If there was such a title as honorary Founding Father, it would most likely be given to Christopher Columbus. With the celebration of Columbus Day dating as far back as the late 18th century, Columbus has been revered in America as a fearless explorer and an embodiment of rugged individualism. Of course, the illusion of Columbus as a brave and courageous explorer has come to look silly to many in light of the atrocities he committed; The Cavalier Daily itself recently published an opinion piece by Alexander Adames on why we shouldn't celebrate Columbus Day. What remains to be implemented, though, is wide scale replacement of the holiday with Indigenous Peoples’ Day.
Since the 1990s there has been a push to change Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples’ Day in an attempt to celebrate the people who lived in America for most of its history. Currently, Indigenous Peoples’ Day has already replaced Columbus Day in eight major American cities. Last week, the Native American Student Union announced it will be collecting signatures to file a petition with the Virginia State House to do the same in Virginia. As upstanding members of the University, students should sign the petition and stop the glorification of Columbus.
For most people, Columbus Day is simply a day off from work. Statistics show the holiday is one of the most inconsistently celebrated holidays in America. Such inconsistency points to the reality that Columbus Day is not so much a deeply ingrained cultural holiday but really just a casual day off. Changing the name from Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples’ Day or a similar name wouldn't radically change life for most Americans but would be beneficial for Native Americans who would then gain more recognition.
Establishing such a day could also help educate American children about Native American history, a topic often overlooked in elementary history classes. It is disheartening to see that history students are expected to know detailed information on civilizations of Europe and Asia but have only heard of the Iroquois Confederacy or the great Native American city of Cahokia in passing. Currently, the United States recognizes a poorly advertised national Native American holiday, thus giving most Americans little to no exposure to Native American culture or custom. Establishing an Indigenous Peoples’ Day could be an easy way for schools to tie in historical information about Native American peoples into school curricula and help to expose a new generation of Americans to Native culture.
Some have hoped that such a holiday will also help raise awareness for existing Native American communities. After Seattle decided to establish Indigenous Peoples’ Day, Kshama Sawant, a Seattle city hall council member, explained that “transforming this day into a celebration of indigenous people and a celebration of social justice … allows us to make a connection between this painful history and the ongoing marginalization, discrimination and poverty that indigenous communities face to this day.”
Supporters of Columbus Day have voiced opposition to such changes, claiming that they commemorate the beginning of a new life for Europeans. However, unique holidays like Thanksgiving and the Fourth of July also celebrate the formation of a new post-Columbus America, making Columbus day extraneous. Some Italian-Americans have been vocal opponents to the name change, claiming the holiday represents an important celebration of Italian-American history. Italian-Americans can and should celebrate their Italian ancestry, but celebrating the figure of Columbus is problematic given the atrocious actions committed by him and his crew. Additionally, it is important to note that Columbus never set foot on U.S. soil; nor was he the first to discover the Americas, considerably lowering the navigator’s relevance to modern Americans.
Virginia was home to some of the first Native-European interactions and still has multiple Indian reservations within its borders. As Virginians, we should be vigilant to Native American concerns and cognizant of who Columbus really was. Students should support NASU in their effort to replace Columbus Day.
Hasan Khan is an Opinion columnist for The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at h.khan@cavalierdaily.com.
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