October 9th Dubbed “Indigenous Peoples Day”
October 10, 2017
October 9th, commonly known as Christopher Columbus day, has now been proclaimed as Indigenous Peoples Day by the mayor of Iowa City.
Yesterday afternoon, a group of members of the Native American Student Association gathered outside of the old capitol to celebrate the newly dubbed holiday and protest the holiday’s previous name.
“WANTED: Christopher Columbus, for 500 years of tourists,” one student’s sign read.
“The history that our children learn in schools isn’t what really happened.” said Jackie Rand, a professor of the University of Iowa.
Many speakers spoke of schools not covering what truly happened–specifically the oppression that indigenous people faced in Iowa. Speakers also talked about how students are being taught that Christopher Columbus discovered America, however, you cannot “discover” a place when people were already living there.
Members of the Native American Student Association group and members of the community hope to spread awareness of Indigenous Peoples Day in future events.
