Columbus Day: A Complex History

<p>Many Americans celebrate the discovery of the United States. However, out of all the American holidays, Columbus Day has a long and complicated history.</p> <p>Christopher Columbus mistakenly landed on what would become the United States on October 12, 1492, while on course to India. His &ldquo;discovery&rdquo; set the tone for worldwide exploration. Three hundred years after the &ldquo;discovery,&rdquo; the political organization Tammany Hall commemorated the moment with the first Columbus Day in October of 1792. The day was observed intermittently throughout the next century. President Benjamin Harrison made it a one-time observance in 1892. Years of lobbying by the Knights of Columbus led to the day becoming an official observance by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1937. This period also was a time fraught with discrimination against Italian Americans.</p> <p><a href="https://adreonp.medium.com/columbus-day-a-complex-history-87c45796af15"><strong>Website</strong></a></p>