Does Columbus deserve a day?
He did NOT discover America as it is commonly said. Rather, he made it known to Europe. Also, he wasn't the first person in America, I watched a program on the History Channel and it showed many other people went to America before him and realised it was a new world no one had ever seen before and there is evidence for this. In other reputable sources, I learned that he didn't brought suffering and hardship to the native Americans. His goal was not to develop a global trade network for all but rather for his own personal gain. Don't forget, he didn't even accept the belief at the time, that he in fact did find a place Europeans had never truly known save for a few small and minor visits prior to Columbus. He was insistent that he had found an alternative route to India even at his deathbed.
The reasons Columbus has a day is because he made it known to Europe and history is written by teh victors or those with power and influence.
He doesn't deserve a day to himself especially when that day celebrates some lies that cover up the whole story. Maybe there should be a new holiday in place celebrating the start of global trade but definitely not for Columbus himself.
Just my opinion. State yours.
Update:"In other reputable sources," I didn't use only the History Channel. I did my own research afterwards. I just don't quite remember what were the other sources. But I know for sure those other oens are reputable.
Comments
columbus was not the first to suggest the world was round. it was already a widely held belief dating back to 6th century bce greece. hellenistic astronomy established a spherical earth as a given. no doubts.
columbus, actually named Cristóbal Colón, did go on this journey for personal gain. if he could find a shorter route to the east indies, he would make a fortune. the king and queen of spain promised a lifetime pension to the first man to sight land. one of the ships crew was the first to sight land but columbus claimed he had already seen it hours earlier.
instead of finding the east indies, he ran into an island in the caribbean. in his own journal he wrote this regarding the natives he encountered. "they are artless and generous with what they have, to such a degree as no one would believe but him who had seen it. Of anything they have, if it be asked for, they never say no, but do rather invite the person to accept it, and show as much lovingness as though they would give their hearts." . then he added "I could conquer the whole of them with 50 men, and govern them as I pleased." he also claimed the entire area as property of the pope of rome.
since there were no spices, he took slaves instead. his first voyage he took 25 natives back to spain but only 7 arrived alive. he would return to the "new world" 3 more times in search of gold. each time he brought more and more european men with him, establishing colonies throughout the islands. and with each successive wave of europeans, the atrocities against the indigenous peoples got worse.
how do we know what happened? the missionary Bartolome de Las Casas recorded what he witnessed: “They hanged 13 natives at a time in honor of Christ Our Saviour and the 12 Apostles. Straw was wrapped around their torn bodies and they were burned alive. They took babies from their mothers’ breasts, grabbing them by their feet and smashing them against rocks. They would cut an Indian’s hands and leave them dangling by a shred of skin and threw others to the dogs and thus were torn to pieces.”
these accounts reached spain and after his 4th voyage, columbus was thrown in prison.
is this the man we should be celebrating? hardly. several states have already dropped him from the calendar and instead made the day one to celebrate american indian heritage. its time the entire country do likewise.
The reason Columbus is so famous is because he was the first to prove to the European monarchs that the world was indeed round. He didn't go on his journey for personal gain, he wanted to prove that popular belief was once again wrong. He really wasn't that popular at home before and after his journey, mostly since he went against the tide. Also, I'm not sure how you know so much about his personal motives, mainly because they were never written down by him and he's been dead for five hundred years. but hey, that's just me. why not let the guy have his day? is there a serious moral issue with its celebration?
He also had the country of Columbia and the province of British Columbia named after him. Sure he deserves the day. His discovery in the Caribbean lead to the discovery and colonization of North and South America plus the Caribbean islands. It was a huge step forward for man-kind in general and Europeans in particular.
No, I don't think he does. His 'discovery' was just an epic fail because he was actually looking for rare spices from India but ran into North America instead. That's why Native American's are sometimes referred to as Indians; Columbus just assumed they were. Columbus and his people also enslaved and exploited the Native people. Personally, I do not believe there should be a day dedicated to him.
While much of what you say may be true, *please* don't use the History Channel as a source. Consider that that same channel also broadcasts shows like "Pawn Stars" and "Ice Road Truckers" (which may be good shows, I don't know, but are obviously *not* history sources).
Anybody, who opened huge continent for World commerce and knowledge sharing deserves a day in his honor. And Columbus opened 2 continents.
If you would give us the name of the Cro-Magnon guy from Africa who discovered that Europe and Asia available for migration into (some neanderthals had to be shoved aside) he would deserve his 2 days as well.
For those upset about culture of Native American civilizations which spectacularly failed to withstand the pressure of the much more advanced European one are welcome to shed river of tears over Ancient Roman, Ancient Greek, pagan Celtic, German and Viking civilizations Europeans left behind themselves as inadequate.
The history channel? PLEASE! The spread gossip as though it was true channel. Not long ago they broadcast a show trying to "prove" that the Cherokees were really descendants of the lost tribe of Israel.
Not in my opinion because thanks to him there were many indigenous people who became slaves and had their lives forfeited along with their culture and society. All because there was such a difference between the European culture and society who did NOT respect the indigenous people's rights.
Columbus was the World's worst navigator. The list of his errors is endless.
do you realize how many pissed off government workers there would be if they took columbus day away as a holiday