The
controversy of Columbus Day
By Jessianne Castle EBS STAFF
BOZEMAN – On
the second Monday of October, some Bozemanites will join hands for a
celebratory round dance. Others, schoolchildren mostly, will sit at their desks
and talk about the day’s historical significance. Federal employees will have
the day off, while many other residents of Gallatin County will go through
their day—life as usual.
Oct. 14 is a
national holiday, known federally as Columbus Day. It’s a day to observe the
arrival of Christopher Columbus to the Americas on Oct. 12, 1492, which
initiated European colonization throughout South and North America.
But many
indigenous tribes decry the celebration of what led to mass removals and
violence inflicted on their ancestors, with the aftershocks still felt, in many
instances.
“We should
not be celebrating Columbus Day at all,” said Francesca Pine Rodrigez, a Crow
and Northern Cheyenne tribal member and board member of Indigenous Peoples’ Day
Montana. “The reason why we are celebrating Columbus Day—we, as a country—is
based on total fantasy.”
Pointing to
a colorful map of historic tribal territories prior to Euro-American
colonization, she said the West was not vacant land. “It was really a recipe
for disaster when the settlers came because they were basically brought and
sold on a lie,” she said.
Advocates
for Indigenous Peoples’ Day Montana began campaigning three years ago to have
Columbus Day replaced with Indigenous Peoples’ Day. So far, the effort—which
launched in Bozeman—has been recognized at Montana State University and within
the Bozeman Public Schools. Additionally, the city of Harlem located near the
Fort Belknap Reservation recently voted to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous
Peoples’ Day, joining the cities of Bozeman, Missoula and Helena.
In Big Sky,
the school district still recognizes Oct. 14 as Columbus Day, though it isn’t
considered a school holiday and students are required to attend class. For the
most part, on Columbus Day specifically, it’s class as usual for Big Sky
students
“Like other
major events in history, I take the time to bring it up in my class, kind of
like 9-11,” said Tony Coppola, the district’s high school social studies
teacher “We talk about the two sides, the traditional western holiday—Columbus
Day—and Indigenous Peoples’ Day.”
Coppola
added that over the course of the school year, his 9th graders
discuss Montana-specific tribal perspectives in their Montana history class.
According to
Superintendent Dustin Shipman, the district doesn’t have a prescribed
curriculum pertaining to Columbus Day. Students learn about Columbus in social
studies classes within the context of the larger course curriculum rather than
just talking about Columbus on Columbus Day. “We don’t only talk about Civil
Rights on MLK Day” he added. “For us it’s about helping the kids understand
those conceptual things.”
Brian
Squillace, the 6th and 7th grade history and math
teacher, said his class will learn about Columbus and other explorers later in
the school year when they discuss European exploration and the Columbian
Exchange.”
At Montana
State University, classes are in session on Oct. 14, but the school is hosting
a number of events throughout the month to celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day.
At noon on
Monday, Oct. 14, the school will hold a traditional round dance celebrating all
indigenous peoples. The Bobcat Singers will drum for the round dance, which has
become an annual event. Prior to the dance, there will be a walk honoring
Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. Following the dance, at 7:30 p.m., a
free screening of the film “In the Spirit of Atatíc̓e: The true story of the
National Bison Range” by local filmmaker Daniel Glick will be held in the
Rialto Theater.
To conclude
the celebrations, artist Ben Pease of the Northern Cheyenne and Crow tribes, a
former MSU student, will speak at 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 24, at the Museum of
the Rockies.
