I Believe

I don't care what you do for a living and I don't care what kind of car you drive. All I want to know right now is what do you believe in? What does it mean to you to be alive? - Don Henley

I believe in everything being as it should be, that life was meant be lived with passion and conviction. And just because things may not always turn out the way we think they should, it all matters and it all counts. I believe forgiveness is the hardest goal to achieve and that real, unconditional love is a rare, rare thing, indeed. I believe we judge each other way too much and judge ourselves way too little. Success is measured by our own values, not someone else's and worthy is as worthy does. I believe we shouldn't sweat the petty things and shouldn't pet the sweaty things.

But above all, I believe we are a refection of each other.

Columbus Day

So I’m going to make this as plain and simple as possible. This country where I live and work and contribute to society continues to celebrate Christopher Columbus as the official “discoverer” of North America – The New World. He is credited with having “discovered” a land inhabited by 500 Nations of Indigenous People. What he isn’t credited with is being a slave trader, terrorist, murderer, rapist, and thief. What he isn’t credited with is being single-handedly responsible for the destruction of hundreds of thousands of First Nations People and their culture and for leading the initiation of a Holocaust greater than in Germany, Africa, or China.

To me and my people Columbus Day represents a day of mourning. It is no less than if this country celebrated Hitler Day or Bin Laden Day. It’s as simple as that.

Challenging Columbus Day

Denver Organizers Discuss Why They Protest the Holiday - Democracy Now with Amy Goodman

Monday is known as Columbus Day, which is supposed to commemorate the arrival of Christopher Columbus to the so-called “new world” in 1492. But the holiday has long caused anger amongst people of color, especially Native Americans, who object to honoring a man who opened the door to European colonization, the exploitation of native peoples and the slave trade. We talk to Glenn Morris of the American Indian Movement of Colorado and Glenn Spagnuolo of Progressive Italians Transforming the Columbus Day Holiday.

The first state commemoration of Columbus Day was in Colorado and when our “Breaking the Sound Barrier” tour visited the state earlier this month–I sat down with two activists who were working to transform the holiday. Glenn Morris is a member of the Leadership Council of the American Indian Movement of Colorado, an Attorney and Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Colorado at Denver. Glenn Spagnuolo is a member of Transform Columbus Day Alliance and the Director of PITCH–Progressive Italians Transforming the Columbus Day Holiday.

Read the interview here: http://www.democracynow.org/2006/10/6/challenging_columbus_day_denver_organizers_discuss