Christopher Columbus in "The Columbus Lighthouse" ("Faro a Colón"), in Santo Domingo. The anniversary of Columbus's 1492 landing in the Americas is usually observed on 12 October in Spain and throughout the Americas, except Canada. In Spain it is called the "Fiesta Nacional de España y Día de la Hispanidad", while a number of countries in Latin America celebrate it as "Día de la Raza". In the United States it is called Columbus Day and is observed annually on the second Monday in October. There are efforts in the US to rename Columbus Day as Indigenous Peoples' Day. The World Columbian Exposition
Columbus Day strain of criticism of Columbus Day focuses on the character of Columbus himself. In time for the 2004 observation of the day, the final volume of a compendium of Columbus-era documents was published by the University of California, Los Angeles's Medieval and Renaissance Center. It stated that Columbus, while a brilliant mariner, exploited and enslaved the indigenous population. Spelman College historian Howard Zinn described some of the details of how Columbus personally ordered the enslavement and mutilation of the native Arawak people in a bid to repay his investors. Journalist and media critic Norman Solomon reflects, in "Columbus Day: A