columbus day...

doug the traffic guy for fox25 asked the cast and crew if they knew who signed the bill that made columbus day for october 12th. no one knew (turned out it is FDR) and then he asked who changed it from the 12th (as today is the 10th) which will be the question for the next traffic update.

so i look it up and one of the first links i find on the subject has the following:

Columbus Day

Second Monday in October
1792 a ceremony organized by the Society of St. Tammany, or Colombian Order was held in New York City honoring Columbus and the 300th anniversary of the landing.

Oct. 12 1866 out of the pride for their native son, the Italian population of New York organized the first celebration of the discovery of America.

1869 when Italians in San Francisco celebrated Oct. 12 they called it Columbus Day.

1892 President Benjamin Harrison proclaimed the 400th anniversary of the event.

1905 Colorado became the first state to observe a Columbus Day.

Since 1920 the day has been celebrated annually.

1937 President Franklin Roosevelt proclaimed every Oct. 12 as Columbus Day.

1968 President Johnson declared it a federal public holiday on the 2nd Mon. in Oct.

Historically, Columbus was not the first to discover America, nor was he the first European to land at America. He was the first to exploit, kill, and enslave the Arawak Indians of Haiti.

The myth of Christopher Columbus and the discovery of America is due to Washington Irving. His "biography" of Columbus was popularized in a dramatic and embellished account.

In recent years, the holiday has been rejected by many people who view it as a celebration of conquest and genocide. In its place, Indigenous Peoples Day is celebrated.

aren't we so proud?