Push To Replace Columbus Day In Boston With Indigenous Peoples' Day

BOSTON (CBS/AP) – Columbus Day is Monday and it's still a federal holiday but there has been a growing movement to have it replaced.

Columbus Day marks Christopher Columbus' discovery of the Americas in 1492. But several states, counties and cities are celebrating Indigenous Peoples' Day instead Monday.

Columbus was one of the first Europeans in the New World, credited by many for discovering America. However, critics say his trip began the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Columbus is also criticized for his violent treatment and killing of Native Americans, who see him as a racist.

That's led to the push to rename the second Monday in October Indigenous People's Day. In Massachusetts, Cambridge and Somerville have adopted the holiday.

On Saturday, the North American Indian Center of Boston marched through parts of the city demanding the Mayor and City Council end the annual celebration of Columbus Day. The group also wants Christopher Columbus Park in Boston to be renamed and all Columbus statues in the city removed.

The statue of Columbus that stood in the Boston park was removed in June after it was beheaded. It was the third time it was vandalized since 2006.

The city is repairing the statue and Mayor Marty Walsh announced last week it will be put in a new development being built by the Knights of Columbus.

(© Copyright 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)