Protesters enter Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park on Oct. 10, 2020. Photo by Caitlin Faulds 
Kids play at Boston Common during the Indigenous Peoples Day march on Oct. 10, 2020. Photo by Caitlin Faulds 
Protesters march past the Massachusetts State House during an Indigenous Peoples Day demonstration on Oct. 10, 2020. Photo by Caitlin Faulds 
Indigenous Peoples Day protesters march down Winter Street on Oct. 10, 2020. Photo by Caitlin Faulds 
Sinking Columbus: Boston Marches for Indigenous Peoples Day. Oct. 10, 2020. Photo by Caitlin Faulds 
An offering lies in front of the Old State House on Oct. 10, 2020. Photo by Caitlin Faulds 
A man passes out signs as the crowd heads for Faneuil Hall during the Indigenous Peoples Day march on Oct. 10, 2020. Photo by Caitlin Faulds 
Larry Fisher, Chief Sâchem for the Mattakeeset Tribe, smiles as the crowd enters Faneuil Hall Marketplace on Oct. 10, 2020. Photo by Caitlin Faulds 
A speaker denounces Faneuil Hall for its historic ties to slave trade on Oct. 10, 2020. Photo by Caitlin Faulds 
Chali’Inaru Smilez Dones shouts in support of Indigenous Peoples Day on Oct. 10, 2020. Photo by Caitlin Faulds 
A man watches the protest from a tourism booth at Faneuil Hall Marketplace on Oct. 10, 2020. Photo by Caitlin Faulds 
Dean Francis (left), Fire Keeper (middle) and Chief Kenny Black Elk stand at Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park on Oct. 10, 2020. Photo by Caitlin Faulds 
Kids stand on the pedestal of the former Christopher Columbus statue, which was beheaded by protesters last June. Photo by Caitlin Faulds 
A woman prepares to dance bomba in celebration of indigenous heritage on Oct. 10, 2020. Photo by Caitlin Faulds
By Caitlin Faulds
BU News Service
Hundreds gathered in Boston Common on Saturday to celebrate the indigenous heritage and protest the prolonged memorialization of Christopher Columbus.
A demonstration began near Park Street Station with a prayer and an acknowledgment of the indigenous peoples who occupied by the land now known as Massachusetts. Led by the United American Indians of New England, protesters then marched through downtown, stopping at the Old State House, Faneuil Hall and Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park. The group was joined by members of BDS Boston, a movement in solidarity with Palestine, and Black Lives Matter, who condemned the slave-trading history of Boston’s Faneuil Hall.
“Why are they taking the black, indigenous history out of our history books?” asked Chali’Inaru Smilez Dones, before explaining the history of Haiti’s Taino tribe to the crowd. She spoke from the pedestal of Boston’s former Christopher Columbus statue, which was beheaded by protesters in June and has been removed by the city.
