by Taetske | 5:08 pm
(Last Updated On: August 6, 2021)

 

Columbus Day is out and Indigenous Peoples Day is in

 

pre contact map of the tribal nations of NA

Geographic Map of the indigenous tribes of North America before 1492 compiled by Aaron Carapella. http://www.tribalnationsmaps.com/

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Who was Christopher Columbus?

I do not know if you have heard about this, but I think it is well worth mentioning.

Christopher Columbus was born on the 31st of October 1451 and died on the 20th of May 1506. He was of Italian nationality and made 4 voyages across the Atlantic Ocean. He was a real navigator and colonist, who sailed under the auspices of the Catholic Monarchs of Castile and Aragon. Trying to find a route to the far East, he discovered a sailing route to the Americas.

He showed complete disrespect for the people he found living in that country and probably considered them inferior heathens.

 

The Santa-Maria

The Santa-Maria image M W

 

Foreigners coming to America

Shortly after, settlements started showing up all across the country. The oldest continuously inhabited European established settlement in the Americas is Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic (1498.) The oldest continuously inhabited European-established settlement in the Continental United States is Saint Augustine, Florida (1565). Jamestown, Virginia (1607) is the oldest settlement in the original 13 colonies of the United States. In less than a century, emigrants from Europe arrived in America.

What people often forget in America is that their ancestors were immigrants. People fleeing from difficult situations in their own countries, wanting to give their families a better life. The fact is that history repeats time after time.

The killing of the rightful inhabitants, the native people of this land, continued. Some call this the 500 years’ war and the longest holocaust in the history of man. This did not stop with the murders in the wild west days but continued through the first half of the 20th century.

Between 1900 and 1957, 80 indigenous tribes disappeared and 80% of a population, estimated in 1900 at 1 million people, had been killed through deculturization, disease, or murder.

This number is only a small fraction of the estimated 100 million indigenous people that died as a result of contact with the European colonizers during the last 500 years. These are things one normally does not hear much about in school.  Worldwide there has been and there still is a genocide of indigenous peoples.

 

Statue of Christopher Columbus

Statue of Christopher Columbus image AnnPon

 

After the Spanish conquest of Mexico and the region around the Gulf of Mexico (including the Floridian peninsula), thousands upon thousands of natives died, but not just because of guns and warfare. Diseases were also a major factor.

The claim that the intentional use of smallpox and other infectious diseases, to eliminate the Indians, is a heated debate. The fact is that after contact with Europeans, Native Americans died from diseases they had no defense for.

What we know to be intentional was the wholesale slaughter of the Plains buffalo, one of the primary food sources of the Plains Indians. The phrase “Kill every buffalo you can! Every buffalo dead is an Indian gone” is an indictment of the desire to own every inch of land and to continue the policy of Manifest Destiny.

 

Over 500 years later

It is now 527 years since Christopher Columbus reached the Bahamas and that was the starting point of brutal genocide, killing millions of Native people across the hemisphere. This is the reason many cities and states in America have banned Columbus Day, which was celebrated on October 14.

San Francisco was the first city to rename it last year, honoring centuries of indigenous resistance. At least five states and Washington, D.C have no Columbus Day anymore.

This is a long YouTube video about genocide. It is well worth your time.

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The opinion of the younger generation

An article by Newsweek tells about college students and what they were thinking about the change from Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day. Nearly 80% were for it, and I am happy about that. Young people who declare themselves to be Democrats were mainly for it, and the students who said they were Republicans were a lot less enthusiastic about this change. Well, that was to be expected.

They celebrated the first Columbus Day way back in 1792 to commemorate the 300th anniversary of Columbus landing. In 1934 it became a national holiday while President Franklin D. Roosevelt was in office.

 

Anasazi cliff dwellings, Mesa Verde in Colorado

Anasazi cliff dwellings, Mesa Verde in Colorado image fordidea

 

Coming to terms with the past

Indian tribes have suffered a lot, and there are talks about reparations for Native People and Communities. It seems to be very difficult, even in our modern times, as it encounters a lot of opposition. The main argument is that it happened too long ago or if we have to pay, we will go bankrupt.

A nation carries the burden of its past and should be held responsible. Monetary compensation does not take the sorrow away from generations of suffering, but it could help some. Other countries like Germany also have this burden of the past. One sometimes hears about a court case where very old people stand trial for atrocities committed nearly 80 years ago.

It is painful to know that the treatment of the Native Americans by the United States Government, and many of its people, was a blueprint for Adolf Hitler’s concentration camps. John Toland wrote in his book, “Adolf Hitler” that,

“Hitler’s concept of concentration camps, as well as the practicality of genocide, owed much, so he claimed, to his studies of English and United States history. He admired the camps for Boer prisoners in South Africa and for the Indians in the wild west and often praised to his inner circle the efficiency of America’s extermination – by starvation and uneven combat – of the red savages who could not be tamed by captivity.” — P. 202, “Adolph Hitler” by John Toland.

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This review of the book “The American West and the Nazi East: a Comparative and Interpretive Perspective”, is a very telling indictment on US policy as it pertains to its history.

“This book provides a valuable and uncharted insight into two dark moments of history. Kakel deserves considerable credit for tackling such an important and scarcely addressed topic. … Kakel’s work provides a fascinating and detailed assessment of two atrocity-laden nationalist projects and does so by unearthing profound insight without obscuring the individual histories. Any scholar of transnational history would do well to read this work and incorporate its lessons and approach into their own work and teaching models.” (Derrick J. Angermeier, H-War, H-Net Reviews, March 2018)

Do you know there is a law in America enacted in 2010, which imposes a stricter statute of limitations for Native American leaders? Prior to the enactment of this new law, “any citizen of South Dakota could file a lawsuit with the right evidence against the alleged perpetrator in a civil suit.”

This new ruling limits the ability of a Native American in South Dakota from settling a civil claim of abuse by “Trusted school members or clergy” while at forced boarding schools. I thought all people are equal before the law? Something is wrong here and smells of discrimination.

 

2015 American Book Award

In this book, you read about the first history of the United States from a unique perspective. History is seen through the eyes of indigenous peoples. Spanning over four hundred years, it reframes US history and explores the silences that have haunted our national narrative.

 

 

The complexity of the Native Americans

I did not realize there are hundreds of federally recognized tribes and that there are hundreds more that are not. A massive 29 language groups and 10 times that many languages. That is really amazing and therefore it is no wonder that just by buying a book, you cannot suddenly know everything.

Too many traditions and different religions to fit into one book. You will need a couple of hundred books to slightly cover the vast information available. Please have a look at this article which recommends a good list of special books to inform you.

 

Bison herd in Yellowstone

Bison herd in Yellowstone image David Mark

 

A huge Solar Farm

This is significant news, as there is much need for tapping into solar energy. The sun shines for free and living in a place with a surplus of sunny days. One should really consider using it. The Standing Rock Sioux tribe is doing just that. They plan to build the largest solar farm in North Dakota. This project is only 3 miles away from the world-famous Dakota Access Pipeline.

This solar farm is the first step to supply clean energy independence and will eventually provide power to all 12 reservation communities in North and South Dakota. To switch from carbon to solar is possible. It will not harm the environment anymore with ugly mines and mining towns. A grand step towards green energy. I hope more of these types of farms will be created in the United States.

 

Native American mother and child from Florida

Native American mother and child from Florida image iGlobalWeb

 

Conclusion

Personally, I support the replacement of Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples Day. One has to face the history of the country and become conscious of what happened. One cannot glorify a person, knowing all the consequences of this historical event.

It is known that the Norse explorer Eric Thorvaldsson (Eric the red) founded the first European settlement in the Americas (~985) and his son Leif Ericson discovered the new world (1003?). But they did not capitalize on their find. And had Columbus not re-discovered the Americas, somebody else would have undoubtedly done it.

The big question is, could that other person have behaved in a more humane way? We will not know, and now it is too late. At least the past serves as a lesson for the future. We can do better than that for sure. I found these different stories in the Daily Kos. I hope you found it interesting reading this post.

Before you leave, you might like to visit Recommendations. It is a special page I made for you and holds a collection of things you could find interesting.

 

Source: Article Daily Kos on 14 October 2019 by Winter Rabbit

Photo Source: Pixabay

 

It is important to save the cultural inheritance of the country. Future generations have a right to experience their past and to be able to visit these important sites.

We have the responsibility to keep and care for these special places. You might like to read the following post.

Archaeological Sites are the History of a People

Comments

Danijel

Hello Taetske, I must say that this article is very helpful and informative. You are definitely right, it is good to save history so that people can always remember what actually happened. So, it is not a bad idea to change the name from Columbus Day to Indigenous Day. I like that you shared this with us, can’t wait to see more of your text.

Oct 29.2019 | 05:21 pm

    Taetske

    Good Morning Danijel,

    Thank you for your visit and comment. Nice to see you again.

    Young children should be taught the history of their country. As much as possible like it really was. History is often taught from a certain point of view favoring one side or the other.

    A country needs to evolve and what seems to have been ok in the past cannot be accepted anymore in modern times

    Regards, Taetske.

    p.s. you can click on the map and see what it looked like before the Europeans came.

    Oct 30.2019 | 07:34 am

Travis

I was recently in Seattle and came across the idea of Indigenous Peoples Day. Honestly, before then I did not even think of Columbus Day at all, except for the fact that the kids were normally out of school that day. After hearing about Indigenous Peoples day, however, I looked at the very things you talk about in your article and started to think about it

I completely agree with your assessment of the situation and believe that we should implement Indigenous People’s Day across the country, and move on from Columbus Day. They definitely do no go over the atrocities committed when European travelers came over on Native Americans, and whether history is pleasant or not we should not shy away from it, and instead learn from it and grow as a nation.

Thank you so much for taking the time to write about such an important conversation, I will direct my friends who have questions about it!

Oct 29.2019 | 05:23 pm

    Taetske

    Good Morning Travis,

    There is no country in this world which does not have some sad and awful happenings in its history. 

    Here in Spain, the Civil War which tore families apart is still so present in the memory of the people. When I came to Spain in 1975 Franco was still alive. I experienced the transition to democracy but the Civil War was something people did not want to talk about. Even nowadays with Franco recently removed from the Valle de Los Caidos it still is a delicate topic.

    The Valle de Los Caidos was started in 1940 and inaugurated in 1959 and if it interests you you can read about it on Wikipedia.

    Thank you for your comment. I hope you downloaded your free PDF? Tulip widget.

    Regards, Taetske 

    p.s. when you click on the map you can read an interesting article.

    Oct 30.2019 | 07:27 am

Antonio

Hi Taetske

That is a difficult question to answer, as often people want to change history to wipe out any bad things that happened in the past. This is understandable but the past cannot be changed, no matter how much you want to rewrite it. It may appease some but will upset others. It is up to the individuals to what they want to do. I believe we should look to the future and not the past, as this can heal old wounds, like the building of a solar farm.

It is all about letting go, as the world has had enough of hate and war.

Great article.

Thanks

Antonio

Oct 29.2019 | 05:26 pm

    Taetske

    Good Morning Antonio,

    Thank you for your visit and comment. Nice to see you again.

    Our past serves as an example of how not to do things. The problem lies in the fact that each generation has to make its own experience. That is why history repeats itself.

    True, the world has had enough of hate and war but the weapon industry is one of the most profitable there is. Wars are provoked so weapons can be sold. 

    When finally the human race, all colors included, realizes we are all equal that will be the beginning of a peaceful era.

    Regards, Taetske 

    p,s, when you click on the map you see the situation before the Europeans came.

    Oct 30.2019 | 07:14 am

Isaac

I knew about the cruelty of us Americans towards Indigenous people and that Columbus “sailed the ocean blue in 1492,” but I never stopped to think about what Columbus Day really was. Obviously, the way we treated Indigenous people was wrong, but why did it take so long to realize that Columbus Day was sort of overshadowing our past? I mean, the US is great and all, but that doesn’t excuse us from our dark past.

Oct 29.2019 | 05:44 pm

    Taetske

    Good Morning Isaac,

    Thank you for visiting my website and leaving a comment. I hope you have downloaded your free PDF? Tulip widget.

    When you look at world history all countries have sad and awful happenings in their past/present. European countries with their colonies. Britain with India, Belgium with Congo, The Netherlands with Indonesia, etc. 

    What happened in the U.S. is extremely sad also because of the time factor, 500 years is a long time.

    Until the human race realizes we are all equal things like this will happen.

    Regards, Taetske

    p.s. when you click on the map you can read an interesting article.

    Oct 30.2019 | 07:06 am

Juan

Hi, Taetske ” ” ‘I found your post about Columbus Day very interesting. I totally agree with everything. That was a true genocide, it cannot be called any other way.

Dec 03.2019 | 07:14 pm

    Taetske

    Good Morning Juan,

    Thank you for your visit and for leaving a comment. I hope you downloaded your free PDF? Tulip widget.

    A horrible genocide and one actually hears very little about it. The name Indigenous People Day is way better and a right these people have. It should be recognized by everybody.

    Regards, Taetske

    Dec 04.2019 | 07:32 am

Sunny

I am so thrilled to see this news! Thank you so much for sharing! It’s a great pleasure to know that Columbus day is going to be changed for Indigenous people day! Now that is something! 

I have been learning about Native people in many parts of the Planet Earth so much.. Their cultures and customs are so much interesting, and honestly, I hope we all will have an opportunity to welcome them back with hearts wide open! 

I will for sure!! 🙂 

Mar 29.2021 | 01:32 pm

    Taetske

    Good Morning Sunny,

    Thank you for stopping by and for your comment. I hope you downloaded your free PDF? Tulip widget.

    Our history is full of awful happenings. I think one should not celebrate a person who has brought on so much misery to people. Here in Spain they have removed statues and street names of the dictator Franco. I agree with that. The Native Americans live in harmony with nature, something which I admire. 

    Regards, Taetske

    Mar 30.2021 | 06:40 am

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