Ah Columbus Day, that awkward holiday that sneaks up on us in the middle of October, and you really only care about it if you're in elementary school, because the teacher takes the day off (or part of it) to teach about how Columbus discovered America. You do a little fist bump to yourself because you get to color a ship and you don't have any math homework. Also apparently it warrants flags to be put up by the Boy Scouts in people's yards like you would for Memorial Day, Fourth of July, or Flag Day.
I hate this holiday with a seething fire that burns hotter than wildfire that happened in Yosemite National Park this past summer.
Here's why:
1) Columbus didn't DISCOVER or even land in America. Funny thing, I'm pretty sure you have to land in America to discover it. From my knowledge he landed in the islands now known as the Bahamas.
2) He enslaved and killed many of the native people from the Bahamas. Because of that, nowadays, there aren't any of those native people anymore.
You can make the argument that he set the foundation for exploration, and because of that America was eventually discovered by Europeans, but I don't think it should concern us. I wouldn't dislike it so much if people got their facts right. A small unit on it in elementary school and then in middle school should suffice, but no, we had to go and erect a holiday for it.
When I see flags in yards for Columbus Day, all I can think is, "We salute you, mass murderer person you."
I'm sure Columbus was a great guy, but I think all those dead Native Americans would beg to differ.
