Inverted Pyramid Story: Colorado legislature to vote on changing Columbus Day to Indigenous People’s
Word count: 664
DENVER- Representative Joe Salazar-D presented a bill to the Colorado state legislature that, if passed, will change Columbus Day to Indigenous People’s Day.
Salazar said he was inspired by FLC student Ruthie Edd’s success in persuading the Durango City Council to formally acknowledge the new holiday.
Edd, co-chair of FLC’s Real History of the Americas (RHOA) event, said that her resolution contained no mention of Columbus Day. Instead, she said that “It really emphasizes indigenous people and their culture and their contributions to this region.” The resolution passed unanimously.
Shirena Trujillo Long, El Centro coordinator and RHOA committee advisor, supported Edd in her endeavor. “Changing [the name] to Indigenous People’s Day is a way of reclaiming history,” Long said. “It’s a way of recognizing our truth in history. I don’t think it diminishes Columbus’s history. It’s giving voice and recognition to such a huge population that didn’t have that voice. It’s important to recognize all people.”
Edd, who is Navajo, said that growing up in Durango she saw a huge emphasis on cowboy culture, and Indigenous People’s Day is a way of adding another layer of education to the region.
To many people, indigenous or not, Columbus is a symbol of colonization, enslavement, and genocide. Edd said it is important to remember that Columbus’s discovery of the Americas introduced the transatlantic slave trade.
However, she is careful to say that the new holiday should not be seen as a backlash to Columbus Day. She said that if it came out of anger towards colonization, it would not be healthy. “It wouldn’t rebalance things, it would just skew the perception even more.”
And what about those who oppose Indigenous People’s Day? Long says the popular arguments come from people of Italian heritage who claim that their holiday is being taken away, and from non-indigenous people who ask, why can they not choose a different holiday?
Adjunct Professor of History at FLC and Historic Preservation Grant Specialist at the History CO State Historical Fund, Heather Bailey said Columbus Day rose out of nationalist sentiment on behalf of Spanish and Italian immigrants. Italian immigrants were threatened by the Ku Klux Klan during the early 20th century, and the celebration of Columbus was a means of defense.
Although the first unofficial celebrations of Columbus took place in New York, Colorado was the first state to declare Columbus Day a holiday in 1906. Bailey said that the argument can be made that changing the holiday is an example of Colorado’s reputation as being progressive.
How might other states react to the change? While Bailey points out that there are not a lot of Italian-Americans in the South, she said, “If this comes on the heels of the Confederate flag issues, it might be something else for those states to tag on as another instance of another group having their heritage taken away.”
Edd, on the other hand, hopes that if Colorado passes the bill, it will set a precedent for other states, especially those with high Native American populations. Edd said that if we have a state holiday and are teaching indigenous people's history in our public schools, “It shows young native people [they] can have a voice in our political system.”
However, the bill is not a shoe-in; the state’s legislature is divided, with the Senate controlled by the Republicans and the Democrats controlling the House. Edd said some reasons Republicans may block the bill might stem from tradition, nationalism and religion.
Long said she thinks Colorado may just be progressive enough to pass the bill. Though even if it is not, she said that at least the dialogue will be opened and the foundation for change will be laid.
