This week saw yet another attack on U.S. Hispanic heritage, this time in New York. The Department of Education announced that Columbus Day, celebrated for more than 100 years, will be eliminated and replaced by Indigenous Peoples Day.
👉It is one more example of how Hispanic cultural heritage is under attack in the U.S. in recent times. Our mission at The Hispanic Council is to disseminate the Hispanic cultural heritage of the country and to prevent its distortion and manipulation.
That's why we bring you 5 reasons to defend Columbus Day, extracted from the report "Columbus Day? Sí, gracias," which we published in September 2019 and which was written by historian @MariaSaavedraI, a member of our Advisory Board.
1)Columbus Day is not a day to pay homage to his person, but to the events he was a part of and what they meant for humanity. It was an unstoppable engine of progress by merging the knowledge of the Old and New Worlds in medicine, biology, languages, ethnology, architecture, etc.
2) It is a mistake to frame this issue as a choice between 2 opposing options. Is it necessary to frame this controversy as a confrontation between Columbus Day or Indigenous Peoples' Day? This approach responds to political interests, since both are compatible.
3) History must not be rewritten, it must be known. The events of 500 years ago cannot be judged with the values of 2021. If we cancel Columbus because of slavery, the same would have to be done with a long list of historical characters from LATAM, USA, Europe, etc.
4) Spain promoted the policy of miscegenation in America. From 1492 onwards, the integration of both populations was sought. Isabella the Catholic ordered her rulers: "marry Spaniards with Indians and Indians with Spaniards". Not all nations had this State policy.
5) Yes, there was a "Discovery", since up to that date there was no awareness of America as a whole, but as an amalgam of non-interconnected communities. The vision of the Spanish rulers is the one that will end up consolidating a united vision of America.
With its lights and shadows, the arrival of Columbus marked the beginning of a whole linguistic, juridical and religious world that endures today and that was based on the construction of a whole network of universities, hospitals and cathedrals for the citizens.
For these and many other reasons from @HispanicCouncil we vindicate Columbus Day, which reminds us of an essential part of a shared history that millions of people on both sides of the Atlantic are part of. #RespectHispanicHeritage.
For more information you can read our report "Columbus Day? Sí, gracias", prepared by Professor María Saavedra. 👇
hispaniccouncil.org/wp-content/upl…
And here you can help us to continue spreading the Hispanic cultural heritage of the United States with your contribution. 👇
hispaniccouncil.org/club-de-amigos/
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