Yesterday was a holiday for some.
Our Canadian neighbors celebrated Thanksgiving.
In parts of the U.S. schools and government offices were closed for Columbus Day. I have heard that some places have big parades to celebrate Columbus Day, but I have never seen one. In Vermont the weekend is peak leaf peeping season. That creates a parade of sorts on the State’s highways with the crush of cars and tour busses.
This year our Governor made a proclamation that Vermont would celebrate Indigenous People Day on October 10th.
“The state of Vermont recognizes the historical, cultural, and contemporary significance of the Indigenous Peoples of the lands that later became known as the Americas, including Vermont, and values the many contributions of these peoples,” the proclamation states. The proclamation also honors the Abenaki and their ancestors and allies, who first lived upon the lands later known as Vermont.
There are those who speak of “making America great again.” To my way of thinking, that would involve the rigorous study of a nation’s history with none of the inconvenient bits left unexamined. And certainly not repeated.
Act 3 
I taught my students the true story of Columbus without being too specific since they were 1st graders. We need to learn from past mistakes and not make them again. Having an indigenous day will hopefully help to bring awareness and understanding.
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Looking back on our history and how we treated the indigenous people — we should all just hang our heads in shame. We were horrible people. And you’re right, we shouldn’t repeat those mistakes.
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Plenty of inconvenient bits to look at. History, as they say, is written by the victors. It is a nice sentiment to share some recognition.
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I only know that I went to the post office on Monday and it was closed. That was how I learned it was Columbus Day.
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Being a grandkid of immigrants from Korea, I certainly don’t consider myself indigenous.
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