To What Extent Should We Celebrate Columbus Day

Every year on October 8 millions of Americans stay home and celebrate the “discovery” of our great nation, but most people are misinformed about Christopher Columbus. Many people believe that Christopher Columbus was the first person to discover North America; however, it is quite the contrary. There were many explorers that came to North America, and also there were permanent settlers that moved to North America during the ice age when the land bridge connecting Asia to North America existed. All things considered, the Columbus Day holiday should not be celebrated in the United States, because Columbus was not the first person to discover America, and he tried to enslave the Native Americans, also, he believed the Native Americans were a barbaric, primitive, and unintelligent race, who were beneath his European standards.

There were many explorers that had made the treacherous journey across the Atlantic Ocean to North America, for instance: the Vikings had a major expedition to North America, in which Erik the Red was exiled from Iceland for committing manslaughter. He set sail westward and landed on Southern Greenland, and after many years Greenland colonists found the settlement of Erik the Red. Another famous expedition was by Bjarne Herjólfsson; a merchant whose ship was blown off course by a terrible storm, and, after sailing for three days westward, he founded an unknown land. Although, some might argue that all the Nordic explorations to North America were a collection of myths and were hoaxes, because there is not any sufficient evidence to show the Vikings imprint on the land. But, the undeniable truth is that the Paleo-Indians were the first human beings to conquer the vast American wilderness. They made their way across the land bridge during the last ice age on the Bering land