Columbus Day? School Committee Meeting January 2Nd, 2019 History of Columbus Day Holiday

Columbus day? School Committee Meeting January 2nd, 2019 History of Columbus Day Holiday 1892- Benjamin Harrison makes it a national holiday after a campaign promise in order to get Catholic immigrants to vote for him 1925- President Calvin Coolidge- fights for Leif Erikson day and in 1930 it becomes a holiday in Wisconsin 1937- first federal observance of the day (under FDR) in order to give Americans a sense of pride during the Great Depression 1971- official Federal holiday (under Nixon) ● Note that Italy does not fully celebrate the holiday except for Genoa (his home place) ● Note that Spain does celebrate a form of Columbus Day but it is used as a day to celebrate the monarchy and is not widespread throughout the country History of Indigenous People’s Day 1992- Berkeley, California “[Columbus] was one of the first Europeans to get to the American continent, but there was a lot of history that came after that in terms of the wiping out of native people,” Hancock says. “It just didn’t seem appropriate. It seemed like a reemphasizing of history and recognizing that to be very ethnocentric really diminishes us all.”- then mayor of Berkeley Loni Hancock on the decision to change the day On teaching Columbus “We need students to understand that Columbus is important, even if he isn’t someone to be celebrated. He initiated a turning point in our history.” - Leah Shafer Bari Walsh Harvard School of Education FHS approaches it from a teaching perspective and not from a celebratory one Lesson: The Columbian Exchange Objectives & Skills By the end of the lesson, students will be able to: 1. Describe the Columbian Exchange 2. Evaluate the overall impact of the Columbian Exchange During this lesson, students will develop the following skills: 1. Collaboration 2. Comparison 3. Causation 4. Evaluation 5. Critical Thinking Lesson Sequence 1. Students are divided into two groups: New World and Old World 2. Participation Roles are assigned: facilitator, leader, time keeper, supplies manager, checker, and reporter. 3. Each group creates restaurant menus using available resources 4. Presentation and discussion: How difficult was it to create the menus? Why? Part 2 5. Columbian Exchange: Groups can exchange resources 6. Presentation and discussion: a. In comparison to before the Columbian Exchange, how difficult was it to create the menus? Why? b. What else was transported in the Columbian Exchange? Lesson Sequence Part 3 8. Students turn cards over, X in the New World indicates that the student has died from diseases. 9. Discussion: ● Why did people in the New World die? ● How did the Columbian Exchange affect Europeans? How did it affect Native Americans? 10. In writing: Was the Columbian Exchange a positive or negative development? Explain. Lesson: The People vs. Columbus, et al. By the end of the lesson, students will be able to - Determine who is responsible for the death of millions of Tainos on the island of Hispaniola through a trial role play During this lesson, students will develop the following skills 1. Collaboration 2. Critical thinking 3. Causation 4. Evaluation 5. Creating historical argument Lesson Sequence Introduction: Students are told that a monstrous crime was committed in the years after 1492, when perhaps as many as three million or more Taínos on the island of Hispaniola lost their lives. (Most scholars estimate the number of people on Hispaniola in 1492 at between one and three million; some estimates are lower and some much higher. By 1550, very few Taínos remained alive.) Who — and/or what — was responsible for this slaughter? This is the question students confront here. The lesson begins as follows: 1. The defendants names are on the board: Columbus, Columbus’ men, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, the Taínos, and the System of Empire. Each are charged with murder 2. The students will be assigned one of these, and their responsible for defending themselves against the charges, and to explain who they think is guilty and why. Order of activity 3- In their groups, students will prepare a defense against the charges contained in the indictments. 4- Before the trial begins, the teacher will choose several students, who will be sworn to neutrality. These people will be the jury. 5- The teacher plays the role of the prosecutor and argues the guilt of each group 6- Members in the group accused by the prosecutor will then defend themselves and will state who they believe is guilty and why. Students may call witnesses as well. Order of activity 7- The jury will then question that group, and others may also question the group and offer rebuttals. 8- This process is repeated until all the groups have been accused and have defended themselves. The jury will then decide guilt and innocence. Why does this matter? “This is the first time I’ve liked history because finally I can connect with the people, because they are like me” - former FHS student speaking about taking an African American history class at UMASS Amherst Research and students, including the Black Student Union, have been clear: Our curriculum needs to match our student population if we want to maximize learning. 2019 Project: Comprehensive revision of the Early US History to include missing discourses: Native American, Immigrant, African American, Latino, LGBTQ and people with disabilities and learning diferences. Final thought ...Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant put it well when she explained Seattle’s decision to abandon Columbus Day: “Learning about the history of Columbus and transforming this day into a celebration of Indigenous people and a celebration of social justice … allows us to make a connection between this painful history and the ongoing marginalization, discrimination, and poverty that Indigenous communities face to this day.”.

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