Philly Changes Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples' Day

Philadelphia will change Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples’ Day, the city announced. 

The announcement was part of a 6-month update from the city on Philadelphia’s reconciliation work following civil unrest and protests last summer. 

On Jan. 27, Mayor Jim Kenney signed Executive Order 2-21 which marked the change to Indigenous Peoples’ Day on the second Monday of October and also once again recognized Juneteenth, a holiday that celebrates the emancipation of slaves in the United States, as a city holiday. 

The changes will be in place at least through the Kenney administration. The city will also work to make those changes permanent as part of the Collective Bargaining Agreements with the four municipal worker unions which expire this year. 

“Obviously, individuals are free to continue celebrating whatever holidays they choose—this executive order is specific to the list of City Holidays which apply to the City government workforce and City operations,” Lauren Cox, Mayor Kenney’s Deputy Communications Director, told NBC10. 

Debate about Columbus followed widespread protests against racism and police violence after the death of George Floyd last year, a man who died handcuffed and on the ground after a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for nearly 9 minutes, suffocating him.

The protests led to the toppling of Columbus statues and of Confederate monuments around the country as people sought to destroy vestiges of racism.

Though Columbus remains a point of pride for many Italian-Americans, including some in Philadelphia, he has become a controversial figure as people have pointed to his brutality against indigenous people in the Americas as reason for why he should not be revered.

Last summer, a prominent Christopher Columbus statue at Marconi Plaza in South Philadelphia was removed and placed in temporary storage following clashes between protesters and counter-protesters at the location. 

“While changes to City holidays may seem largely symbolic, we recognize that symbols carry power,” Mayor Kenney wrote. "

"We hope that for our employees and residents of color, this change is viewed as an acknowledgment of the centuries of institutional racism and marginalization that have been forced upon Black Americans, Indigenous people, and other communities of color. At the same time, we are clear-eyed about the fact that there is still an urgent need for further substantive systemic change in all areas of local government.”