President Biden has proclaimed the first Friday in October this year, Oct. 8, as Indigenous People’s Day, becoming the first U.S. president to acknowledge that holiday. For years, municipalities across the country have been replacing the Columbus Day holiday with Indigenous People’s Day in recognition of Chirstopher Columbus’ well-documented and intentional genocidal actions against the Indigenous peoples he encountered in this hemisphere. Over 100 cities have declared Indigenous Peoples’ Day commemorations in this manner. Biden took a different tactic, releasing two simultaneous declarations of both holidays on the same day.
A Columbus statue was officially removed from Tower Grove Park in June 2020 after over a century of standing at one of the park’s entrances. The removal was accompanied by a press release stating that “for many, [Columbus] symbolizes a historical disregard for indigenous peoples and cultures and destruction of their communities.”
White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters that Friday’s announcement didn’t entail ending Columbus Day as a federal holiday.
“Well, today is both Columbus Day, as of now … as well as Indigenous Peoples’ Day,” Psaki said. “I’m not aware of any discussion of ending that either, ending the prior federal holiday at this point, but I know that recognizing today as Indigenous Peoples’ Day is something that the President felt strongly about personally, he’s happy to be the first president to celebrate and to make it, the history of moving forward.”
In his declaration, Biden wrote, “For generations, Federal policies systematically sought to assimilate and displace Native people and eradicate Native cultures. Today, we recognize Indigenous peoples’ resilience and strength as well as the immeasurable positive impact that they have made on every aspect of American society. We also recommit to supporting a new, brighter future of promise and equity for Tribal Nations — a future grounded in Tribal sovereignty and respect for the human rights of Indigenous people in the Americas and around the world.”
In St. Louis, the movement to re-evaluate the historical glorification of Christopher Columbus has gained steam over the past few years, too. A Columbus statue was officially removed from Tower Grove Park in June 2020 after over a century of standing at one of the park’s entrances. The removal was accompanied by a press release stating that “for many, [Columbus] symbolizes a historical disregard for indigenous peoples and cultures and destruction of their communities.” The land the statue sat on, along with the rest of the St. Louis area, has been home to and stewarded by the Kiikaapoi, Miami, Osage, and Sioux peoples throughout the centuries. There are currently no federally recognized tribes in Missouri. Most Native Americans, including all original tribes to the land, were forced to leave the state during Indian Removal.
This year, a group met to commemorate Indigenous People’s Day in Tower Grove Park. Indigenous People’s Day has been officially recognized by the St. Louis Board of Aldermen since 2018, thanks to a resolution pushed by Alderwoman Christine Ingrassia and Kathy Dickerson. That resolution directly replaced Columbus Day with Indigenous People’s Day, unlike Biden’s recent proclamations.
President Biden has met ire from Indigenous community leaders in recent months due to his actions on environmental issues — and specifically his inaction on the Line 3 pipeline, which is now reportedly operational. On Monday, hundreds of demonstrators led by Indigenous water protectors rallied outside of the White House as part of the “People vs. Fossil Fuels’’ mobilization. This five-day action was called in order to demand that President Biden declare a climate emergency, divest from fossil fuels, and push for a “just, renewable energy revolution.”