Graphic by Ben Nir
Lily Smith
News Columnist
On October 11th, 2021, the City of Newton officially recognized the national holiday as “Indigenous Peoples’ Day” instead of “Columbus Day.” Starting in 2015, many cities across the country began recognizing the holiday formerly devoted to celebrating Christopher Columbus’s discovery of the New World as a celebration of the Native American populations that were settled in our nation—long before any European colonizers.
This year, a multitude of events took place in honor of the holiday, one of which was a ceremony at the Albemarle playground. The ceremony showcased modern Native American artists’ work such as poems, visual arts, songs, and dances. The get-together was also aimed at recognizing cultural and spiritual Native traditions.
Secondly, Newton Community Pride hosted the first official Indigenous Peoples Day Ceremonial Celebration. While the two ceremonies held similar focuses, this one also included a Talking Circle led by elders of the Indigenous Community and a market that featured Indigenous art and products. Similarly, there were multiple performances from Indigenous dancers and musicians.
The choice to recognize Indigenous people’s day is one that seems to be supported by the majority of the Newton Community. Mayor Ruthanne Fuller announced her support in a statement last year, saying that she now understands how blind she was to the harm that celebrating Columbus day inflicted on Indigenous people.
Additionally, junior Caroline Blum states, “I fully support Newton’s decision to change the holiday because we are taught false information about Christopher Columbus in school, and it’s important to send out the correct message about the roots of our country.”
Aeden Kamadolli, Class of 2022, adds, “It’s ridiculous that we hadn’t changed it already. The celebration of someone who is responsible for so much harm and trauma should have never been normalized.”
While we can commend our local government for finally acknowledging the holiday, we as a city still have a long way to go in the fight for equity for all marginalized groups.
