Indigenous Peoples’ Day: Why Some Americans Don’t Celebrate Columbus Day
Indigenous Peoples’ Day in the United States was established in response to Columbus Day, a national holiday dedicated to honouring the explorer who initiated expeditions to the Americas in 1492. Christopher Columbus, an Italian explorer who conducted four voyages for Spain, has become a controversial figure in history. Consequently, many states and cities have chosen to rename the holiday to pay tribute to the Indigenous communities that inhabited the Americas before his arrival and to bring attention to the atrocities committed against Native Americans following Columbus and his crew’s landing.
Columbus Day, typically observed on the second Monday of October, is set to take place on Monday, October 14, 2024. The holiday became a US federal holiday in 1937 after efforts by Roman Catholic Italian Americans seeking to establish Columbus as a significant figure in American history. However, there is a growing awareness that the American narrative has often sidelined Indigenous peoples, whose communities were greatly affected by genocide and colonization.
Indigenous Peoples’ Day serves to highlight the violent history of colonization in the Western hemisphere and shed light on the mistreatment of Indigenous peoples by Columbus and subsequent European settlers. Historians have uncovered evidence suggesting that Columbus and his crew enslaved and subjected native inhabitants to extreme violence. Some accounts even allege that Columbus was directly involved in the slaughter of Indigenous people.
While Indigenous Peoples’ Day is not a federal holiday, it has been observed in various forms for decades to celebrate Native American history and culture and acknowledge the ongoing challenges faced by Indigenous communities. In 2021, US President Joe Biden issued the first presidential proclamation of Indigenous Peoples’ Day, honouring America’s first inhabitants and thriving Tribal Nations.
Across the US, 17 states, including Washington, South Dakota, and Maine, along with Washington, DC, have holidays dedicated to honouring Indigenous communities. Numerous cities and school systems also recognise Indigenous Peoples’ Day. Efforts are being made by some US lawmakers to substitute Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples’ Day as a federal holiday.
Indigenous Peoples’ Day is usually commemorated with protests against Columbus memorials, advocating for environmental justice, the return of Indigenous lands, and in remembrance of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. Supporters of Indigenous Peoples’ Day hope that by raising awareness about the discrimination faced by Indigenous people and their disproportionate vulnerability to climate change and gender violence, it will lead to positive change.