A clip of Vice President Kamala Harris voicing her support for changing Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples’ Day is circulating online, and the Trump campaign has responded.
Harris made her opinion of the holiday and its honoree clear during her failed 2020 presidential campaign and during her time in the Biden-Harris administration, as it was the first to issue a presidential proclamation of Indigenous Peoples’ Day to be honored alongside Columbus Day, a federal holiday established by Congress.
“Every October, the United States has recognized the voyage of the European explorers who first landed on the shores of the Americas,” Harris said during the speech at the National Congress of American Indians Conference in 2021. “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,” Harris continued. “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.”
The Trump campaign addressed this issue in a press release on its official website. The document noted that Harris had exclusively celebrated Indigenous Peoples’ Day over Columbus Day each year and that she told a voter she would support renaming the federal holiday for good.
“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,” Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said in a statement.
“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,” Leavitt added.
“For generations, Indigenous people have protected their lands, languages, knowledge, and traditions. On Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we honor these many contributions and recommit to working alongside Indigenous people to ensure their communities thrive for generations to come,” Harris tweeted last year on Columbus Day.
“On Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we pay respect to Tribal Nations and indigenous history. Today and every day, let us continue to celebrate and uplift the rich contributions of Indigenous peoples—their leadership has made our country stronger,” she shared in 2022.
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