Columbus Day

 Whether you "celebrate" Columbus Day or prefer Indigenous Peoples Day as I do as a student of American history I correctly take note of the myths of our past. The myths start with Columbus "discovering" America. Never mind that there were millions of native Americans here for 10,000 years before Columbus found land in the Caribbean. In his four trips he never landed in the what is now the continental United States.

In recent years historians have started telling the truth about Columbus and the papal bulls that started the European invasion of the Americas. The trend is toward Indigenous Peoples and away from a totally Eurocentric view of our history.

The practice of U.S. cities eschewing Columbus Day to celebrate Indigenous Peoples' Day began in 1992 with Berkeley, California. The list of cities that have followed suit as of 2018 includes Austin, Boise, Cincinnati, Denver; Los Angeles, Mankato, Philadelphia, Portland, San Francisco, Santa Fe, Seattle, Saint Paul, Phoenix, Tacoma, and "dozens of others".

All to the good.