Americans have celebrated Columbus Day since 1937 and it has become a proud mark on the calendar. Some have argued that Columbus was the cause of the annihilation of the native population. However, it is important to remember that Columbus was a man of his times, he came to the New World with the intention of expanding its culture and obtaining resources. When the Spanish and Indians met, the clash of the two cultures was complicated. However, Columbus Day should never be put aside, but rather celebrated, because Christopher Columbus' exploration shaped the future of the Americas and is part of our history. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay In the words of the great Samuel Eliot Morison: “The whole history of the Americas arises from the four voyages of Columbus” (Doc 3) . North and South America were fields waiting to be plowed and harvested. The indigenous population did not have the necessary tools to adequately cultivate the land and capitalize on its potential. Columbus wrote in his travel journal: “All their weapons are canes cut at sowing time, at the end of which they attach a sharpened stick.” This is just one example of their weapons, but in comparison to European cannons, the sharpened sticks were primitive. Columbus introduced modern technology to the Americas and ushered in a new era. With this technology, agriculture, the arts, and armies prospered and expanded into rich, expanding cultures. In The People's History of the United States, radical leftist Howard Zinn criticizes Columbus for his violence. Zinn's anarchist tirade was intended solely to "denounce" Columbus as a cruel murderer. He accentuates the negative aspects of his discovery: “When it became clear that there was no more gold, the Indians were reduced to slavery” (Doc 2). Zinn is a well-known and right-thinking liberal who believes he can judge the past in a modern context. The discovery of the New World, 600 years before popular history, was by no means amicable. However, the story is rarely friendly. History should not be judged as if people had the moral high ground of a modern man. Additionally, Zinn never looks at the situation from the Spaniard's point of view. The first group of men to settle in India was killed by the natives. If the Spanish had simply acquiesced and never fought the Indians, then the Spaniard would have been killed. Furthermore, Columbus came to the New World with the intention of cultivating the land's resources, not of maintaining good foreign relations. To believe otherwise would be foolish, Columbus was both a conqueror and an explorer. Yet Columbus' discovery changed the Americas and is forever part of our history. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Conquerors should never be condemned, for ambition and conquest are part of it. of the human condition. To deny the instinctive self is to deny the entire human species. What Columbus and his men did, trying to dominate the native peoples, may not really be worth celebrating. However, Columbus should be a cultural staple because he was the cataclysm that changed the history of not only the Americas, but the world. A crossing of the dark blue Atlantic has never been more influential. Columbus laid the foundation for the world we know today and Columbus Day should be celebrated so that we can..