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The Internet Is Celebrating ‘Indigenous Peoples Day’ As Continued Backlash To Columbus Day

As John Oliver said, two whole years ago now about Columbus Day: how is this still a thing? With each passing year, the glasses through which our country once viewed the triumphant anniversary of Christopher Columbus arriving in the Americas become less and less rose-colored, as we realize that Columbus was not in fact the hero that we once made him out to be, but instead a complete monster who tortured and killed native people. If you’ve forgotten about all of the terrible things Columbus did, please see here as a refresher.

It’s gotten to the point that many cities are now eschewing Columbus Day in favor of celebrating Indigenous Peoples Day, which was the subject of this recent piece with Leafar Seyer of the electronic rock duo Prayers. As for cities that still decide to honor Columbus with parades and whatnot on the second Monday of October — such as my own fair city of Philadelphia, which even named a damn street after the guy — let’s just say the turnout is not so great.

But since one of President Obama’s final acts in office was sadly not abolishing this unfortunate holiday, each year we can use a reminder of who we should really be spending the day remembering, which is why the hashtag #IndigenousPeoplesDay is trending on Twitter today. Look no further than the above video as a powerful reminder of how the day is really seen through the eyes of Native Americans, and we’ve compiled some other reactions below.

https://twitter.com/franglophonic/status/785507029674778624

https://twitter.com/eveewing/status/785515911092510720

https://twitter.com/Son_Of_Kemet/status/785480554917531648

https://twitter.com/bentleymaja/status/785529040987750400

https://twitter.com/petezrioka/status/785529413861376000

https://twitter.com/TheThespar/status/785528923727667200