Vote Delayed On Renaming Columbus Day After Accusations of Racism

COOK COUNTY, IL — Cook County's vote to rename Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples' Day has been postponed while committee members hear arguments from organizers, many calling on Native Americans to recognize their own role in American slavery before the national holiday can be renamed.

Commissioner Stanley Moore, a descendant of Black people enslaved by Native Americans, called to delay the vote on Monday. While the 4th District commissioner said he doesn't intend to defend Christopher Columbus' crimes against American Indians, he named several tribes that still refuse to recognize his great-great-grandparents as members of the indigenous community.

The Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee [Creek] and Seminole nations were often referred to as the "Five Civilized Tribes" by European settlers because they were first to adopt European dress, religion and practices, such as owning slaves. After the abolition of slavery, indigenous-owned slaves were freed, but weren't fully included in Black communities or later laws benefitting Native Americans.

Moore said he is a direct descendant of a Choctaw Freedman and that he and his ancestors should be allowed to become members of the Choctaw tribe, gaining them access to housing assistance and casino profits awarded to some Native Americans. After years of discussing the definition of Freedmen, most tribes count their descendants in their population numbers but deny them the benefits of full tribal membership.

"They are discriminating against us, and if they do not want to recognize the Freedmen and their descendants, they should no longer accept nor receive federal taxpayers' dollars based upon the census population of the Freedman," Moore said in a statement.

Lively debates followed at Monday's meeting of the Legislation and Intergovernmental Relations Committee. More than 20 speakers were scheduled to argue on behalf of either keeping Columbus Day to support Cook County's Italian-Americans, changing Columbus Day to support Cook County's Indigenous People or withhold the vote altogether to support Black Freedman while they wait for a response from certain tribes.

Committee chair Larry Suffredin said smaller meetings will be held to try and work out a compromise. If no compromise can be reached, the committee will vote on the resolution on June 23.

If passed, Cook County would be one of the first local governments to rename the federal holiday within their area.