Many people are familiar with the true history behind Christopher Columbus. First and foremost he was a colonizer which means that his job was to rape, torture, murder, and enslave the indigenous people of the lands he explored and settled. Evidence of his actions were well documented by numerous witnesses and by his own hand as he kept record of his exploits in a journal. Here Columbus explains in a letter to a friend how he forced indigenous girls and women to be sex slaves:
"A hundred castellanoes (a Spanish coin) are as easily obtained for a woman as for a farm, and it is very general and there are plenty of dealers who go about looking for girls; those from nine to ten (years old) are now in demand." 1500
In reality Columbus was not revered as a hero in his time, in fact he was arrested and imprisoned upon return to Europe for his brutal ways.
So why celebrate a man who committed such heinous acts against humanity? Some have construed the celebration of Columbus to be a celebration of Italian pride. Of course one can celebrate Italian pride without honoring a criminal; one could certainly celebrate German pride without having Hitler Day.
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