Cristopher Colombia in primary school curriculum

[Donotfitin]

So the school just sent the curriculum
for my DS year (Y1). They called him a “significant explorer”. I immediately queried it, because as a Latin American he’s seen as a very divisive figure who brought rape, disease, and genocide. In my country (Mexico) we’ve completely removed that date from
our calendar, and the statues, etc… have now been removed.

I‘m not against it, but I just want a nuanced approach. So AIBU?

All History in summary

Humans are power driven dickheads who love stealing land.

He IS significant because he "discovered" the Americas, albeit somewhat accidentally.

Arguments about rape, pillage, slave trade, pestilence are all moot, as its history, its gone and standards were different at the time.

People need to learn history, and they need to learn that good AND bad things happened, and that many people from history, just like those of us living today, are complex, didn't get everything right, may have done good AND bad.

I would definitely want my y1 child to be taught about rape and genocide.

Slight correction:

Male humans.

But, yes. Almost no-one comes out of history well.

True. Male humans.

Also did you see Trump and the US male hockey team, laughing at inviting the women's hockey team to a Celebration

@DeftWasp
He IS significant because he "discovered" the Americas, albeit somewhat accidentally.

He didn't, though, did he? Otherwise there would have been no-one there to colonise. His expeditions were significant, but they should not be referred to as discoveries. They were conquests.

Not just male humans.

The BBC bitesize y1 content was shared on the first page of this thread and shows that OPs concerns are covered in the way it is taught (although it skips the rape obviously).

Definitely no need to go in 'all guns blazing', but you could email in to say you've seen the BBC bitesize content and it was a relief as due to your heritage it had been a shock to see him on the curriculum list. And offer your help should they want to have the kids speak to you or write you questions! When I taught that age group we loved having people with relevant expertise to draw from- made the learning much more engaging.

But at least he knows what a woman is.

[Sarcasm]

Exactly, that’s what they were. And the vast majority of the population (at least in Mexico) descends from the rape that they inflicted.

There's plenty of literature around it, but here’s a summary of what the Nobel Laureate, Octavio Paz wrote about it.

https://www.scribd.com/document/234396982/Sons-of-Malinche

I don’t think there’s any hatred, but the prejudice from a minority of people certainly got tiresome in my years living in England. Only a minority, but you never knew when it would rear its ugly head.

I agree, but have you heard of Amerigo Vespucci and Norse people arriving there? Columbus never set foot in north America.

There DEFINITELY is hatred. Probably more in Ireland at this stage, than in England. Ive lived in Ireland. Ive heard Irish people talk about English people with such utter hatred. They hate English people because of what happened. My friend (not english or irish) moved to Ireland. He told me that he went on a boat trip in Ireland. An Irish man was rowing him across.

My friend told me that the whole way there and back, the man spoke about how much he hated English people.

Leif Erikson was the first European to land in America anyway, not Columbus.

He was there 500 years before.

He was without doubt a "significant explorer" though wasn't he?

Completely a random comment but the “Leif Erickson” song by Interpol is fantastic!

Interesting that the only encounter you describe is hearsay, based on what a friend told you someone rowing a boat said to him. I spent almost 30 years in England dealing with the prejudices of a minority, and I’m not going to relate them. I’m out of this thread.

Where did I write that that was my "only encounter". I've had a lot more encounters and heard a lot more things.

My English cousin went to school in Ireland for a while. He was so badly bullied for being English that his family left Ireland.

As I said, I'm tired of the hatred between the two countries

No-one's disputing that, but you can't frame him like he's an Amundsen, or like it was the moon landings. He wasn't heading out into the unknown in the spirit of discovery, he was looking for a trade route to existing territories, in order to exploit it. He fully expected to find people, and went armed in order to subdue them.

According to these articles (Oct and Nov 2024), the data has not been published or peer reviewed:

International experts slam alleged Columbus DNA findings.

World leaders in this field condemn the way in which the data on the supposed origins of the explorer has been released and question its validity...

It seems easy to use the power of DNA to claim that Columbus was a Sephardic Jew born on the Iberian Peninsula, but all the experts who spoke to EL PAÍS argue it is impossible to reach such a conclusion. Researchers caution that such an unsubstantiated announcement tarnishes the reputation of the broader scientific community.

Since the documentary aired, Lorente has stated that he will not answer questions until he gives a press conference in November, when he plans to present the results. He has promised that the findings will be published in an international scientific journal, so that they are accessible to all researchers and experts. However, as of now, no one has seen the data.

https://english.elpais.com/science-tech/2024-10-17/international-experts-slam-alleged-columbus-dna-findings-commenting-on-this-is-like-commenting-on-aliens.html

Nov 2024
The controversial forensic scientist José Antonio Lorente, who has spent more than two decades analyzing the DNA of the alleged bones of Christopher Columbus and his relatives without publishing any conclusive data, has indefinitely postponed the presentation of his findings...

Although no comprehensive study has yet been published, the documentary aired on Spanish television last month made world headlines. “Columbus probably Spanish and Jewish, study says,” was the headline of a BBC story...

https://english.elpais.com/science-tech/2024-11-25/presentation-of-analysis-on-christopher-columbus-alleged-remains-postponed-indefinitely.html

I found this info regarding Columbus Day being celebrated in the US. I knew that it had been renamed in some states.
https://www.officeholidays.com/holidays/usa/columbus-day-state-guide

Honestly at primary level, how much detail are they going to go into? Surely it'll be he sailed on this ship to this place, then on this other ship to this other place, he got lost a lot and there's a theory that he brought back x and y things to Europe.

Which was pretty standard for the time

we went into much more detail than that!

They do. But what they need to learn is that he was a bit thick, he thought he had gone to the west of India until he died. And that he discovered none of the mainland americas, being as he never set foot there.

And that disease, subjugation, slavery, rape and war followed him.