Columbus Day is a holiday on October 12th in America that celebrates the explorer from Spain, Christopher Columbus. He was born in Genoa Italy, and always wanted to explore. He left Spain in 1492 at the age of 19 to sail around the word and hopefully land in Asia (Klein). Schools teach that Columbus was a very heroic person, and that he discovered America.However, Columbus Day should not be celebrated because Christopher Columbus did not actually discover the Americas, he did terrible things to the natives, and many people don't consider him a hero.
One of the most popular beliefs about Columbus is that he discovered North America, this is not true. When Christopher Columbus landed on new land in 1492 he did not land in North …show more content…
When Columbus first landed in the new world he wrote in his journal that “They were very well built, with very handsome bodies, and very good faces.” He also said “They do not carry weapons or know them….. they should be good servants” (Myint). In the new world Columbus forced many of the natives to convert to Christianity. When he was on the island of Hispaniola he sent many native Indians to Spain so that they could be sold (Columbus Controversy). Christopher Columbus and his crew slaughtered many natives no matter their age, gender, or status in the communities. Catholic friar Bartolomé de las Casas wrote about what happened when the Spanish took over the island of Hispaniola. He said “They forced their way into native settlements, slaughtering everyone they found there, including small children, old men, pregnant women, and even women who had just given birth” (Kristian). Bartolome also said that “They grabbed sucking infants by the feet and, ripping them from their mothers, dashed them headlong against the rocks. Others, laughing and joking all the while, threw them over their shoulders into a river, shouting: ‘wriggle you little perisher’” (Kristian). Also, historian of spanish conquest, Benjamin Keen, has found many sources that proved that the violence was real. HE found documentation that showed multiple accounts of “exhausted indian carriers, chained by the neck, whose heads the Spaniards severed from their …show more content…
Historian William J. Connell said that “What columbus gets criticized for nowadays are attitudes that were typical of the European sailing captains and merchants” (Wright). Connell also said that “What really mattered was his landing on San Salvador, which was a momentous, world changing occasion.” Ronald Reagan also credits Columbus with being a hero saying that Columbus “was a dreamer, a man of vision and courage, a man filled with hope for the future and with the determination to cast off for the unknown and sail into uncharted seas for the joy of finding whatever was there” (Wright). Columbus is also credited with introducing European colonization to the
One of the most popular beliefs about Columbus is that he discovered North America, this is not true. When Christopher Columbus landed on new land in 1492 he did not land in North …show more content…
When Columbus first landed in the new world he wrote in his journal that “They were very well built, with very handsome bodies, and very good faces.” He also said “They do not carry weapons or know them….. they should be good servants” (Myint). In the new world Columbus forced many of the natives to convert to Christianity. When he was on the island of Hispaniola he sent many native Indians to Spain so that they could be sold (Columbus Controversy). Christopher Columbus and his crew slaughtered many natives no matter their age, gender, or status in the communities. Catholic friar Bartolomé de las Casas wrote about what happened when the Spanish took over the island of Hispaniola. He said “They forced their way into native settlements, slaughtering everyone they found there, including small children, old men, pregnant women, and even women who had just given birth” (Kristian). Bartolome also said that “They grabbed sucking infants by the feet and, ripping them from their mothers, dashed them headlong against the rocks. Others, laughing and joking all the while, threw them over their shoulders into a river, shouting: ‘wriggle you little perisher’” (Kristian). Also, historian of spanish conquest, Benjamin Keen, has found many sources that proved that the violence was real. HE found documentation that showed multiple accounts of “exhausted indian carriers, chained by the neck, whose heads the Spaniards severed from their …show more content…
Historian William J. Connell said that “What columbus gets criticized for nowadays are attitudes that were typical of the European sailing captains and merchants” (Wright). Connell also said that “What really mattered was his landing on San Salvador, which was a momentous, world changing occasion.” Ronald Reagan also credits Columbus with being a hero saying that Columbus “was a dreamer, a man of vision and courage, a man filled with hope for the future and with the determination to cast off for the unknown and sail into uncharted seas for the joy of finding whatever was there” (Wright). Columbus is also credited with introducing European colonization to the