...Christopher Columbus sailed for Spain in 1492 and claimed all islands around San Salvador looking for gold. Spain eventually sent Columbus back to create an Empire. America should not celebrate Columbus day because of Columbus cruel punishments towards others, the way he influenced today's world, and the way he did not prove the new world. Christopher Columbus caused cruel punishment by cutting people hands off, making dogs attack the Native Americans, and him and his men would hunt people for sport. Columbus influence today's world through slavery, integration, and genocide. Finally, Columbus did not prove the new world because people already lived in the new world, he never set foot in North America, and he didn’t prove the earth was round. We shouldn’t celebrate Columbus day because of his cruel punishment towards...
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...My previous knowledge of Christopher Columbus was that he was the man known for discovering America and also the man to learn that the world was not flat. He was always portrayed as a hero in my eyes ever since I was a kid. Being able to learn more about him and getting to listen to these lectures and reading more about him has really opened my eyes to the true Columbus. My impressions of Christopher Columbus when I was younger was that he was a hero and one of the most important American history influencers. He was known for so many great things, little did I know he is truly a villain. He took credit for things he did not do himself. America celebrates Columbus for the only reason of when Columbus landed in the New World on October 12,...
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...Christopher Columbus was a Spanish explorer who sailed from Europe to North America and is considerably responsible for contributing to the creation of what would later become the United States of America, to the point of having a holiday dedicated to his work as an explorer. Columbus Day is an American holiday which celebrates both establishing of American colonization AND the destruction of a majority of Native Americans. Two reasons why the holiday should be abolished are that Columbus was practically a tyrant to the Natives and that he did not discover the Americas at all. He promoted greed, rape, slavery and was not the true founder of the Americas as they have already been inhabited by living human beings. Christopher Columbus was basically a tyrannical Spaniard who enslaved countless Native Americans and punished them harshly whenever they didn’t do work. He ordered his followers to kidnap and rape many Native American females as young as 9-10 years old. He got his men to set out dogs to feed on the flesh of Native Americans as a way of taking advantage of their constant nudity. One last cruel thing he did was put wooden slats over the tongues of depressed Natives who cried out in...
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...America has many a strange holidays including national hammock day and national ice cream day but is Columbus day actually qualified to be a national holiday? There are people on every side of this controversy with some saying Columbus day is as important to American Culture as the bald eagle, others stating it’s derogatory to cultures and facts, and still more who stand in the middle ground. Columbus day should be changed to a more appropriate and accurate holiday. Changing the holiday is the best choice for the United States because Columbus contributed little to none to American culture or history and Columbus Day encourages false facts and history. To start off, Christopher Columbus did not contribute the U.S culture or history. One...
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...has great history and tradition, from the Revolutionary War to the occupation of Afghanistan. When people who write about history discuss that of the United States, they often consider how eminent this country is and the great deeds other people of that country have done. Historians who write about the history of America often write about how it has had a share of great heroes from Christopher Columbus, Woodrow Wilson, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, etc.. Nevertheless, historians often seem to not remember to mention the real heroes of America like, for example, John Brown and the Native Americans. Much of the history that historians write about don't always show precision. Since many historians only write about one side of history, it only makes it worse by not revealing the factuality of history and creates an erroneous image of what really took place. Many of our nation's great leaders have been distinguished as individuals who have the best interest of the country and every action they take on behalf of the country befittingly. For instance, in the book, Lies My Teacher Told Me, by James Loewen, he writes, "Under [president] Wilson, the United States intervened in Latin America more often than at any other time in our history." (Loewen, 16). What reason did the United States have to start an intervention in countries that are diminuitive in size and population and are poverty-stricken? The only thing that the United States gained from the...
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...reconsidered is Christopher Columbus. Columbus Day is a federal holiday commemorating Christopher Columbus, who is remembered in American culture as the daring and brave explorer who discovered America. However, the celebration of Columbus Day in America perpetuates a narrative of colonial supremacy, overlooking the traditions Christopher Columbus started of abhorrent treatment of Indigenous Peoples and commodification of the land. The origins of Columbus Day are rooted in nationalism and a desire for acceptance rather than a celebration of exploration. The utilization of Columbus...
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...Christopher Columbus was a cruel, atrocious, and egotistic, man who should not be glorified for the discovery of America. Inaccurately known as the first person to think the Earth was round, a mass murderer, and a fabricator for being known as the first to “discover America”. Christopher Columbus is widely known as the first person to discover America, which is a false statement. He was not the first person to see the New World but took credit for the discovery, he promised a reward of gold to whoever first saw land, a sailor named Rodrigo de Tirana was the first person to see the New World but Columbus took credit for spotting it himself. Christopher Columbus did not believe the earth was flat, Ancient Greek mathematicians had already proven...
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...America should discontinue the celebration of Columbus Day. This holiday should not be celebrated because of a numerous of reasons. Such as, Christopher Columbus hadn’t discover anything new, he left a barbarous legacy that has been followed over the centuries and he treated the Natives cruelly. Columbus hadn’t discover anything new because people were already there, he didn’t prove the earth is round and he was not the first Non-American to find the New World. Additionally, he had left behind a legacy that had begun genocide and slavery, and one that is the false definition of courage and manliness. Columbus had also treated the Natives cruelly by raping their woman, cutting off their noses and ears and even unleashing greyhounds onto the Natives. America should not celebrate Columbus Day due to his failure to discover anything new. The places that Columbus had...
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...In fourteen hundred ninety-two Columbus sailed the ocean blue. He sailed at the command of the king and queen of Spain, Ferdinand and Isabella, trying to find a shorter route to India but instead arrived to what we know today as the Bahamas. The question is, did Christopher Columbus really discover America? That is a question that has been a motive of debate. There are clearly mixed feelings about this. The facts tell us that he was not the first human in the Americas; there were already “Tainos” in the land. Also, he wasn’t the first person to see land from the ship, it was Rodrigo de Triana who hollered: “Tierra! Tierra!” even though Columbus later told the Queen Isabelle that he saw a light that evening and claimed the reward that was supposed to be given to Rodrigo de Triana. The issue is not only whether or not he was who discovered America or not but that he imposed himself to the Natives of the land and did as he pleased, exploiting them in their own territory, claiming his what was rightfully theirs. Based on these facts we could even say that Christopher Columbus was a Realist individual because all he was after was power and behaved in an extremely selfish manner. There have been claims by cartographic expert, Armando Cortesao,(Jr.) that, Portuguese explorers had previously been in the Americas before Columbus and that these explorers had mapped the area in 1424. However, the map is the only proof we have that such thing did happened. What Cortesano states is...
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...are not religious. Many holiday's are just traditions from America's rich ethnic history. Some holidays are also celebrated for certain important people in American history, people like Christopher Columbus. In 1905, Colorado became the first state to observe a Columbus Day, and over the next few decades other states followed. In 1937, President Franklin Roosevelt announced every October 12 as Columbus Day. Since 1971, it has been celebrated on the second Monday in October. Columbus Day commemorates the landing of Christopher Columbus in the New World on October 12, 1492. Columbus was believed...
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...Christopher Columbus, was he a hero or villain? For many years people have heard of this man and even have a certain day where we celebrate of his life and what he did. Schools teach students that Columbus was one of the greatest man who found America and found luxury, wealth, treasures, and new land. These children/ students did not grow up knowing the truth behind Columbus. How did he really accomplish his tasks? I think schools should actually share both sides of Christopher Columbus on what he really did to show some facts behind his discovery of America. In 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue. When Columbus left Spain he had no intention in finding America or the New World. He was actually looking in search of India and Asia. He unintentionally...
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...The United States only honors two men with federal holidays bearing their names, Martin Luther King Jr., and Christopher Columbus. When we celebrate Columbus Day, we are honoring a man who helped spark a holocaust situation of the people of America and the Atlantic slave trade. Furthermore, Columbus never set foot on the land we call the United States, nor was the first explorer to reach the "new world". Columbus's arrival in the new world was proceeded by the explorer Leif Ericson and others. The true discoverers of the land Columbus encountered are the ancestors of the native people who were living there when he arrived. Unfortunately, the public education system of the United States has failed to teach the entire truth about Christopher Columbus. All they know about is how the three ships sailed across the ocean blue. Little do they know about the mass murder, mass rape, enslavement, torture and the spread of Christianity using their swords. Columbus Day shouldn't be worth celebrating or having parades for. Columbus's "discovery" led directly to torturing and killing innocent souls on the island of Hispaniola. Initially, Bartolome de Las Casas states about the Europeans, "they behaved with such temerity and shamelessness that the most powerful ruler of his island had to see his own wife raped by a Christian officer" (Bartolome de Las Casas). In other words, the Europeans had no feelings towards the Natives and treated them like they owned them, which no one deserves...
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...Oliver Professor Scott ENG-ENF 3/III April 23, 2016 We Should Abolish Columbus Day Only two federal holidays in the United States bear the name of two specific men, ironically one of them fought racism -- Martin Luther King Jr., and the other was a genocidal racist – Chistopher Columbus. Opposition to Columbus Day (observed on the second Monday of October) has intensified in recent decades, while the former passes each year with relatively little controversy. The issue of if we should still celebrate Columbus Day is widely discussed. The topic remains important because it concerns fundamental moral and economic questions related to the origin of how Christopher Columbus got his recognition. In my essay I will touch on the ongoing debate of if we should erase Columbus Day as one of our federal holidays. As our young minds are still developing and processing information of our history, which hopefully holds an importance to the American citizens of this great nation, there is a poem taught to children about our history. How does the saying go? Ah, yes! In fourteen hundred ninety-two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue… We are taught that Columbus is viewed a valiant adventurer that opened up the worlds eyes by discovering the Americas; on the contrary, he is perceived a symbol of slavery and genocide. His trip to America is often claimed as a voyage of bravery in his attempts to discover new lands and did however lead to the permanent colonization, settlement, political and economic...
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...Every year on the second Monday of October, Columbus Day is celebrated. You have a day off from school and no one thinks about why we celebrate Columbus Day. When you ask anyone why we observe Columbus Day, they will most likely tell you about the land he obtained, but they will leave out all of the horrible things he did to the Natives. Many people argue about whether or not Columbus Day should be considered a federal holiday. Based on facts, Columbus day should not be considered a federal holiday, because of the harsh ways Columbus carried out his actions. Although he obtained a vast amount of land, he didn’t take it peacefully, he tormented and tortured the Native Americans. This lead to many Natives dying. He made them do many labours...
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...Dark times of the Native American Indians The foundation of the United States is based on the belief of peace, freedom and equality, which is enjoyed and practiced by most of the people in this “Country of Liberty.” However, the idea of equality and freedom does not apply to every person living in the U.S. Luis Valdez, an American writer, once said: “No Statue of Liberty ever greeted our arrival in this country. We did not, in fact, come to the United States at all. The United States came to us.” Growing up, children in the U.S. learn little of what has truly happened to the vast population of the Indigenous people on the continent? What has led to such a drastic decease of their culture and tradition? The answer lies in a dark part of the...
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