Christopher Columbus, a man who is known for discovering the Americas, came upon a land that was already inhabited by indigenous people.  Columbus' voyage to the Americas opened the door to disease that killed the native people, crimes, including but not limited to the transatlantic slave trade and genocidal acts against indigenous people. 

The Indigenous people inhabited the coastal Newburyport area during the summer, which was where they held ceremonies, lived in large communities, hunted, fished, and gathered the plentiful berries of the region. Newburyport was the area the Penacook gathered to celebrate as large groups.

Many of the original road locations within the Newburyport settlement from the 1670’s were built upon Penacook footpaths.  By 1676 diseases from the European settlers had decimated the indigenous people of the region and by the 1750’s the Penacook had been completely displaced to the Abenaki regions in Vermont, Maine, and Canada due to disease and violence upon them by the European settlers.   

The City of Newburyport has the opportunity and means to cultivate a community that honors the diverse history of our community.

It is not acceptable that the City of Newburyport continues to honor Christopher Columbus Day, and we ask the City of Newburyport to rename Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples' Day in honor of this continent's first protectors and inhabitants.