Port Angeles considering 'Indigenous People's Day'

PORT ANGELES, Wash. (AP) — Port Angeles is the latest city in Washington to consider adopting a holiday honoring Native Americans — but not on Columbus Day.

The Peninsula Daily News reports that the City Council plans to consult with the Lower Elwha and other tribes about establishing Indigenous People's Day.

This year Seattle and Bellingham decided to celebrate Indigenous People's Day on the same day as Columbus Day, the federal holiday marking the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the Americas in 1492. Many Native Americans find that holiday offensive, considering the explorer's brutal treatment of the natives.

But Italian-Americans consider Columbus Day to essentially celebrate their contributions to American culture, and some groups have protested the celebration of Indigenous People's Day on that holiday.

Port Angeles Mayor Dan Di Guilio, who is of Italian descent, says he thinks it's appropriate to honor Native Americans on a different day — perhaps around the summer solstice, to coincide with Canada's National Aboriginal Day.