Columbus critic spreads dishonest history

Dear Editor: Re “LETTER: Columbus is part of our history but should not be glorified,” by Joyce Benedict, Oct. 18, 2017: The writer opted to denigrate the discoverer of America.

She notes the Arawak Indians that received Columbus on Hispaniola were decimated by European diseases. True, the Indians were sickened by smallpox, measles, malaria, etc. In return, the Europeans received from the Indians syphilis, polio, hepatitis, etc. When cultures mix, they exchange diseases. Probably Indians were more susceptible due to being isolated and lacking an extended maritime history.

The writer tells of Columbus conducting a program of genocide against indigenous people. When Columbus returned on his second voyage, the fort he had built was in ruins, destroyed by another (Taino) tribe. The land was littered with corpses including some of the Spaniards left behind to establish a new settlement. There are indications that the Arawak were eaten by another tribe, as cannibalization was practiced by some South American Indians.

Yes, there was some slavery by Columbus, which was culturally acceptable at the time. But the church opposed it and eventually won the day.

Apparently, the writer has been propagandized by the cultural left and needs to detox herself from dishonest American history.

Art Nicholson, Staatsburg