Albuquerque replaces Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples Day
Albuquerque has joined several other US cities to abolish Columbus Day and replace it with Indigenous Peoples Day.
Honoring Christopher Columbus rejects the painful history of colonialism and enslavement, Native American activists say.
Critics of observing the day at the city councils in Minneapolis and Seattle decided last year to abolish the day, what appears to be having a domino effect.
Albuquerque was the last one to join, with city council members lately voting six to three to recognize the second Monday of October as a day for the indigenous people of the land.
The largest city in New Mexico, Albuquerque has the highest concentration of Native Americans, 4.6, in the state.
Other cities supporting the cause include Portland, Ore.; St. Paul, Minn.; and Olympia, Wash.
Back in 1934, US Congress assigned the day as a federal holiday to honor Columbus.
Activists are making efforts to bring about a national recognition of the indigenous culture.
“We understand it’s just a proclamation, but at the same time, we also understand this is the beginning of something greater,” Nick Estes, an indigenous activist in Albuquerque told AP.
“For the Native community here, Indigenous Peoples Day means a lot. We actually have something,”
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