LETTER: Rejoice in the positives of Columbus Day

To the editor:

When I hear people talk of getting rid of Columbus Day, it makes me realize how the climate of America has changed to be so divisive. Instead of using it as a holiday to come together, some people try to make it into a reason to divide people into groups and separate all our cultures putting more importance on one than the other. The definition of heritage is something that is handed down from the past, as a tradition.

Columbus Day is part of my heritage as it is part of all Americans. It’s a holiday to feel the excitement of exploration and to remember the people of the past who made America what it is today.

It is a holiday at the heart of America, the bringing together of many cultures and heritages, which is what has made America so great, diverse, productive, and in the end free to live as yourself in a community of many cultures. The many different Americans; American Indians, Eskimos, Italians, Norwegians, Irish, Scottish, Russian, English, French, Germans, Chinese, Indians, Hawaiians, Africans, just to name a few, have all been mixed together, and I am proud to be part of this culture, The American Culture. As far as I know, I have no Italian blood in me, but Columbus Day is part of my culture, The American Culture.

So, instead of dwelling on the negatives, rejoice because of all the positive things America is. Let Columbus Day be what it truly is, an American holiday for ALL Americans.

—Lynette Warhus

Wasilla