Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492: a saying nearly all children across the U.S. are taught when learning about Columbus’s great discovery of the New World. Children currently living on the continent are raised to believe Columbus is a hero, without whom they would not reside in what is known today as North America. The Spanish sailor has even received his own federal holiday to mark this accomplishment. However, controversy has arisen in the past several years as critics question whether Columbus was truly a hero to admire or a tyrant to disdain.
While some believe Christopher Columbus should be celebrated for establishing the first permanent European settlement in the New World, he did not even know he landed there. Columbus’s original thought was that he and his crewmen had docked in the Bahamas, displaying how poor of a navigator he truly was. And yet, this is the man society has chosen to credit with the settlement they claim changed the course of history. In addition to being a poor navigator, Columbus had weak communication skills, as seen by his treatment of the natives. His version of communication was to use violence to force them out. Not only did this eliminate many of the native population, it also destroyed homes, farms, and settlements of entire tribes. Those who were not murdered were forced to rebuild their lives with the family and supplies they had left.
Along with this violence, the natives were introduced to various illnesses, leading to a significant decrease in the indigenous peoples’ lifespans and livelihoods. Several natives were also kidnapped by Columbus and his men to bring back on his journey to Spain, with only eight surviving the trip. Between disease, violence, and kidnapping, millions of Native Americans were murdered and all were affected. In return, these same natives still taught settlers about agriculture and their ways of life in this different territory. Without this assistance, Columbus and all future European settlers would not have survived in the uncertain environment of the New World. Why is society so quick to accept a European sailor who made others’ miserable when the Native Americans aided in the establishment of this settlement just as much or more?
When discussing this settlement, many claim or are taught that Columbus discovered North America. However, the term “discovered” implies the indigenous peoples of North America were not there and/or not important to the settlers. This is far from the truth in either case. It also suggests no other Europeans had ever stepped foot on the continent when the Vikings, lead by Leif Erikson, and many other nomadic tribes, were there centuries prior to Columbus’s birth. The term “colonized” would better describe the unethical efforts made by Columbus and his men when establishing the settlement. This suggests that they had been on the North American continent to establish control over the land and those who lived there. If the switch were made between using “discovered” and “colonized”, future generations would have a better understanding of how Columbus and his men made an impact on the course of history without belittling the indigenous peoples.
The Native Americans who aided in the establishment of this European settlement are the true heroes of this story and should be celebrated each year. They are the ones who were tortured by the settlers and still helped give the Europeans a better chance at survival. They are the ones who taught the settlers about agriculture and building shelter. They are the ones whose homes and lives were destroyed but still taught the settlers how to craft homes to withstand the weather in a unique environment. Columbus and his men merely contributed to this establishment by docking on North America by chance, while the indigenous peoples made efforts to actively help alter the course of history.
