The Trump campaign said Vice President Kamala Harris’ past comments about renaming Columbus Day revealed her extreme leftist agenda.
The campaign highlighted Ms. Harris’ anti-Columbus stance as the U.S. recognized Columbus Day on Monday.
“Kamala Harris is your stereotypical leftist. Not only does she want to raise taxes and defund the police — she also wants to cancel American traditions like Columbus Day,” said Trump Campaign national press secretary Karoline Leavitt. “President Trump will make sure Christopher Columbus’ great legacy is honored and protect this holiday from radical leftists who want to erase our nation’s history like Kamala Harris.”
The Washington Times reached out to the Harris campaign for comment.
In 2019, Ms. Harris spoke to voters in New Hampshire after launching her first run for the White House.
“Count me in on support,” she told a voter when asked if she favored renaming Columbus Day as “Indigenous People’s Day.”
Ms. Harris discussed legislation she co-authored making lynching a federal crime and compared it to work that needs to be done with Indigenous Americans.
“People did not want to deal and accept and, most importantly admit that we are the scene of a crime when it comes to what we did with slavery and Jim Crow and institutionalized racism in this country, and we have to be honest about that,” she said. “If we are not honest, we are not going to deal with the vestiges of all of that harm, and we are not going to correct course, and we are not going to be true to our values and morals.”
“Similarly, when it comes to Indigenous Americans, the Indigenous people, there is a lot of work that we still have to do, and I appreciate and applaud your point and your effort, and count me in on support [of renaming the holiday],” she said.
President Biden officially recognized Indigenous Peoples’ Day in 2021, and several states acknowledge the day in various ways, but Columbus Day is still a federal holiday that celebrates Christopher Columbus’ 1492 arrival in the Americas. The holiday happens on the second Monday of every October.
In October 2021, Ms. Harris recognized Indigenous Peoples Day but not Columbus Day.
“It is an honor, of course, to be with you this week as we celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day as we speak truth about our nation’s history. Since 1934, every October, the United States has recognized the voyage of the European explorers who first landed on the shores of the Americas,” she said.
“But that is not the whole story. That has never been the whole story. Those explorers ushered in a wave of devastation for tribal nations perpetrating violence, stealing land and spreading disease,” she said. “We must not shy away from this shameful past, and we must shed light on it and do everything we can to address the impact of the past on Native communities today.”
Anti-Columbus protesters in recent years have sought to remove the Italian navigator from his position of prominence, saying that it promotes the genocide of Indigenous peoples and the colonialism of Europeans.
• Kerry Picket can be reached at kpicket@washingtontimes.com.
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