On Columbus Day

One of my very first assignments in my 7th grade history class was to write a letter about Christopher Columbus’ expedition from the perspective of one of the Native Americans he encountered.  Mind you this assignment was dispensed immediately after our teacher had engaged in a lengthy diatribe about how said Natives were brutalized by the oppressive explorer.  I remember distinctly the letters were filled with terms like rape, murder, disease and robbery.

No doubt much of that was true when Columbus landed in the East Indies in 1492.  That said, however, the man still deserves to have a day set aside in his memory.  Columbus’ expedition was the beginning of a wave of globalization that, in many ways, continues through today.  It also marked the point from which we as a country, nation and hemisphere can trace our heritage and identity.  The Northern Agrarian has more.