9/20/2023 12:50:27 pm
The U.S. should not celebrate Columbus Day due to the illegitimacy and cruelty of Columbus' actions. For example, "Columbus never actually set foot on the continental U.S.," and he caused "the enslavement and genocide of Native American people that followed in the wake of the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria." These counterfeit and evil acts, where Columbus not only did not discover America but also enslaved and killed the indigenous people that were there long before he even set foot there, shows that Columbus committed acts that do not deserve being celebrated for. Therefore, because Columbus did not actually discover America and also killed and enslaved Native Americans originally living there, the U.S. should not recognize and celebrate Columbus Day as a holiday.
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Emma Xi
9/22/2023 04:27:07 pm
The United States should not celebrate Columbus Day because of the inaccuracy surrounding Columbus' achievements. Italian immigrants in the U.S. have celebrated his achievements since the late 18th century, but recent research has darkened Columbus' reputation.
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Crespin
9/22/2023 04:34:46 pm
I believe that Columbus Day shouldn't be celebrated for the following reasons. Firstly Christopher Columbus ordered his men to round up many native Americans over the years and consistently r-word many of the women and enslaving many of the men for labor or to be sent back to Spain. Secondly he mass murdered the indigenous peoples to force them into submission as well as cutting the heads off the leaders to frighten them. Thirdly Columbus was so tyrannical that over 50000 Indians committed mass suicide to escape him since they couldn't leave the island. They pushed it this far because Columbus and his men were asking for impossible amounts of gold, to which they couldn't gather within the allotted time. This would result in him and his men to murder and torture them. Even though he put some places on the map, his acts in those places are simply unforgiveable and inhumane.
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Crespin de la Cerda
9/22/2023 04:38:25 pm
I believe that Columbus Day shouldn't be celebrated for the following reasons. Firstly Christopher Columbus ordered his men to round up many native Americans over the years and consistently r-word many of the women and enslaving many of the men for labor or to be sent back to Spain. Secondly he mass murdered the indigenous peoples to force them into submission as well as cutting the heads off the leaders to frighten them. Thirdly Columbus was so tyrannical that over 50000 Indians committed mass suicide to escape him since they couldn't leave the island. They pushed it this far because Columbus and his men were asking for impossible amounts of gold, to which they couldn't gather within the allotted time. This would result in him and his men to murder and torture them. Another terrifying fact is that his men were too lazy to untie their captives so they just beheaded them, once they were shipped to Spain in 1495. What sickos! Even though he put some places on the map, his acts in those places are simply unforgiveable and inhumane.
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9/22/2023 08:52:44 pm
The US should not celebrate Columbus day. Columbus didn't discover anything. Columbus was responsible for over three million deaths from 1494-1508. He was also responsible for the beginning of the slave trade. He also almost annihilated a innocent group of people.
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Yuxiang Zhao
9/22/2023 09:03:34 pm
The United States should celebrate Columbus day since Columbus' sail has a huge historical significances, and the holiday also represents Italian-American heritage. Columbus' voyage and landing on the Americas marked a significant point in world history when the Americas is opened for European colonization, and the exchange of goods and ideas between the old and the new world. These aspects are partially shaped the United States to what it is today, for example, we would not be here using English if it wasn't by the British colonization. Also, Columbus was of Italian descent, and for many Italian Americans, Columbus Day is a source of pride and a celebration of their heritage. Additionally, Columbus' voyage was a tremendous exploratory achievement. Celebrating Columbus Day can serve as a reminder of the human spirit of adventure, curiosity, and the desire to explore new horizons.
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9/24/2023 05:01:36 pm
While it's important to acknowledge Columbus' historical significance and the impact of his voyages on world history, celebrating Columbus Day overlooks critical aspects of his expeditions. First, historical records highlight Columbus' brutal treatment of indigenous populations, including forced labor, violence, and the introduction of diseases, causing significant suffering and loss of life. Additionally, Columbus himself never set foot on what is now the continental United States, making it questionable to center a national holiday around a figure whose direct impact on the country is limited. Given these aspects, celebrating Columbus Day perpetuates a one-sided and romanticized view of history, disregarding the harsh realities of colonization and the more complex narratives of exploration and discovery.
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Yau Wei Ng
9/24/2023 11:32:10 am
Columbus day should not be celebrated by the United States, although Columbus did have a significant impact on the Americas due to the introduction of trade and colonization to create one of the most powerful countries in the world today, Columbus was a terrible person. When Columbus arrived on the Indies, he took natives by force to extort them for information. Columbus also wrote a letter to his Queen stating to extort the Americas and her people to be slaves. He enslaved thousands, working many to death in an attempt to extract gold from ground that contained few amounts of the metal. Not only that he he also sent 500 slaves back to Spain leading to 200 of them to perish on the journey. In summary, although Columbus had significant contributions to the United States he should not be celebrated as a hero due to his horrifying and apathetic acts towards indigenous people of America.
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Nicholas Harjadi
9/24/2023 03:18:59 pm
I believe that Columbus day should not be celebrated by the U.S. Christopher Columbus made a few accomplishments across his voyages, such as discovering Cuba, Hispaniola, and introduced the "new world" to the Spain and the rest of the Americas. However, during his trips, Columbus was responsible for the devastation of New World cultures and even the introduction of plague, which reduced the 8 million Arawak Indians in Hispaniola to only 10,000 by 1520(according to digitalhistory.edu). This shows that the voyages that Columbus undertook contributed to the harm and destruction of the indigenous people to which he colonized. As a result, I believe that Columbus should not be celebrated by the U.S.
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Alexander Ferrel
9/27/2023 10:05:07 pm
I agree with you on not celebrating Columbus day because of the historical problems surrounding his name and the effects he had on Indigenous populations. According to Jake Flanagin's article "Columbus Day, or 'Indigenous Peoples' Day'?" Columbus never set foot on American soil, and as a result of his landing, Native Americans were subjected to slavery and genocide. To further reinforce the legacy of the Indigenous peoples and acknowledge their contributions to North America, places like Berkeley have renamed the occasion Indigenous Peoples' Day. This change encourages a more honest and inclusive depiction of history and calls into question whether it is still appropriate to celebrate Columbus Day.
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Mahika Joshi
9/25/2023 09:31:55 am
Although the holiday has been observed for centuries and was originally intended to honor Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas, I think that the US should not celebrate Columbus Day because of the atrocities and injustices inflicted upon Indigenous peoples by European colonizers. In a paper published by Northern Michigan University, they argue that Columbus's actions, including enslavement and violence and acts of genocide Columbus committed against the natives he encountered, should not be celebrated, and instead, the day should be transformed into a time to recognize and celebrate the contributions and resilience of Indigenous cultures. In recent years, some U.S. states and cities have replaced or renamed Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples' Day to acknowledge the complex history of the Americas and promote a more inclusive and historically accurate perspective.
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Shahid Huda
9/25/2023 07:45:51 pm
Columbus day evidently glorifies a man who was responsible for the suffering of millions. Therefore, the U.S. should not celebrate it. For instance, he spread diseases such as smallpox, measles, whooping cough, chicken pox, bubonic plague, typhus, and malaria into new regions and forced his religious beliefs onto the people of his colonies. Clearly, bringing diseases into new regions with no resistance to them will have catastrophic results. Regardless of if this was intentional or not, this plague had far reaching consequences. His cruel treatment of the indigenous population cannot simply be disregarded, nor should it be celebrated.
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Tyler Huynh
9/26/2023 08:47:10 pm
Having been financially supported by the Queen and King of Spain, Christopher Columbus was tasked with finding new routes to India, China, Japan, and the Spice Islands. Along his journey, he accidentally landed within the Caribbean Islands, being the first European to discover the Americas. As a result of this massive accomplishment, which led to colonization and higher availability of resources, he gained prestige and eventually a day dedicated to him. Despite his accomplishment, there are some generally unrecognized facts about Christopher and his journey that show that he is a rather malicious individual. According to CNN, upon arriving to the Americas, Columbus treated the natives with inhospitality. For instance, he force some of the natives to work on plantations and search for gold, seeking self-wealth and not considered others' feelings. Also, Taino "Indians" to Spain in order to sell them off. Therefore, the United States shouldn't celebrate Christopher Columbus Day.
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Charlotte Swim
9/27/2023 05:22:33 pm
Although Columbus Day has historical significance, it should no longer be celebrated as a holiday.
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11/8/2023 09:32:04 am
Indeed many horrible things were done by the hands of Columbus but if he hadn't done so then we might have never even found the Americas or they might have just never developed as everyone else. Columbus day should be celebrated because it is the day the Americas was found and the day Columbus landed there, he found many new things like crops, culture, religion, and animals. As time went by Columbus's finding of the Americas caused many other states, cities, and empires to move to the Americas and make their own findings and this caused many new developments and spread of new ideas which revolutionized many aspects of life and work. Many might disagree but thanks to Columbus we have developed in many ways and founded many new locations which led to even more developments until the present time.
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