Students want to replace Columbus Day with 'Indigenous Peoples' Day'

On Monday, the University of Oklahoma (OU) Graduate Student Association passed a resolution to recognize Indigenous Peoples’ Day in place of the traditional Columbus day, on October 12th.

The initiative was started by a few students representing “Indigenize OU” earlier this month, when they presented the OU Student Government Association with over 100 letters of solidarity from faculty, staff, and fellow students.

Indigenize OU is not officially recognized by the university, according to the school’s website.

Ashley McCray, a member of Indigenize OU, stated that the group was mimicking the language of the resolution from the initiative to recognize the holiday statewide in Oklahoma.

According to The OU Daily, Jesse Robbins, a fellow member of the group, presented the history of the day, focusing on slavery, torture, and the sex trade.

“It’s hard to go through this when your family has been through it. It’s not just a history book to me,” he said.

The resolution passed unanimously in the graduate student association. It will now move to the undergraduate student council before being either approved or vetoed by the student body president.

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