Amnesty International Protests Holiday

Approximately 30 to 40 students gathered on the steps of Widener Library last night to take part in the third annual Columbus Day Vigil.

The event, which for the first time was officially recognized by the College, included poetry reading, singing of a traditional Native American song and a recount of atrocities committed by Columbus against Native Americans as indicated in his journals.

"Other places have realized that Columbus Day is not about the victory of the West but about the loss of lives and cultures important to this nation," said Claire E. Brillembourg '01, co-president of the Harvard branch of Amnesty International.

This year Amnesty International and the Progressive Jewish Alliance joined Harvard's Native American Program in sponsoring the event.

The event's organizers were forced to relocate the event which has in the past been held at the base of the John Harvard statue and change the atmosphere from one of candlelight to one of flashlight in order to satisfy College regulations.

"I think this is the first year that we tried to officially create [the vigil] so we got a lot more objection from the administration," said Joanne M. Kane '00, a member of the Native American Program.

Kane, an Eskimo from Anchorage, Ak., read a poem by the noted Native American poet Sherman Alexie, titled "Imagining the Reservation."

Michael Kotutwa Johnson, a senior at Cornell University and a member of the Hopi tribe, interrupted the readings to sing a song that he described as the Native American national anthem.

Johnson accompanied himself using a trashcan as a drum.

"I think the trash can symbolizes the way American Indians are treated by the government in today's society," he said.

The drumming and song were well received by the audience, despite the fact that it was not in the program.

"I think having the impromptu drumming was very cool and something that hasn't been done in the past," Kane said.

Brillembourg read a few excerpts from a collection of poetry entitled Columbus.

In closing, Shai M. Sachs '01 read textbook facts he said are often overlooked by students.

"Within 25 years of Columbus' first landing, several million Taino Indians were killed on the island of Hispaniola. Within a century, the entire race had been exterminated," read one of the flyers passed out at the vigil.

Some participants said they anticipated a larger turnout at this year's event, although it was a scaled-down version of previous vigils and included fewer speakers.

"I was surprised at how few people were here," Kata Gellen '00 said.

But despite the relocation of the vigil and the low turnout, organizers said they were positive about the event.

"I think the most important thing is that [the vigil] was done and that someonein the University recognizes the fact that we'restill celebrating the victimization of thousandsof people," Brillembourg said.

Brillembourg noted that Harvard has laggedbehind other schools in recognizing theinappropriateness of celebrating Columbus Day as adiscovery instead of a defeat

Brillembourg noted that Harvard has laggedbehind other schools in recognizing theinappropriateness of celebrating Columbus Day as adiscovery instead of a defeat