As many history books will tell you, on this day in 1492, Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue and arrived in the Americas, where for many years, he has been celebrated, especially by many in the Italian American community.
However, Columbus Day doesn’t have the same meaning that it once did. October 12 is evolving across the United States from Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples’ Day, which is now intended to honor Native Americans—the original inhabitants of this land who have suffered greatly for so many years in so many ways.
Christopher Columbus has long been revered by Italian Americans, a group that has experienced its share of discrimination and defamation over the years. However, when you delve deeper to gain a broader, less white-centric sense of history and understand the death, genocide, destruction and violence linked to Columbus, you begin to understand why reverence for Columbus is so controversial and why some statues honoring him are quickly disappearing.
However, Columbus Day has not just been about celebrating the man himself; it has also become a time for celebration of Italian heritage, a rich mosaic of people who have influenced this world in significant and brilliant ways. People like Michelangelo, DaVinci, Vivaldi, St. Francis of Assisi, Fermi, Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini, perhaps even Dr. Anthony Fauci? There’s a week of honorees right there.
Like many things in this world, October 12 and what it represents will continue to change. While it’s already being rebranded to honor Native Americans, Italian Americans should take heart and evolve to something bigger.
Instead of October 12, what if the entire month of October became a 31-day celebration of Italian heritage, each day honoring an Italian who has contributed greatly to our world? This time around, let’s just ensure there are no skeletons in the closest of anyone being celebrated. Rebranding can be expensive. Not to mention the cost of those statues.
Robert Viola
Managing Partner
