Rename Columbus Day to:

[MineralMan]

Native American Heritage Day.

That would be my call.

[kydo]

1. I love that

that is such an awesome idea!

[MineralMan]

2. Thanks. I wish it could be done.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

4. I don't know...

I'm not sure a Native American Heritage Day Furniture Sale would catch on...

Kidding, of course. I really do like that idea.

[LiberalEsto]

11. Maybe we could close all furniture and mattress stores that day

[LiberalEsto]

3. Makes sense. Canada has a holiday honoring its indigenous people

"Canada’s National Aboriginal Day is annually held on June 21 to celebrate the unique heritage, diverse cultures, and outstanding achievements of the nation’s Aboriginal peoples. There are three Aboriginal groups in Canada – the First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples."

http://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/canada/national-aboriginal-day

[MineralMan]

5. Good on Canada. I'm not sure the word "Aboriginal"

would work here in the U.S. It seems to have negative connotations when used here. Pretty much everyone recognizes the term "Native Americans" as representative of the peoples who were here before Europeans arrived, so I think that would work well in the U.S.

[LiberalEsto]

10. I don't like the word aboriginal either. Natives Day would be my choice

just to keep it short and simple.

[cali]

6. ack. we just wrote essentially the same op.

I actually like when we agree.

[MineralMan]

9. Yabbut I beat you by five minutes.

So there!

[Javaman]

7. Ever read the comic "The Oatmeal"?

http://theoatmeal.com/comics/columbus_day

[LiberalEsto]

14. Great read!

[yuiyoshida]

8. I have to admit that

While watching the football game between the KC Chiefs and the Raiders, I had to just cringe watching the crowd do the "Tomahawk Chop", like they do in Atlanta .. just something about that... makes me totally uneasy.

[eShirl]

12. how about Native History Month?

[kydo]

15. Could we ge the NFL to wear Native American colors like the pink month?

But I agree. Should be a national holiday and make that oct awareness month. I'm all for it.

[Orrex]

13. Let's call it National Rape, Slavery, Genocide and Biological Warfare Day

[luvspeas]

26. exactly...

I would be absolutely disgusted if someone changed the holiday of my family's killer's holiday to luvspeas appreciation day. WHY?

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

29. OK, but I'm sure as hell not coming to the parade (nt)

[L0oniX]

30. Slavery Day gets my vote. That inhumane asshole brought slaves to the US.

[gollygee]

16. Do they want that day?

Maybe we should ask them before assuming they want the same day that for a long time has been used to honor Columbus. I get the idea but I think it's problematic to do something to help a group of people without that group's input.

[brooklynite]

17. Why?

I have no philosophical objection, but what's significant about the second Monday in October? And if you (presumably) object to a hoiday targeting Italian-American culture, why is a Native-American culture celebration any more worthy?

[MineralMan]

18. The date doesn't matter, actually.

Since we've moved all of those things to Mondays, it just doesn't matter. Columbus day doesn't really target Italian-American culture, anyhow, and we do not honor Native Americans in any way, so why not? It's not going to happen, of course, but celebrating a European invasion of an already populated continent doesn't really seem all that great as an idea to me.

Lots of suffering and death came from that invasion, and it's still going on in many places.

[randome]

19. You know native Americans were a pretty vicious lot, too, right?

Aztec atrocities. Some NA tribes were only too eager to help the Europeans defeat their enemies.

A clash of cultures is never simple to interpret five hundred years later.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Treat your body like a machine. Your mind like a castle.[/center][/font][hr]

[Nye Bevan]

21. Ummm...... we don't talk about that here (nt)

[angrychair]

20. great idea

My only concern would be that the teacups would attempt to hijack it as they see themselves as America's "native sons" heard it before.

[Laelth]

22. I would support that proposal.

It's the right thing to do. We can never undo genocide, but we should honor the victims of genocide rather than its greatest pioneer.

-Laelth

[Bluenorthwest]

23. South Dakota observes this day as Native Americans Day already.

http://legis.state.sd.us/statutes/DisplayStatute.aspx?Statute=1-5-1.2&Type=Statute

[MineralMan]

25. Excellent!

[mahina]

24. Here it's callled Discoveror's day

[randome]

28. In my circles, it's called 'Monday'.

[hr][font color="blue"][center]Treat your body like a machine. Your mind like a castle.[/center][/font][hr]

[gopiscrap]

27. Some public schools around here call it Explorer's Day