Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer and navigator who completed four voyages on his ships across the Atlantic Ocean. A lot of people credit him with the discovery of America because his first voyage was the beginning of Europeans coming to the Americas and settling there. But others would think differently about his voyages.

The reason that we celebrate him is for finding America and most importantly, for making it know to the Europeans that America was there. His discovery allowed different types of people to share the land with the Native Americans. Another reason we should still celebrate Columbus Day is that he carved a path for many European’s and many others to migrate to the Americas. Columbus’ journey opened up the land to people who would have never found it. To this day a lot of America has ancestors that came from Europe, and without Columbus, there is a chance that a large amount of Americans and their ancestors would not have had the great opportunity to come to America.

Many people discredit him because he is accused of killing many Native Americans. I think that this was an unnecessary thing that he did, but I  believe it is way overblown. It is very hard to judge someone from another time period. So even though he took people as slaves and killed some people, actions like these were much more accepted in that time period. Especially for what they were doing. They needed land, and hardly does someone take over or get land without at least some violence.

The last reason I think we should celebrate him was his bravery. It was a dangerous voyage but he persisted and he made it to the Americas. Many people tried to come and they failed. His being the first one to get here is a good of example for people about how being brave can lead to good things. He became really famous for it.

In conclusion, this holiday might  just be seen as a day off of work or school, but the day is also a conflict. One particular group who is upset about the holiday is the Native Americans. But they have the right not to celebrate him because of his killing of their ancestors. However, Columbus was more than a killer. He was a great leader for his men, courageous, and very persistent. This is why I would still like to celebrate Columbus Day.