Columbus

Abolish Columbus Day

Did you see the good news out of Seattle this past week? First the school board, then the city council, voted to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples' Day. It's a sign that more and more people want to learn—and teach—the truth about our history.
Continue reading

Even the Rain/También la lluvia

Film. Directed by Icíar Bollaín and written by Paul Laverty. 2010. 103 minutes.
As a crew shoots a film about Columbus' genocide, local people in Cochabamba, Bolivia rise up against plans to privatize the water supply.
Continue reading

Hurricane Dancers

Book — Fiction. By Margarita Engle. 2011. 160 pages.
Historical fiction in the form of poetry about the conquest and resistance.
Continue reading
Rethinking Columbus: The Next 500 Years (Teaching Guide) | Zinn Education Project: Teaching People's History

Rethinking Columbus

One of the most popular teaching activities on the Zinn Education Project website is The People vs. Columbus, et al. which challenges student to critically examine the motivations for and impact of Christopher Columbus’ arrival in Hispaniola.
Continue reading
The People vs. Columbus, et al. (Lesson) | Zinn Education Project

The People vs. Columbus, et al.

Teaching Activity. By Bill Bigelow with contributions from members of the Taíno Community. Rethinking Schools. 13 pages.
A trial role play asks students to determine who is responsible for the death of millions of Taínos on the island of Hispaniola in the late 15th century.
Teaching Activity by Bill Bigelow
Continue reading
Bartolome de las Casas

Columbus and Las Casas

Teaching Activity. By Gayle Olson-Raymer. 15 pages.
Questions and teaching ideas for Chapter 1 of Voices of a People's History of the United States on Columbus' arrival in the "New World," and the contrasting accounts of Bartolome de Las Casas and Eduardo Galeano.
Continue reading