President Donald Trump dances at the conclusion of his Make America Great Again rally at ST Engineering in Pensacola, Florida, on Friday, Oct. 23, 2020.
Washington D.C. – President Donald J. Trump declared on Sunday that he would “bring Columbus Day back from the ashes,” pledging to reinstate the holiday — even though it has remained a recognized federal holiday in the United States.
“I am hereby reinstating Columbus Day under the same rules, dates, and locations, as it has had for all of the many decades before!” Trump wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social. The president was referring to the holiday named for Christopher Columbus, the Italian explorer whose 1492 voyage opened the door to European colonization of the Americas.
Columbus Day, observed on the second Monday in October, has long been criticized by Indigenous groups and activists who point to the catastrophic impact of European settlement on Native populations. Despite these critiques, Columbus Day has continued to be recognized as a federal holiday and remains an important cultural marker for many Italian Americans.
Trump’s announcement appears to be a response to a 2021 proclamation by President Biden, who became the first U.S. president to formally recognize Indigenous Peoples’ Day. Biden’s declaration called for celebrating Indigenous Peoples’ Day alongside Columbus Day to shine a light on the contributions and resilience of Native communities. However, Biden did not rename or eliminate Columbus Day at the federal level.
In his Truth Social post, Trump claimed that “the Democrats did everything possible to destroy Christopher Columbus, his reputation, and all of the Italians that love him so much,” suggesting that broader cultural shifts had threatened the holiday’s prominence.
The 2021 proclamation by Biden came amid a period of national reckoning over historical figures linked to colonialism and racism. During this time, several statues of Columbus were removed, often amid protests spurred by the Black Lives Matter movement following the murder of George Floyd. These actions fueled a larger debate about how the country should commemorate its history — and which figures deserve public honor.
While a growing number of states and cities have chosen to recognize Indigenous Peoples’ Day in place of Columbus Day, no such change has occurred at the federal level. Columbus Day remains on the official calendar, and federal employees still receive the day off.
Trump’s vow to “reinstate” a holiday that was never legally abolished fits into his broader political messaging, which often frames cultural debates as a battle to preserve American traditions against perceived progressive overreach.
As usual, the second Monday in October this year will be officially recognized as Columbus Day—with or without Trump’s intervention.
