Δαφνη Ευτυχια Αρθουρος

"The District and other jurisdictions in the Washington region have passed legislation to change the Columbus Day name in honor
of Native Americans.

[...]

In the District, the bill is awaiting the signatures of D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson (D) and Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D), according to Grasso's office. Mendelson and Bowser didn't respond to requests for comment Thursday.

[...]

"Grasso, who also opposes the Washington Redskins name, has helped to push a similar bill for the past five years. The legislation passed this week changes the name only for this year, but Grasso said he hopes to make it permanent.

"'It's important for us to recognize the people who were already here before we came over from Europe,' Grasso said. 'Too often we've done a bad job recognizing Native Americans and given too much credit to Columbus.'"

-- Dana Hedgpeth, Indigenous Peoples' Day to replace Columbus Day in the District, other jurisdictions, 2019-10-10

"The Council voted on two versions of the bill - emergency and temporary. Once signed by Mayor Muriel Bowser, the emergency legislation puts the measure into immediate action, without need for congressional approval or second reading, for 90 days, according to the D.C. Council site.

"The temporary legislation has a shelf life of 225 days and requires congressional approval - meaning that as of now the bill is active until around mid-May 2020. If no permanent legislation is produced by Oct. 14, 2020, the name of the holiday will return to Columbus Day."

-- Christian Zapata, Council Votes To Rename Columbus Day To Indigenous Peoples' Day In D.C., 2019-10-08

"Some states like Oregon, Iowa, and Nebraska have never observed it. South Dakota renamed it 'Native American Day' in 1990, while Hawaii has called the holiday 'Discoverers' Day' - in honor of the state's Polynesian founders - since 1988. As public awareness has increased, numerous schools and universities across the country have also stopped marking the event. A 2015 survey conducted by the Pew Research Center found that Columbus Day was the most inconsistently-observed US holiday."

-- Meera Dolasia, "New Mexico, Vermont, And Maine Replace Columbus Day With Indigenous Peoples' Day", 2019-10-08

---

[As for other major holidays today, happy Thanksgiving to my Canadian friends, and fair weather for Sukkot to my Jewish friends!]