By Jermaine Broadnax
Christopher Columbus represents the celebration of the first European atrocity on western soil. A euro-terrorist handcrafted into a Jesus like savior. Christ & Columbus both share national holidays. Black American schoolchildren learn from history teachers and textbooks to give praise to Columbus. This is enforced via reciting poems, singing songs, and perform stage plays. For grown adults, they are rewarded with days off, parades, and discounts at major shopping retailers.
Portuguese & Spanish would refer to dark skin natives as indigo, which evolved into the word Indigenous. Indigo representing a dark purple/black color. Columbus never called them Indians, he called them “indi-men” “indi-man”. The pilgrims would corrupt the word Indi-man and use Indian as way to denounce the power of the black color.
Columbus said, “his journey to the New World was prophesied in the Book of Isaiah”. He would use religion as the Motivation for his murders and rapes. The Spanish Conquest of Central America began On October 12, 1492. A colonizer name “Rodrigo de Triana” spotted land (Bahamas). Columbus later on would steal the credit. He would end up sneaking in a reward of a pension for life for being the first to sight land. The area was called Guanahani by the Lucayan-Arawak Natives. Columbus noticed that the natives had gold hanging from their noses. Columbus knew he wasn’t in India.
Columbus would get lost. And found himself near Cuba. The name Cuaba and Cuba were derived from the name Caobana. The natives called themselves Cubanacan. On October 29, 1492, Columbus documented in his journal, as he was sailing past Gibara on the coast of Cuba, he saw a mosque. These very remains of other masjids have been found in, Mexico, Texas and Nevada. While in Cuba translators from Columbus ship were able to converse in Arabic with the Chief.
Columbus would kidnap tainos from every island he encountered to be translators. On November 1492 Columbus stated “on many occasion in the past, I taken men from Guinea to Portugal in order that they can learn the language, with the thought that when they returned , they might be made good use of”. Which shows that He was an expert slave runner. If the natives refused to convert to the ‘Cross’, take an oath to the church and kneel before the image of the Queen then the entire tribe was murdered on sight. Martin Alonso Pinzon would desert Columbus & traveled to the other side of Cuba to find gold.
On December 24, 1492 Columbus would then venture into modern day Haiti, in the territory ruled by a leader name Guacanagaric, the Marien. Guacanagaric was considered a traitor, he was the first Taino leader to befriend Columbus, and utilize him as protection. Guanagaric gave him gifts, because he and his people thought the ships, and Columbus crew, were from Heaven. He would later, participate in battles against other Taino groups in loyalty to Columbus.
Columbus final voyage ends him in western Panama, on January 9, 1503. When they arrived on the island they started building a garrison fort, as he explored the area. As he was preparing to return to Spain, he took three of his ships out of the river, leaving one with the garrison. April 6, a large force of Indigenous tribes attacked the garrison fort. The Spanish tried to hold off the attack, but Columbus men were getting executed at a high rate, and realized that the garrison fort could not be held for long. Columbus rescued the remaining members of the garrison, losing one of his ships in the process.
The three remaining ships, now badly leaking from shipworm, sailed for home on April 16. On June 25, Columbus would get hit with another hurricane off the coast of Cuba. Searching for another island to land before sinking, Columbus is stranded in St. Anne’s Bay, Jamaica. They began trading with the tainos for food. On the night of February 29, 1504, Jamaican Natives were Tired of dealing with the Spaniards, they stopped supplying them with food. In response, Columbus came up with a trick. Having an almanac with him, he threatened to punish the islanders by taking light away from the Moon. When the Moon began to disappear because of a lunar eclipse, the islanders became alarmed and agreed to reestablish trade with the Spaniards. An expedition finally rescued him & his crew, he would arrive back to Spain, November 7, 1504.
Going into the seventeenth century in America, anti-black hate was at an all-time high, because of the initial efforts of Columbus. Creating an era of war against dark people. Using racism to dehumanize black people, to exploit our culture and keep us powerless in a Columbus mans world.
