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Last modified: Tuesday, October 13, 2009 3:08 PM CDT
Should we celebrate Columbus Day?
by Anna Jauhola
We're all taught the famous rhyme: "In fourteen hundred and 92, Columbus sailed the ocean blue" to help us remember who discovered America. However, it's always a good idea to keep an open mind. Some of the theories about previous discoveries of America may seem hoaxish, but through tests and scientific research, theories can be proven as possible truths. It's up to you what you believe.
As I flipped the television channels early one morning, I found a show on the History Channel called "The Holy Grail in America." It was about early runestones found in Nova Scotia, Canada, New England and Minnesota that linked Viking settlers to those areas long before Columbus sailed the Atlantic.
The Kensington, Minn., runestone was believed a hoax when unearthed in 1898 by a farmer. However, through careful research, some believe the runestone was not a hoax and had truly been buried for hundreds of years.
History books tell us about Leif Ericson, a Viking who also traveled to America before Columbus but was not credited with "discovering" the continent.
According to History.com, Columbus was credited with discovering America for Europe. Perhaps Ericson was credited for discovering America for the Norse.
But whoever discovered the continent, Columbus is now being researched further and found to be a cruel dictator who killed any natives who got in his way.
An article titled “Columbus Controversy” on History.com suggests he enslaved many natives for his own purposes. He sold native people to Spain and forced others "to search for gold in mines and on plantations." It didn't matter if the natives were friendly or not.
Columbus and other explorers also didn't realize what affect they may have on native cultures, particularly when spreading European diseases. Many natives died and several tribes were wiped out.
The question raised is whether Columbus should be praised as a hero.
Perhaps Columbus Day is kept simply for the luxury of a holiday off work, a floating holiday meant for later in the year or an excuse for stores to hold sales.
In any case, as more evidence comes to light of how brutal and uncaring Columbus was, perhaps he shouldn't be so celebrated.
ANNA JAUHOLA can be reached at editor@wahpetondailynews.com.
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