Columbus Blog #8

Columbus' status in history is very debatable; some historians believe that he is a hero for being the first European to discover North America, however others believe he should be considered a villain because his treatment of the native peoples whom he called Indians was very cruel and inhumane. However, I believe that Columbus was more villain than hero. If Columbus had not discovered North America, it is inevitable that another European would have. So, although Columbus is credited for dicovering North America, his accomplishment does not make up for the cruel ways he treated the Indians. Columbus and his men exploited the Indians and made them work long hours for the gold Columbus had promised the king and queen of Spain. When the Indians did not bring Columbus the amount of gold they were required to bring, they were mutiliated by Columbus. This was extremely unfair because the Indians were working extremely hard under Columbus' orders but there was just not as much gold as Columbus told the king and queen there was. This was so unfair because the shortage of gold was Columbus' fault; yet the Indians, people who lived in America first, were the ones blamed and brutally punished. Instead of trying to cooperate with the Native Americans, Columbus and his men immediately deemed them as enemies and forced the Indians to either work for them or live on reservations. Although Columbus "discovered America" for Europe, his methods of settling the continent are not to be admired. For these reasons, it is reasonable to say that Columbus should be considered more villain than hero.