Similarities Between Christopher Columbus And Breif Eriksson

The interaction between the New World and Old World was absent until October 12, 1492 when Christopher Columbus accidentally landed on the shores of the Bahamas. But, he was not the first European to reach the Americas, though many Americans falsely believe this. A Norwegian explorer named Leif Eriksson landed in America in 1005 AD, almost 500 years before Columbus “discovered” America. Though Leif Eriksson was the first European to land in America, he is rarely talked about or studied, unlike Christopher Columbus who is still credited with the discovery by many; he even has a US holiday dedicated to him, and every elementary school student would know his name. What accounts for the difference in fame between Christopher Columbus and Leif Eriksson?

This began a sad discrimination toward Native Americans that lasted for centuries, and there are traces left of this today. Though negatively, this caused Christopher Columbus’ name to be well known for starting this horrible treatment of native peoples in the Americas. The Europeans came and wiped out millions of people with diseases and also killed the natives if they did not completely obey what they were ordered to do by the explorers. Columbus exploited these people, and many other explorers that followed did the same thing. While talking about the Native Americans in a letter, Columbus says, “All these people lack….every kind of iron. They are also without [advanced] weapons, which are indeed unknown; nor are they competent to use them. For example, Atahualpa was an Incan ruler who was kidnapped by conquistadors, who said they would return him to his people. They ended up receiving the wealth that they asked for but killed him anyway. This idea of European superiority would affect racism and discrimination for many years. Later, when colonization in America largely expanded, and America’s thirteen original colonies became more densely populated, the Native Americans were again treated inferiorly, and were pushed out of their homes, eventually leading to the Trail of Tears in the 1800s. Christopher Columbus’ treatment of the Native Americans caused him to be studied more often than Leif Eriksson because of Columbus’ influence in beginning the cruel treatment of natives that would last for centuries to