Columbus Day, Indigenous Peoples Day, or Both?

Is Monday Columbus Day, Indigenous Peoples' Day, or both? It depends on who you ask.

According to the White House, it's both. President Joe Biden issued separate proclamations on Friday for Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples' Day.

Both holidays were born out of anti-discrimination efforts. In 1892, President William Henry Harrison designated Columbus Day a holiday in response to the lynching of 11 Italian Americans the year before. It became a federal holiday in 1971. In 1977, indigenous groups called for recognition of Indigenous Peoples' Day at a United Nations conference, and in 1990, North Dakota became the first state to celebrate it. Indigenous Peoples' Day is not yet a federal holiday, though over 130 cities and a dozen states recognize it in place of Columbus Day.

Columns from both left and right, including the New York Daily News editorial board and Townhall, celebrated Columbus' achievements, recognized his importance to Italian Americans, and criticized efforts to rebrand the holiday. Overall, left-rated sources more often focused on the history and reasons for celebrating Indigenous Peoples' Day. Many highlighted arguments that Columbus represents bigotry and genocide, and focused on the efforts to remove Columbus monuments nationwide. Right-rated sources more often focused on Italian heritage groups moving to preserve Columbus monuments. Some also highlighted Columbus's religious beliefs as the motivator for his conquests and interactions with Native Americans, rather than prejudice toward them.