Why COLUMBUS Day came to be....

For many Italian Americans, Columbus Day has long been their day to celebrate Italian heritage and the contributions of Italian Americans to the United States. It was adopted at a time when Italians were being vilified and faced both religious and ethnic discrimination.

{BTW it is observed by various countries in the Americas as Día de la Raza, in Italy, Spain, and various Little Italys around the world.}

It was made a national holiday in 1934 to honor a man who, ironically, never set foot in the United States - as Columbus actually anchored in the Bahamas. The first commemoration came in 1892, when President Benjamin Harrison proclaimed a one-time national celebration - one year after a mass lynching of 11 Italian Americans by a mob in New Orleans. Italian Americans then held onto that day as a way to mainstream and humanize themselves in the face of rampant discrimination.

For many Italian Americans, Columbus Day isn't mostly about the individual but about what the day represents: a people searching for safety and acceptance in their new home.

National Italian American Foundation, John M. Viola, wrote in a 2017 New York Times editorial, "The 'tearing down of history' does not change that history. In the wake of the cultural conflict that has ripped us apart over these months, I wonder if we as a country can't find better ways to utilize our history to eradicate racism instead of inciting it. Can't the monuments and holidays born of our past be reimagined to represent new values for our future?"

He went on to write, "We believe Christopher Columbus represents the values of discovery and risk that are at the heart of the American dream, and that it is our job as the community most closely associated with his legacy to be at the forefront of a sensitive and engaging path forward, toward a solution that considers all sides."

Adaptation of https://www.npr.org/ article re:   Columbus Day Or Indigenous Peoples' Day?