media helped to publicize the vigil because he also does not believe that Columbus should be honored.

“We don’t celebrate Hitler Day for a very clear reason, so it’s unfortunate that in this day and age Columbus is being celebrated,” Benally said.

“His legacy is one of violence, of slavery, of brutality against the indigenous people that he encountered,” he said. “And to honor that individual is to honor the murders and genocide of indigenous people.”

Benally said that it has been 515 years since Columbus sailed to the Americas and “enough is enough.”

“How can we as indigenous people heal the wounds and the trauma if the legacy of genocide against our people is still being celebrated?” he said.

Benally said, “There has been a call to rename it Indigenous People’s Day to honor the fact that we’re still here.”

South Dakota is one state that has established Native American Day as the second Monday of each October. Its first Native American Day was observed in 1990 in honor of Native Americans.

Navajo Nation Council Delegate Evelyn Acothley is one of those who believe that the nation’s indigenous peoples should be recognized instead of Columbus.

“I think that American Indians and their heritage made history. They should be the ones to be recognized,” she said.

She added that the Navajo Nation does not observe Columbus Day but has its own designated holiday to celebrate the day after Thanksgiving.

Benally noted that some U.S. cities and some South American countries are beginning to celebrate indigenous people’s day instead of Columbus Day.

Charley Mitchell said he thinks that by celebrating Columbus Day, America is celebrating imperialism and genocide of indigenous people.

Mitchell said that school textbooks need to cover more about the contributions of Native Americans, African Americans and Hispanics to American history.

“If it wasn’t for Native Americans, they wouldn’t have survived,” he said about the first European explorers to visit America.

Mitchell added that he has asked schoolchildren he knows about their thoughts on Columbus Day and “they really didn’t know who Columbus was or what he accomplished.”

Mitchell said he wanted to protest on Columbus Day but he found out he had to work. He also spoke about the activists in Denver who protested the city’s large annual Columbus Day parade, which is in its 100th year. At least 83 people were arrested for blocking the parade route.

“I’m glad that there are a lot of Native Americans and other ethnic backgrounds that are taking action out there. Every year it gets bigger and bigger,” he said. “A lot of our people aren’t really recognized for their involvement with civil rights, even though we went through a lot of struggles to get to where we are today.”

Proponents of Columbus Day say that Columbus was a brave explorer who opened the Americas to a new world and he deserves to be honored. Columbus Day has also traditionally been a time to celebrate the contributions of Italian Americans to the nation since Columbus was said to be from Italy.

In the proclamation designating Oct. 9, 2007, Columbus Day, President George Bush states, “Christopher Columbus’ bold journey across the Atlantic opened new frontiers of exploration and demonstrated the power of perseverance.”