It’s pretty understandable that Native Americans are not fond of Christopher Columbus. Since Colonial days American children have been taught that Columbus discovered America.
However, Native Americans point out that he could not have discovered it since there were people living here already.
Native Americans say he was a mass murderer, rapist, and the father of the slave trade.
Columbus wanted gold, that was what he was looking for, and the gold sets into motion a wave that nearly wiped out the native American culture.
There was a mass wave of murder, rape, pillaging and slavery that followed in the wake of Columbus.
In a quote from Columbus, he is supposed to have said rightly that they had no iron, and that their weapons were spears that were primitive to European standards. He felt the Indians would make good servants and he said 50 men could take over all of them.
Native Americans would like to abolish the holiday of Columbus Day, because to them it is not something to celebrate. His arrival in the new world began the decimation of their culture.
When asked for reactions, Native Americans use words like evil, invader, murderer and rapist to describe Columbus.
They note that he didn’t discover anything, and point out he was lost when he landed in the Americas.
He called the people “Indians” because he thought he was in India and the name stuck.
They don’t see him as a positive figure at all, and don’t see why there should be a holiday for him. They resent the fact that he found a land and felt the land could be taken away from the people who lived there.
There were a lot of atrocities, even genocide, committed by those that followed Columbus. The scars are still felt today. Several use their middle finger to show their feelings about Columbus.
It’s been more than 500 years since Columbus discovered America, but the scars and pain suffered by the people who lived here have not yet healed.
Their culture was nearly destroyed, they lost their land, and were enslaved. t is no surprise then, that they do not see Columbus as a hero. Far from a hero, he opened the door to centuries of abuse and atrocities and the people still suffer the effects of those atrocities that were committed. Columbus Day is a day for mourning losses they suffered.
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