October 12, 1992: How Did the Public React?

By Zachary Carter, with comments by Jeffrey Herrigel and Jesse Stehouwer

[1] October 12, 1492, was a great day for Americans -- or was it? The Columbus quincentennial met strong opposition by indigenous Native Americans nation-wide and, indeed, world-wide. Upon reviewing various newspaper editorials from October 12, 1992, it seems that most writers wish to dismantle the image of Christopher Columbus as a national hero. Joel Garreau of the Washington Post claims that Columbus did not discover the mainland first, while other authors point to the torture and genocide of the Native Americans to diminish the significance of Columbus’s discovery. Although it is difficult to gauge public opinion, these newspaper pieces help to give a “snapshot” of emotions on October 12, 1992.

[2] The Native American population was moved to rally on this momentous day and spoke out against Columbus in countless cities throughout America. The Columbus Day Parade in Washington, D.C., was “abruptly cancelled in the face of vows from American Indians and their supporters to disrupt the procession, which they charged would celebrate 500 years of racism and genocide” (Yang). This was the message prevalent throughout most demonstrations held on this momentous day. Demonstrators carried signs as well that said, “Let’s not celebrate an invasion” and “U.S. out of North America.” Through their actions, the protestors succeeded in canceling the parade. In Berkley Columbus Day was changed to “Indigenous Peoples Day,” another large victory for the Native Americans (Yang). (see comment by Jesse Stehouwer)

[3] An even larger accomplishment was the United Nation’s announcement that starting next year, 1993, October 12th will be recognized as the International Year of Indigenous Peoples (Reid). In Columbus, Ohio, a four-day celebration concluded with over 100 people marching towards a full-scale replica of the Santa-Maria with signs reading “500 years of oppression (AP - Columbus).” An alternative parade took place in Chicago a few blocks away from the traditional one, where about 300 people threw red dye into the Chicago River before marching in order to remember the genocide that had taken place 500 years earlier (AP - Columbus). In New York City, Native Americans declined their invitation to participate in the 46th annual Columbus Day Parade despite the Columbus Citizens Foundation theme of “Unity in diversity” (AP - Columbus). There are just a few examples of demonstrations and protests held in the U.S. on this day, but there was also much to be said about the very place where Columbus first landed in 1492 -- the Caribbean.

[4] The largest protests occurred in Popayan, Colombia, where several thousand marched. During the course of this demonstration the police injured 21 people, claiming, “the march had been infiltrated by guerrillas”(Reid). This was not a convincing reason for such violence; however, the scale of this demonstration was much larger than any others that took place on this day. Additionally, violence is much more commonplace towards the indigenous peoples of Central America, and Amnesty International reports that “Indians in the Americas are still subject to discrimination, violence and injustice. Mass killings of indigenous peoples may have reduced in scale over the past 500 years, but they have never stopped” (Reid). The situation is even worse in Guatemala and Peru where counter-insurgents burned hundreds of villages and killed thousands of inhabitants ten years prior to the quincentennial. There is a long history of indigenous violence that has not relented.

[5] Traveling north, in Mexico there is also a long history of violence towards their indigenous people with an estimated 6,000 that were incarcerated and tortured. On the quincentennial, protestors in Zocalo staged a hunger strike, and Aurelio Monroy, a supporter participating in the strike, said, “We’re not going to celebrate a massacre. They took the land of our forefathers who had to flee to the mountains to survive” (Reid). This message of celebrating the “accomplishments” of a murderer and thief are prevalent in nearly every article written on this date. The more affected regions have continued to experience hate and racism and battle back even harder with hunger strikes as opposed to peaceful marches. The site of Columbus’s first voyage, and the site of much racism and conflict today, is also where the Pope decided to visit on the 500-year anniversary of Columbus’s landing.

[6] The Pope made an appearance on the quincentennial in the Caribbean to celebrate both the “arrival of Christianity in the New World” and “the message of salvation on this continent” (AP - Pope). However, he distanced himself from the hundreds protesting at the capital and from the price at which Christianity came to this region. The Pope only left the capital once when he took a helicopter to say Mass, most likely for safety reasons. This seems to be a convenient way of sidestepping the bigger issues that salvation bore. The Associated Press did not deduce anything from the Pope’s visit; they primarily stated facts and direct quotes from the Pope. It does seem self-evident that the Pope was avoiding the questions surrounding the integrity of Columbus, while most other editorials indulged into these questions.

[7] Alan Riding of the New York Times remarks on Spain’s sentiments towards Columbus. Spain was busy in 1992 between the Barcelona Olympic Games and the World Fair Expo. The World Fair proved to be a success after a long summer, and it was all done in the name of Columbus and a celebration of his discovery of America. However, the Spanish seemed to be generally embarrassed by him and lost sight of this reasoning. Riding claims Columbus was just “an embarrassing reminder of a great adventure that turned rapidly into a bloody conquest.” It seems as though this extravagant fair was an attempt to celebrate Columbus’s discovery, while largely ignoring him for embarrassment over his controversial stature. (see comment by Jeffrey Herrigel)

[8] The glorified image of Columbus has been tarnished and become one of a man who tortured, committed genocide, and enslaved Native Americans. Americans like to think of their forefathers as a peaceful people, simple Puritans, Pilgrims and Quakers, coming to this land simply to seek refuge from oppression, establishing modest little farming centers along the Atlantic coast. That's not how the native Americans see it at all, reflecting as they do on a lost paradise swept brutally away by diseases introduced by the newcomers and by fortune-hunters looking only for gold and glory.

[9] The true indigenous people of America are Indians. The dominant white culture tends to lose sight of this and fall back upon their own heritage believing that the Pilgrims and Quakers were the first settlers. However, these are the earliest settlers from “our” culture. The true indigenous people of America are Indians (as far as we know) who many ignorantly cannot see after 500 years. This is the root cause of all of the violence and demonstrations that took place on October 12, 1992. These indigenous people, who are still clinging onto their land, are trying to make their voice heard and remind the dominant culture that Columbus was no discoverer. In fact, schools are now teaching children that Columbus did not discover America, but “encountered it” (Garreau). Hopefully, this will work to dispel the false belief of discovery that renders Native Americans and their culture non-existent. People did exist here previous to Columbus, and thus it is frustrating for him to be commemorated by the nation as a discoverer who discovered something that was only a new land to Europeans.

[10] This snapshot of October 12, 1992, is one from a limited range of sources, but the consensus of opinions leads me to believe that the public at large agreed: Columbus still remains a prevalent figure in American history, but his infallible character has been exposed and diminished. He is no longer seen as a hero. As a result, the indigenous population has received increased visibility and has grown in population to finally rise back up to their population of pre-Columbus times (Reid).

Comments

Jeffrey Herrigel 1/31/11

The public’s reaction to the quincentennial was complex. The fact that the day Christopher Columbus landed is a day to remember is indisputable. The next five hundred years were changed on that day. He set out on an incredibly ambitious, courageous, and dangerous adventure and found a whole new world -- for Europe. This tremendous accomplishment is one to be remembered; it was a feat that has had unparalleled effects on the world. In 1492 Columbus’ points out of the window and says, "Look out there, what do you see?" His rival responds and says "I see columns, I see palaces, I see steeples, I see civilization and I see spires that reach to the sky." Columbus then says "All of them were created by people like me." I believe this is an important thought to keep in mind when assessing the chain of events that Columbus set in motion when he set sail on that monumental day. He killed, conquered, forced European ideals on a culture while simultaneously continuing to be ignorant of it and destroy that same culture, but he was also a visionary. Without people like Columbus metaphorical new worlds never get discovered. Without bold risk takers who are liable to get so caught up in their vision that mistakes, terrible mistakes, are made, great things don’t get done and progress can’t be made. Public opinion of Columbus was negative on the 500th year anniversary, and we must remember that day five hundred years ago the beginning of the end of a great, peaceful, and important culture that Columbus snuffed out of existence. But we also must remember that Columbus was just a man with an ambitious dream and in the striving for that dream he went far far awry.

Jesse Stehouwer 1/31/11

Good or bad, the world we live in today is due in great part to Columbus. Though he without a doubt went about it in some misguided and most likely cruel ways, when he landed that fateful day he changed the world forever. It is for these reasons that we should remember that day, respect it, and celebrate it. Though the protesters have the right and nobody can question their motives, I think they are forgetting that in order to change and grow in the future, one must look to the past and learn from it. No, it is not likely that we will “encounter” any new continents in the future, but that does not mean there is nothing that can be learned from Columbus. And to act as they did only encouraged people to be naïve about what happened, thus making it all a waste. I think by protesting the Columbus Day Parade and getting it canceled was a wasted opportunity for people across the country to learn about our history, both the faults and the achievements.

Works Cited

Associated Press. “COLUMBUS AND INDIANS IN THE SPOTLIGHT THE EXPLORER LANDED 500 YEARS AGO. CELEBRATIONS AND PROTESTS MARKED THE ANNIVERSARY.” Philadelphia Inquirer 13 October 1992.

Associated Press. “POPE HONORS COLUMBUS FOR SHARING CHRISTIANITY.” Akron Beacon Journal 13 October 1992.

Garreau, Joel. “COLUMBUS AND THE SAILING-THE-OCEAN BLUES - HERO TO ZERO: WHY THE QUINCENTENARY WENT BUST.” Washington Post 12 October 1992.

Reid, Michael. “INDIANS PROTEST AT LEGACY OF DEATH; 500 years after the mariner, Michael Reid and Christopher Reed report on the forgotten peoples' fight for survival.” The Guardian 12 October 1992.

Riding, Alan. “It Was a Nice Fair (Just Don't Mention Columbus).” New York Times 13 October 1992.

Yang, E. John. “ORGANIZERS CANCEL PARADE IN DENVER - INDIANS VOWED TO BLOCK COLUMBUS DAY EVENT.” Washington Post 11 October 1992.