What Are The Pros And Cons Of Christopher Columbus

As the years have gone by, more information regarding the voyages of Christopher Columbus have become more known to man. Things such as genocide, rape, and torture have begun to the question the celebrations of Christopher Columbus. University of Georgia geographer, Louis De Vorsey states how rapid Columbus changed the world. De Vorsey observed how Columbus’s voyages began a progression for conquistadors that led to the decline and eventual termination of the Aztec and Inca civilizations. To add on, Latin American historian, Dauril Alden of the University of Washington reasoned that the Europeans had no intentions of hurting the native people, and that their deaths were inconvenient. He continued to say, that Christopher applied “moral code” when he came upon his men stealing gold. He continues to say, “He was interested in discovery, in wealth and prestige. He wasn’t interested in genocide.” The orthodox views of Louis De Vorsey and Dauril Alden conclude by stating how Columbus was unaware,

Revisionist friar Bartolome de las Casas wrote within 50 years of Columbus’s death that Indians received treatment such as being tortured, killed, and feed to the Europeans’ dogs. Ecologist and historian, Kirkpatrick Sale, wrote in his biography of Columbus, “the Conquest of Paradise,” that Columbus was denounced by the admiral of every transgression including: “lovelessness, avarice, [...] paranoia, ferocity [...].” Sale associates the unacceptable acts of Christopher Columbus to the actions portrayed by Adolf Hitler and Pol Pot. Stated by the revisionists, and the pre-revisionists, students should be taught about the consequential actions of Columbus, and his effect on the Aztec and Inca