Columbus was not a Hero
Ever since I can remember, I was taught about how great Christopher Columbus was, how he traveled to the the Americas for noble reasons. I was also taught about how he discovered America and that because of him, the United States exists today. Only about a couple years ago did I discover just how much of the story I was lacking. Christopher Columbus may have been one of the people who started the steady flow of immigration to the Americas, but he was not a great man. This historical holiday has gotten more controversial over time as more people realize what Columbus actually did in his time in the Americas.
Columbus did not travel across the Atlantic ocean for noble reasons. As a matter of fact, the reason he decided to go was purely because of the rewards that awaited him if we went on the journey. The king and queen of Spain promised Columbus that if he returned to Spain with spices and gold, he would receive 10 percent of the profits, governorship over newly found lands and the title of Admiral of the Ocean Sea. There was no noble cause or moral compass that made him want to travel to the Americas.
Christopher Columbus may have been one of the people who started the steady flow of immigration to the Americas, but he was not a great man.
This becomes more apparent once Columbus reached the Americas. He took advantage of the Native Americans, who strongly valued sharing and hospitality. Even when the Spanish first arrived, the Arawak Native Americans greeted them as they came into the shore, presenting them with food, water and gifts. They willingly traded everything they owned. And what was Columbus’s first reaction to the natives? “They were well-built, with good bodies and handsome features…They would make fine servants…with fifty men we could subjugate them all and make them do whatever we want,” he wrote in his log.
And subjugate them he did. He made them look for gold, even though America was not as laden with gold as Columbus insistently believed it was. In Cicao on Haiti, Columbus ordered all natives 14 and older to collect a certain amount of gold every three months. Those who did got a copper token to hang around their necks. Those who didn’t were killed; the Spanish cut off their hands and they bled to death. Many died as a result of this impossible task, because the only gold that could be found were little bits of dust in streams. When the natives tried to run away because they knew the task was impossible, they were hunted down and brutally killed.
These weren’t the only brutalities the Spaniards subjected the natives to. Spaniards cut slices off of the natives to test how sharp their blades were. The Spanish insisted that natives carry them if they had to travel long distances. It was because of all these awful things that mass suicides among the Arawaks began. Mothers poisoned their babies to save them from the Spaniards. Within two years, half the native population were dead as a result of murder, mutilation or suicide. Now, none of the original Arawaks or their descendents are left. And yet, here we are, honoring a Columbus and his “achievements.”
We should not celebrate Columbus Day. Doing so honors a vile and dishonorable man. Although we may have grown up believing Columbus embodied the noble discovery of America, we only got a single side of the story. We completely ignored the painful other side of the story, and because of that we now honor a man who is responsible for genocide. So are we going to continue to partake in this historical amnesia? Or are we going to be true to history?