Colombus Day: A holiday celebrating genocide and racism

Jeff Moses

What an American holiday Columbus Day is.

We ignore that some guy killed and raped a boatload of people and focus on the fact that he’s famous and made a bunch of money.

I don’t understand how this country can be so uncivilized that we celebrate a man who committed genocide.

The fact that the United States takes such atrocities and turns it into a celebrated federal holiday is disgusting.

Perhaps this man was the first European person to be in North America, but he slaughtered thousands upon arrival!

Adolf Hitler’s ‘Third Reich’ was the first to discover plenty of medical and scientific advancements, but we are not all rushing to praise Hitler when we spark a bole on 4-20.

Even our grade schools are in on the sham; every eight-year-old knows the poem “In 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue,” and they would all tell you that Christopher Columbus discovered America.

But besides the fact that his discovery of this continent is false, why is the story of his “heroic” quest from Spain to North America on the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria is so widely known, but his cruel bloodthirsty capitalistic exploits upon arriving kept quiet?

Defenders of Columbus would claim he was taught as a hero for his nautical record and worked only, and to teach kids that determination, skill and a never-say- die attitude can lead to amazing things.

But I would argue that we teach Columbus in such a positive light to teach people that murder, rape, torture and genocide are okay if done in pursuit of money and power.

It’s to coincidental and ironic that in this country we denounce current atrocities while celebrating the atrocities of old.

Where in the blue hell do you think Freeport McMoran got the idea that killing their workers in Papua New Guinea was ok?

To some it seems like a harmless holiday and just another day off; to some it’s the most meaningless holiday of the year; but to me, it is a holiday that allows the overt racism of the United States to shine brightest.

  • Mesa Legend Staff

    These are archived stories from Mesa Legend editions before Fall 2018. See article for corresponding author.

Welcome to the Mesa Legend! Subscribe to know more about what goes on at Mesa Community College!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *