Fall has officially arrived, bringing a stretch of major holidays. The first being Columbus Day, celebrated on October 13 this year.

Columbus Day is a federal holiday in the United States, celebrated on the second Monday in October, to commemorate Christopher Columbus’s landing in the Americas on October 12, 1492.

Made a U.S. federal holiday in 1937, interestingly, thirteen states—Alaska, Hawaii, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oregon, South Dakota, Vermont, Washington, and

Wisconsin—don’t recognize the holiday.

Many Italian Americans celebrate their heritage, highlighting their contributions to U.S. history.

Fire Department trucks move along Fifth Avenue in the 75th Annual Columbus Day Parade, Manhattan. the largest celebration of Italian-American heritage and culture in the US — Photo by Sam Aronov

  • So, who is Christopher Columbus, and why is the holiday contested?

On this day in 1492, one of the sailors on the Pinta sighted land, an island in the Bahamas, after 10 weeks of sailing from Palos, Spain, with the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa María.

The Italian explorer Christopher Columbus believed he’d reached East Asia. He’d sighted Cuba and thought it was China. When the expedition landed on Hispaniola, he thought he’d found Japan.

His discovery introduced Europeans to the New World, which led to cultural exchange, commerce, and exploration, and eventually to the discovery of the real westward route to the Indies.

But Columbus Day and the man who inspired it also generate controversy. Many argue that Europeans got land, slaves, and gold, while the aboriginals were dispossessed, enslaved, and infected.

Protests of Columbus Day celebrations resulted in the creation of Indigenous Peoples’ Day in the 1990s to coincide with Columbus Day. Many honor the day and not Columbus.

Columbus Day reminds me of the jingle I had to learn for school:

Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492.

I learned it’s only the first line of a 493-word poem by Winifred Sackville Stoner, Jr. Check out “The History of the U.S.” by Winifred Sackville Stoner if you want to review your US history.

Which will you celebrate today, Columbus Day or Indigenous Peoples’ Day, or both?

I’ll be celebrating both, but most of all being thankful that my teacher never made me recite Stoner’s entire poem!