Columbus Day

Christopher Columbus remains a polarizing figure to this day; with many minority groups lobbying for a swift and complete removal of monuments built in his honor, of statues commemorating him, and of his national day of festivities. On the other hand, for Italian Americans living in New York City, Columbus continues to be a powerful symbol of unity–of Italian perseverance, worth, and validation. He represents a part of their heritage worth fighting for. And when October rolls around, the City and its inhabitants, one way or the other, remain tangled in his ambiguity at every Columbus Day parade.

 

 The History   |   The Quest for Identity   |   Rethinking Columbus Day

 

More than five hundred years have elapsed since the fateful morning of October the 12th 1492 when the Genoese sailor, Christopher Columbus, landed for the first time on American soil at the Antilles Archipelago in the Bahamas. The discovery of the American Continent, the New World, as well as the life of its discoverer are controversial episodes in the annals of the history of the West. To this day, historians vehemently disagree regarding fundamental periods of the explorer’s life, the exact date and place of his birth as well that of his death, and the location of his remains. In the city of Sevilla, Spain, a monument to Christopher Columbus that may contain his remains or that of his brother is encompassed by the UNESCO World Heritage Site–the Seville Cathedral. His alleged tomb rests on the shoulders of four allegorical figures representing the four kingdoms of Spain during Columbus’ life: Castilla, Aragon, Navarra and Leon. Indeed, no reliable documentation has been found that would illuminate Columbus’ life before he entered into the service of the Spanish Court, more than a dozen places have claimed his origins, and his remains were moved ad nauseam between Europe and the Americas. Additionally, the proclamation that he was the first European explorer to have landed on American soil is refuted by Nordic records dating to a century prior to his arrival.

https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47df-2923-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99
Christopher Columbus. No. 91 Paris.

If nothing else, like many historical figures before him, Christopher Columbus is shrouded by a veil of confusion, inaccuracy, and imaged ideals. Yet, unlike many others, he has come to embody a multiplicity of characters and values that are constantly shifting, being appropriated and raged against.

In the course of Western history, Columbus’ achievements have transcended the borders of the Spanish Catholic Empire and its legacy has morphed him into an individual with a compound identity that comprises polar opposite incarnations; he has been depicted as “one of the best and purest men of a period of ferocity and demoralization” (Ponce de Leon), as the instrument of God’s will, as well as a champion for perseverance, heroism and human progress, while simultaneously representing one of Colonization’s greatest tools of oppression—a pirate, a thief, an enslaver.

The innate ambiguity of the Columbus archetype, a sort of alchemical palimpsest, has allowed it to be adopted and adapted by groups with vastly different socio-political interests in young post-colonialist nations of the Western hemisphere. At each turn, at each point in time, the explorer has come to embody said group’s new construction of ideals, values, and identity.