Christopher Columbus The Ugly Truth

Columbus’s Ugly Truth All that we are told about Columbus was that “ In 1492, he sailed the ocean blue.” And we were taught that in preschool and Kindergarten. Then latter on we learned about the Mina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria, in Elementary School. After that, most kids hear the same stuff every year. Except, was it all the truth? And was it the whole story? Most everyone knows that Columbus was from Italy, and that when he explained his theory that the world was round, they did not believe or wish to waste their time with him. Afterward Columbus went to Spain, explaining the same theory, and with some convincing, was finally given some support and money to prove himself right. At a young age most were taught that he discovered the …show more content…
I have learned that in truth, he was trying to find China, and the spices and goods that laid within the land. Meaning that he was not suppose to have been anywhere near the New World much less Cuba. So not only was he congratulated on finding a land that he did not actually find, but was also rewarded with a holiday, even though he never actually made it to China, his original destination. According to the article Columbus not a man worth honoring, by David Thundershield Queen, Columbus was a stubborn man, believing from the beginning that he had found China, and even though he was told all his life that he had not, he had died thinking it. However one of the worst things that I have learned about Columbus was his behavior towards the Natives. A quote by Queen’s article stating, “Columbus immediately began gathering Arawaks - people who he had earlier called “the best people under the sun, with neither ill will nor treachery” - to take back to Spain to sell in the slave Markets.” Not only does it show that Columbus was a hypocrite, but also that he was cruel. Columbus had the Arawak men work the mines and if they failed to produce the requisite amount of gold, hands and feet would be cut off. Or if there was resistance ears and noses cut off. Which makes me wonder why we celebrate Columbus at all, why do we consider him a hero? Because when Columbus was done, the …show more content…
First, Columbus did not find the New World, nor did he make it to China, where he was originally suppose to end up at. It was all a accident. It was all pure, stupid, luck. Then there is the fact that he, not only mistreated the Arawaks but exterminated them. All because of gold. We honor a man that is no better than Hitler. We do not celebrate Hitler, when you hear his name, you automatically think of the wrong that was done at his hands, and the horror that he caused. And yet, we praise Christopher