We demand that Columbus Day be reinstated to the school calendar immediately and for the BOE to stop targeting Italian American kids. On May 13, 2021, the following statement was made during the Randolph BOE meeting: "The BOE DISC committee would like to propose [..] to amend already approved future District Calendars starting with next year’s 2021-22 calendar, by replacing Columbus Day with Indig
enous People's Day. This change will strengthen Randolph's commitment to diversity and inclusion and show our community that we embrace the histories of all people." This motion was approved in less than three minutes, with no community input, during the "Old Business" portion of the meeting, when public comments are closed. Many were quite surprised to see how a committee that has the word “inclusion” in its name, did not encourage any discussion or input from the community on this matter BEFORE putting forward such recommendation to the Board of Education. We believe that the Randolph Board of Education missed an important teachable moment, and has shown a lack of commitment to really embrace the history of ALL people. To use the words of Senator Diane Savino, "your insensitive decision to rename Columbus Day, which is a legal Federal holiday, does a terrible disservice to a difficult and complex conversation." While Columbus Day, named for the ITALIAN explorer who sailed to the Americas on behalf of Spain more than 500 years ago, has become a painful reminder of the oppression endured by native peoples, the holiday remains an important part of Italian-American heritage, and for many, it is one worth keeping. “The ‘tearing down of history’ does not change that history,” John M. Viola, then the president and chief operating officer of the National Italian American Foundation, wrote in a New York Times editorial last year. “In the wake of the cultural conflict that has ripped us apart over these months, I wonder if we as a community can’t find better ways to utilize our history to eradicate racism instead of inciting it.”
