Vote Delayed Again On Changing Columbus Day As Holiday Approaches

COOK COUNTY, IL — The Cook County Board of Commissioners voted to defer a resolution that, if passed, would change Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples' Day countywide. The recent delay is the second time the board has pushed back a vote on the issue, despite protest from Native American communities.

The Tuesday meeting was also met with blowback from the county's Italian American community and Black descendants of those formerly enslaved by Native American tribes who still are not recognized members of the group.

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The resolution would not change the date of the federal holiday, but it would exclusively recognize the second Monday in October as Indigenous Peoples' Day in county materials and on county calendars.

In May, the resolution appeared to have enough support to pass for the first time in the county's history, but it was delayed by County Commissioner Stanley Moore, whose grandfather was a Choctaw Freedman.

Moore said his grandfather was just as much a member of the tribe as other descendants, but he had been denied the official recognition and membership that would give him access to housing assistance and casino profits.

Chicago Public Schools voted to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples' Day last year after saying they did not support Christopher Columbus' acts of genocide against Native Americans when he and other white explorers first came to the Americas.

"Genocide, rape, murder, colonization, slavery. That's the legacy of Columbus," said Les Begay, a citizen of the Dine Nation at a recent committee meeting. "We're asking for recognition. We're asking for reconciliation for the atrocities and the murders of the indigenous people."

However, some Italian Americans in the county argued the holiday represents Italian heritage in the face of violence, particularly against Sicilian Americans in the U.S.

"If any other groups want to have their own reconciliation day, there's 364 other days in a calendar year, but do not attempt to take this day away with such a historic significance for 20 million Italian Americans in this country," said Salvatore Camarda, the second vice president of the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans.

With the holiday swiftly approaching Oct. 11, activists said they will continue to protest and advocate for change before Columbus Day is celebrated again next year.