L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2017 www.italoamericano.org 28 L'Italo-Americano " One does not discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time." – Christopher Columbus Back in November of 2015, Los Angeles Councilman Mitch O'Farrell filed a motion to "replace Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples Day," as the legal City holiday to be celebrat- ed on the second Monday of October. Naturally O'Farrell, whose father is Irish American and mother Native American, was met with opposition from the Italian American community and soon the phone calls, emails and letter-writing campaigns began to flood the City Council offices. Councilman Joe Buscaino, a first generation Italian American, worked fever- ishly behind the scenes to defend our cause to preserve Columbus Day, which eventually led to the Human Relations Commission meeting with the crucial stake- holders and submitting a recom- mendation report to the City Council based on their feedback and research. Representing the Federated Italo-Americans at these meetings, I actually heard more anti-Columbus propaganda rather than pro-Indigenous achievements as a reason for the proposed day change, and found myself defending the legacy of Christopher Columbus himself, which was not really a surprise. You see, opposition to Columbus Day dates to at least the 19th century, when activists wanted to get rid of Columbus Day celebrations because of its association with immigrants and the Knights of Columbus. Some non-Catholics were afraid Columbus was being used to expand Catholic influence, and Klansmen protested Columbus Day and his monuments throughout the 1920s. To me, it was ironic that here we would be in 2017, the Los Angeles com- munity about to unknowingly continue the Klan's work, when the focus should have been about celebrating Indigenous People instead. But propaganda is not objective, and as I walked into the City Council rotunda on August 30 th of this year, to the sight of Native Americans in full dress and the sound of drums echoing in the chamber, I had a gut feeling that this decision would be based on emotion rather than factual merit, which is a hard pill to swallow. For when reading Columbus' own words, it's difficult to imagine that he arrived with the intent he is accused, or guilty of the heinous crimes he is labeled. On the contrary, his log entries describe many respectful inter- actions with the Natives, laced together with a complicated por- trayal of a New World. "In order to win their friend- ship, since I knew they were a people to be converted and won to our holy faith by love and friendship rather than by force, I gave some of them red caps and glass beads which they hung round their necks, also many other trifles. These things pleased them greatly and they became marvelously friendly to us." – Christopher Columbus' own words about the first natives he encountered, from his logbook to the King and Queen of Spain (October 1492). Christopher Columbus, an Italian explorer and navigator responsible for the discovery of the New World, marked the beginning of European coloniza- tion of the Americas, thereby, mapping the path forward for Amerigo "America" Vespucci, and eventually, Italian immigra- tion to the United States. The "Columbian Exchange," the widespread transfer of plants, animals, culture, human popula- tions, technology, and ideas between the Americas and the Old World after his 1492 voyage, proved a catalyst for the pros and cons to come. One of the first European exports to the Americas, the horse, changed the lives of many Native American tribes in the moun- tains, and his journey across the ocean changed the lives of many immigrants who would soon fol- low in his path. Italian Americans started observing his achievements in 1866 as a cele- bration of their culture, and in 1892, President Benjamin Harrison used Columbus Day to teach ideals of patriotism and celebrate social progress. President Franklin D. Roosevelt officially declared Columbus Day a Federal holiday in 1934, during a time when Italian immi- grants were not warmly wel- comed in America and desper- ately needed a hero. Fast-forward to today, when the Indigenous People requested a day to be recognized for their contributions and achievements, and we, understanding their need, showed up to every City meeting and declared: "yes, there should be an Indigenous Peoples Day, BUT it should not replace Columbus Day." We suggested the 4 th Friday in September, originally champi- oned in 1968 by then-Governor Ronald Reagan before being passed by the CA Assembly in 1998 as "Native American Day," an official state holiday to honor Native American cultures and contributions to California and the United States. An even bet- ter choice was August 9 th , established in 1994 as "International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples" by the United Nations, to promote and protect the rights of the world's indigenous population. Unfortunately, both suggestions were dismissed by O'Farrell, cit- ing instead that replacing Columbus Day is "righting a his- torical wrong." And to this I ask, how can Christopher Columbus, one man, be held responsible for all the wrong of the last 500 years? First, they accused Columbus ANN POTENZA The Verdict of Christopher Columbus of genocide. With the Columbian Exchange, came the "Old World" diseases, which had a devastating effect when introduced to Native American populations by the Europeans, as the people in the Americas had no natural immunity to the new diseases. It is estimated that upwards of 80–95 percent of the Native American population died in epidemics of disease within the first 100–150 years following 1492.  Measles caused many deaths and the smallpox epidemics are believed to have caused the largest death tolls among Native Americans, surpassing any wars. If the defi- nition of genocide is "the delib- erate killing of a large group of people, especially those of a par- ticular ethnic group or nation," do we know if Columbus knew about germ warfare, therefore, committing the crime of geno- cide? Second, they said we should not recognize someone who engaged in slavery. Evidence of slavery predates written records, has existed in almost every ancient civilization, and horribly still exists in many forms even today. The Aztecs had slaves. Other Amerindians, such as the Inca of the Andes, the Tupinambá of Brazil, the Creek of Georgia, and the Comanche of Texas, also owned slaves. It also existed in the American Indian peoples of the salmon-rich rivers of the Pacific Northwest Coast and was prac- ticed by the Carib tribe, as wit- nessed by Columbus on his first landing. "I saw some who had wound scars on their bodies and I asked them by signs how they got these and they indicated to me that people came from other islands nearby who tried to capture them and they defended them- selves. I supposed and still sup- pose that they come from the mainland to capture them for slaves." – Christopher Columbus Columbus lived in the 15 th century, and slavery existed in his time and was practiced by the Spanish Crown, who eventu- ally ruled against it. Setting our standards in America, it was the Civil War that ultimately ruled against the practice and abol- ished it, which now governs a political debate as to what stat- ues should continue to stand or be removed in our country. Is it also a fair assessment and stan- dard to apply to Columbus in his era? For, if the existence of slavery should be a factor in stripping all levels of heroism from a person of his time period in order to "right a historical wrong," then perhaps we should not establish an Indigenous Peoples Day either, since Natives engaged in the same practices? In closing, our local trial of Christopher Columbus came to a close last week in Los Angeles when the City Council delivered their verdict of a 14-1 vote (Buscaino the lone "no" vote) to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples Day as the official City holiday. In search- ing for solidarity with the Italian American community, the Council also declared October 12 th as "Italian American Heritage Day" in Los Angeles, part of October's Italian Heritage Month, to recognize the many achievements, contribu- tions, and successes of Americans of Italian descent as well as Italians in America. When the final vote was tallied and displayed in the John Ferraro Council Chamber, the Indigenous People exploded in happiness and the Italian Americans graciously accepted the decision of the vote, which leads to my final observation. Although the replacement of Columbus Day in LA is consid- ered a loss to us in the Italian American community, can it also be considered a victory, since a democratic government established by our Founding Fathers is what we all inherently celebrate as Americans? The decision may not have resulted in the vote many of us personal- ly wanted, BUT the outcome was actually decided by "democracy," the people's vote, therefore symbolizing what we ultimately are as "America" and securing the legacy of Christopher Columbus.  "By prevailing over all obsta- cles and distractions, one may unfailingly arrive at his chosen goal or destination." - Christopher Columbus Perhaps today is our time in history to think about how Columbus reflects our own story and how we contribute to the fabric of our culture and com- munity. Remember, official hol- idays are not needed to emulate heroism and bravely embark on our own voyages. Ann Potenza is the President of the Federated Italo- Americans, an umbrella organi- zation that unites over 130 clubs and societies supporting the Italian heritage in Southern California. The Federated was organized "to gather the strength of all Italo-American organizations and unify their efforts."   Ann Potenza, President of the Federated Italo-Americans LOS ANGELES ITALIAN COMMUNITY

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