Columbus Day or Indigenous Peoples Day?

USA TODAY
Celebrating Cultural Heritage or Colonization of  Native Americans

Indigenous Peoples Day is a holiday that celebrates and honors Native Americans and commemorate their history and culture. It is celebrated across the United States on the second Monday in October, and is an official city and state holiday in various localities. It began as a counter-celebration held on the same day as the U.S. federal holiday of Columbus Day, which honors Italian explorer Christopher Columbus.

Many people now reject celebrating him because he represents the violent history of the colonization in the Western Hemisphere. Many activists believe that this holiday is a sanitation or covering-up of Christopher Columbus' actions such as enslaving Native Americans. This holiday can be seen as a recognition of Indigenous people who were oppressed by Christopher Columbus and other colonizers.