Indigenous people's day marked with celebrations

(14 Oct 2019) A handful of states are celebrating their first Indigenous Peoples Day on Monday as part of a trend to move away from a day honoring Christopher Columbus.

New Mexico, Vermont and Maine are among the latest to pass measures doing away with Columbus Day celebrations in deference to Native Americans. The federal Columbus Day holiday remains in place.

In all, around 10 states observe some version of Indigenous Peoples Day in October, along with more than 100 U.S. cities. A celebration was also held in Seattle Monday.

Since 1992, Native American advocates have pressed states to change Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day over concerns that Columbus helped launched centuries of genocide against indigenous populations in the Americas.

The change to Indigenous Peoples Day prompted some backlash in conservative circles and among Italian Americans.



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