Columbus and the Indians, Essay Example

History has a great a great explanation about the encounters of Christopher Columbus and the Indians. Some of these happenings in History have had a great impact on the livelihoods of today and the present society at large. The Indians had a very rough and painful experience in their encounters with Christopher Columbus. When Columbus arrived on the Bahamas Islands, he found the Arawak people very naïve and generous more than any one could believe (Berkhofer 28). Noticing their weaknesses, he decided to exploit them for slavery and gold that was in abundance on the Islands. This motive was supported by the western civilization of the Europeans and their passion for money, which prompted them to view the Arawaks as an economic good for slavery and mining of gold. When he went back to Spain, he promised his people more slaves and gold so that they would finance his second expedition. Morison (78) says that when he failed to get more gold and slaves from the Islands, he subjected the Indians to extreme sufferings so that they could fetch gold for him and work as slaves. Most of the Indians died working for Columbus in their land while others died on the way while being transported to Spain. The Tragic events that faced the Arawak people made many of them to die in the hands of Columbus and others committed suicide for fear of the painful death from the Spaniards (Sale 117-121).

These events led to extinction of the whole Arawak community. The imagination of the whole majority of the native Americas being wiped out and their land being taken over is something to be remembered in history. This is something that has led to the present American land not being claimed of indigenous ownership by any one. Since everyone in America is a foreigner. The people in the land are all unfairly occupying the land after Columbus led to the deaths of all the natives.

Despite all this happenings, Columbus is still being regarded as a hero. It appears as if all the American society appreciates the works of Columbus in wiping out all the Arawak community. In regard to this, Columbus Day was set a national when people celebrate him (Berkhofer 176-177). The tragic moments that faced the Indians were all in the name of western civilization and progress. The spirit of conquest can still be seen in the Present American people who are mere inhabitants of the land from Europe and other countries. The whole American community under the umbrella of United States in deed seems to operate in unity with common interest in this context. This can be seen by how the American community seeks to gain territorial expansion and control, which is a sense of selfish interests as pioneered by the European hero Christopher Columbus when he conquered the Indians. This can be best proven by the war on Iraq.

The same spirit of conquest can be seen by how the Europeans Invaded the African land under colonialism. The colonialists also captured slaves from Africa and transported them to Europe and America, exploited all the natural resources in Africa leaving the continent lagging behind in economic development. The slave trade that happened in Africa led to large irreparable effects to the present communities especially in Africa. This is all as a result of the conquest attitude pioneered by Columbus among the European natives.

The mixture of races and cultures in America is as a result of these historical events. Most of the white Americans whose majority is native Europeans still regard other races as inferior, since they are the conquerors of the land in history. The blacks are still viewed as inferior as their fore fathers worked as slaves to the white community. This aspect greatly affects the present social status in America and Europe where racial discrimination is still among the people. The historical enmity still prevails to present date.

Columbus linked his activities to heavenly performances and in the end performing great in human activities (keen 102). The great injustices and genocide of these times that Columbus performed with passion will always be remembered all through the coming generations. They have made the present society to learn to appreciate the diversity of cultures and coexistence. By reference to these historical times, the life experiences of the conquered and the slaves makes every society today to avoid any activities that might lead to the reoccurrence of these events. The message of peace and democracy is present in every society today. Many societies especially the American Indians condemn the celebration of Columbus Day. They are pushing for the Congress to Denounce the day as a public holiday.

Works Cited

Benjamin, Keen. The Life of Admiral Christopher Columbus: by his Son Ferdinand. New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 1992

Kirkpatrick, Sale. Christopher Columbus and the Conquest of Paradise: Second Edition. London: Tauris Parke Paperbacks, 2006

Robert, Berkhofer F. The White Man’s Indian: Images of the American Indian Columbus to the Present. London: Vintage, 1979

Samuel, Morison E. Admiral of the Ocean Sea: A life of Christopher Columbus. New York: Little, Brown and Company, 1991