Trump reinstates Columbus Day, reigniting U.S. debate over Indigenous heritage

U.S. President Donald Trump has reinstated Columbus Day as a national holiday, calling the explorer “America’s original hero” and hailing Italian-American contributions — a move that has reignited fierce debate over Indigenous Peoples’ Day and colonial legacy.

President Trump’s proclamation, signed on 9 October, restores Columbus Day as a nationwide holiday and pays tribute to Christopher Columbus as a “giant of Western civilisation.” The statement denounced “left-wing radicals” who, he said, sought to erase the explorer’s legacy by removing statues and renaming the federal holiday.

The decision marks a cultural reversal from recent years, when dozens of U.S. states and cities had replaced Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples’ Day to honour Native American communities and acknowledge the violent aftermath of European colonisation.

Trump’s message described the 1492 voyage as an act of “faith, courage and perseverance,” while omitting reference to the suffering of Indigenous populations caused by colonisation, forced labour and imported disease. “More than 500 years after Columbus arrived in the New World, we follow his example and offer our gratitude for his courage and valour,” the proclamation reads.

Critics, including Native American scholars and community leaders, accused the president of glorifying colonial violence. Kerri Malloy, a professor of Native American Studies, told NPR that “you can’t tell the story of exploration without telling the story of exploitation.”

Columbus’s origins have long been contested, with theories suggesting Genoese, Catalan, Portuguese or Galician roots. Trump’s statement, however, unambiguously identified him as Italian, aligning the holiday with the Italian-American community for whom Columbus Day has historically symbolised pride and resilience.

The holiday was first established in 1892, following the lynching of 11 Italian immigrants in New Orleans, and later became a federal holiday in 1934. In 2021, President Joe Biden was the first to officially recognise Indigenous Peoples’ Day on the same date.

More than 17 U.S. states and numerous cities are expected to continue celebrating Indigenous Peoples’ Day despite Trump’s proclamation. Several Indigenous organisations called the decision a return to “colonial myths and lies,” while the White House framed it as a celebration of “heritage and courage.”

Trump’s move underscores the deep cultural divisions that continue to shape American identity — and the enduring question of whether the nation can celebrate its immigrant heritage while confronting the darker chapters of its past.

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