Why is it that Americans continue to celebrate a mass murderer as a great national hero?

Question

Do you think that American's today should abandon Christorpher Columbus Day? This holiday was created during a time when America (mainly everyone) was extremely racist towards native americans (and many other nationalities); referring to them as savage beasts. So, it's no surprise that they exalted Christopher Columbus as a national hero.But, here we are in the 21st century and we are not ready, as a nation, to except our sins and put this shameful "hella- day" to rest and apologize to Native Americans for the offense and for making them relive that horror every year. Throwing it in their faces as if nothing wrong happend. Are we that cold hearted?Mass murder and slavery commited by Columbus and his Conquistadors occurred hundreds of years ago, and wiped out the Aztec Nation (millions) from this planet, those actions has a great impact on Native Americans to date. It's a shame to condone this.How are we to hold our heads up high and proclaim to be "Leaders of the Developed World"?

Answer 1

I don't think we celebrate is actions once here I think it was his accomplishments in actually getting here. Remember in those days people believed the world was flat and that if you went to far you'd fall off. Why not celebrate that and not what happened once he got here

Answer 2

Che Gueverra is a modern day mass murderer.  He killed thousands of innocent Cubans, Bolivians and Colombians.

Colombus discovered the Americas though he did take some slaves back to Spain for show and tell, as was demanded by the morals of his day.

Perhaps you need to get your facts straight.

Answer 3

right on.  how can you discover a place that was already inhabited by the native americans.  we sugar coat everything in our history books in this country.  i'm tired of the establishment telling me who i should consider a hero, or anything else for that matter.  let the facts speak for themselves, racism is alive and well in this country.  the white man brought disease, famine, rape and murder to this land but we rarely hear that side, all we see is pictures of pilgrims feeding the poor, dumb indians when in fact the pilgrims would have died if it weren't for the native americans feeding them.  we need a serious reality check in this country.

Answer 4

OK I know you are not going to agree with me but here goes anyway. For his time (and yes that is relevant), Columbus was a great man, you have to remember nobody had sailed West from Europe at this time and found land or returned from that land. Yes in the morality of today he did some very bad things, but at that time slavery was a done thing and let's not forget the Aztecs weren't above taking slaves and sacrificing their enemies after a battle to their various Gods. So all in all I don't have a problem memorializing this man.

Answer 5

Government workers need the day off.  It's a long haul from Labor Day to Veterans Day.

Answer 6

Do you want to ban Christmas, too? Many people have been tortured or killed in the name of Jesus than were by Columbus or Pizarro or Cortez.

BTW, Columbus didn't have Conquistadors. Conquistadors are associated with the exploration of South and Central America.

Answer 7

Columbus changed history, profoundly - like it or not.

No one has a monopoly on human cruelty.  Look at some of the cultures you're talking about also.

Is there ANYTHING about Western civilization that isn't under attack these days?

<sigh>

Answer 8

I am not about to defend the man or the holiday. The only reason one society overcomes another is firepower. Despite what you may hear about diplomacy it is firepower that dominates the world. The american indians are what they are today not because their societal beliefs and philosophies were not worthy... by comparison they were just like the rest of the world... mostly good people, some bad and i find it interesting that they were God-fearing also (there is a higher being and we all have that "knowledge" within us). They are no longere a society for one reason... gunpowder. Europe had it... native americans didn't. Was Columbus the driving force? Was he responsible for the demise of the native american? No... in fact, he wasn't even that great an explorer... he was searching for India... hence the native american reference of "Indians". What happened here was inevitable and this sort of thing has happened here on earth since the beginning of recorded history and, i am afraid, it will continue.

What we need is a common enemy... like from another planet or something... then we will be "ONE".

I vote for Ben Franklin Day... now THERE was a MAN... inventor, diplomat and his negotiations with France are the only reason we are free today to discuss the value of Christopher Columbus.

Answer 9

It was called progress, sorry you can't grasp that but it has been going on for millennium maybe its time you accepted it. What he accomplished is worthy of celebrating. He discovered an unexplored land which led to expansion. That's the way the world works. Too bad for you.

Answer 10

Hey, he did open the new world to settlement and whatever else you have to say about the USA, It must be about the best place in the world to live.  Look at all the people that want to come here to live....

Of couse that brings us back to the failed immigration policy of the Native Americans <Grin>

Answer 11

I'm not sure your question is worth answering, since my first impulse is to say, "Get a life!", but here goes....Columbus didn't come here looking for colonies.  He was looking for a western route to India.  Considering the culture he came from, I'm sure the Native Americans did look like savages to him.  People in that era were not as "enlightened" as we are, or at least most of us.  Columbus didn't send the Conquistadors, Ferdinand did.  It's a watershed moment in history, no matter how bad the eventual consequences were.

Answer 12

Um, you're putting together a few different things to make a picture that isn't entirely historically accurate. Christopher Columbus was brave enough to sail to what was commonly believe to be the edge of the world, and he found a continent that europe hadn't known about. He never set foot on the Continents of North America or South America (he really discovered the carribean). The Conquistadors belonged to Spain, not Columbus, and sailed across the atlantic on later voyages.

I won't claim that Christopher Columbus was a saint- he was just a business man looking for a cheaper way to get spices out of India, and he did some pretty bad things to the people he actually met, but I think you've demonized him beyond reality here.

Answer 13

Sorry, I like Chris and I will continue to take a Monday off in his honor.

Answer 14

He discovered America, the rest is debatable.

Answer 15

f****s American government workers just don't want to sacrifice another three day weekend.

Answer 16

The celebration is about the courage of discovery and the opening of a whole new world, not about the consequences after the fact.

Answer 17

didn't these seame tribes practice cannabalism and murder each other long before Columbus found them????

Answer 18

Oh please, let's not go there.......

Answer 19

give back all to the indians

Answer 20

Grow up.  Columbus was a man of his time--shaped by his time.  I guess it was okay for the Caribs and the rest of the idigenous american tribes to war and kill each other and make slaves of each other--it is just morally wrong for someone from Europe to do the same thing.  Nothing to apologize to Native Americans for any more than Italians should apologize to English for the roman invasion of England.  this is history--the fact that a european opened the way to a new world is what is being celebrated.  The AZtecs--if you look at the lore, they did human sacrafices--took slaves as they expanded their empire--wiped up locals in areas they expanded into--not very nice people.  So why was it okay for them to conqour someone--but when a European returns the favor--it's wrong.  GROW UP!