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CONLEY COMMENTARY (WSAU) – Some time in the pre-dawn hours this morning in New York City, Native American activists will throw red paint, symbolizing blood, on the statue of Christopher Columbus.
The hatred of Columbus is almost entirely misguided. He never set foot in North America or what is now the United States. His three journeys to the ‘new world’ landed him in modern day Bermuda, Cuba, Puerto Rico and parts of South America.
The narrative is that Columbus’ arrival marked the beginning of European exploration, and later, colonization of the New World.
Many favor replacing Columbus Day, today, with Indiginous Peoples’ Day.
That is a stretch. There is no North American tribe that had any contact whatsoever with Christopher Columbus. He stole none of their land, enslaved none of their people, and plundered none of their wealth.
And I would be the first to acknowledge that the way the United States treated the native peoples who inhabited North America is a stain on our history. Early trading with North American indians was exploitive. Treaties with North American tribes were dishonored. Those who were here before Europeans arrived were treated as ‘less than,’ not as fellow human beings. Modern reservations and casinos are imperfect ways of making amends.
And for generations, Columbus Day was a celebration of Italian-Americans, not much different than St. Patrick’s Day is to the Irish. Everyone should take pride in their ancestry. Italian-Americans like me wonder how a day to celebrate our heritage is under attack.
Chris Conley
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