The Left is making considerable progress on its long-standing mission to tarnish the image of Christopher Columbus and erase his legacy from history.
Young America’s Foundation recently conducted a review of the calendars and websites – both past and present – of the 100 largest school districts in the United States (as ranked by Niche.)
Only seven of the districts examined still give the federal holiday the recognition it deserves (giving students the day off in recognition of Columbus Day, or having an instructional day with Columbus-themed lessons), while 71 have completely moved away from recognizing the second Monday in October as a holiday, and 19 have replaced it with “Indigenous Peoples’ Day.” The other three districts observe both holidays, unjustly forcing the man whose 1492 voyage to the Americas changed the world for the better to share the spotlight with the leftist counter-holiday.
In addition to reviewing the current calendars and publicly accessible curriculum of these school districts, YAF reviewed historical archives of the districts’ websites (when available) in order to determine when Columbus Day started to fall from prominence.
At least 41 of the districts that have moved to Indigenous Peoples’ Day or no longer celebrate a holiday once recognized Columbus Day. Most discontinued Columbus Day at some point between 2019-2022.
A 2022 press release from Milwaukee Public Schools, for example, states that “Indigenous Peoples’ Day is an official holiday that replaces Columbus Day,” and encourages local faculty, students, and parents to “start your day, meeting, or gathering with the MPS Land Acknowledgement.”
Much of the driving force behind Columbus Day’s decline appears to come from the Zinn Education Project, created by Howard Zinn, the author of the infamous leftist textbook A People’s History of the United States.
YAF frequently encountered lesson plans and materials created as part of the Zinn Education Project’s “Abolish Columbus Day” campaign on school districts’ websites throughout the course of the review.
YAF is committed to undoing the harm that has been done to Columbus’ legacy by distributing educational materials such as “In Defense of Columbus” that effectively combat the lies of the Left – and by engaging students with the truth through campus lectures and conferences for young people in middle school through college.
