Should We Still Celebrate Columbus Day?

"In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue." I recall singing that popular rhyme in school to teach us about Columbus' arrival to North America. Columbus' initial goal was to sail from the Atlantic to the Indies in China in order to bypass the Mongol Empire. Instead of finding Asia, Columbus came across another continent that was in between Europe and Asia. Columbus' "discovery" is important because it initiated a major European presence in the Americas ever since. When I was in grade school and high school, I remember getting the second Monday of October off for Columbus Day. Honestly, I enjoyed it for a day away from school, not because I got to celebrate Columbus' achievement. While I enjoyed the extra time off as a child, some people are less than enthused about Columbus.

Criticism about Columbus Day dates back to the 19th-century, either from anti-immigrant nativists who did not like the association with immigrants from Catholic countries or from anti-Catholics (most notably the Ku Klux Klan) who wanted to keep the United States of America a Protestant country. That was then, this is now. The opposition to Columbus Day is not based on anti-immigrant or anti-Catholic sentiment, but on Columbus himself. There are two main reasons for such opposition that are interrelated. The first is that indigenous populations were treated horribly after Columbus' arrival to North America, which explains why a modern-day response to Columbus Day has been Indigenous People's Day. The second explanation has to do with Columbus himself. According to his compendium, author and UCLA professor Geoffrey Symcox pointed out that Columbus was a self-promoter so obsessed with success that he was willing to use slavery and distort biblical text to get the job done.

I have three other reasons to oppose Columbus Day. One is that Columbus was not the first European to discover America: that would be Leif Erikson. The second is that Columbus did not discover continental North America, much less the United States. Columbus never set foot on what is now called the United States. The third is that it is a relatively minor celebration in the United States, and as such, I personally do not find a need to close down stock markets, banks, or other businesses for a minor observance. Part of Columbus Day's staying power is that Columbus Day celebration dates back to 1792. Since 1792, Columbus Day has been a national myth to symbolize patriotism, loyalty to the nation, and social progress (Kubal, 2008), as well as a way to distinguish the U.S.A. from Europe (i.e., the Old World). It is part of American civic religion, whether we like it or not. With a resurgence of patriotism and the notion of heritage in this polarized country, I see certain political appeal for the holiday. Although I personally do not understand the need for Columbus Day, I would be hard-pressed to see Columbus Day be removed from the American calendar anytime soon.