Prosecutor's Opening Statements
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Opening Statement
posted Nov 3, 2011, 12:27 PM by alugo@hightechhigh.org   [ updated Nov 3, 2011, 12:28 PM ]
Opening Statement





Thesis: Christopher Columbus is known as a hero, a great explorer and an inspiration to many people around the world, especially in the Americas. As children we are only aware of the good doings of this man, all we know is that he discovered America, and that he spread religion into this country we all call home today. They make it seem like a fairy tale where everything happens smoothly and no one gets injured and they all live happily every after. Not exactly. First we should stop and think, what exactly is a hero? A hero is known as a person, typically a man who is admired for his accomplishments. Now what were those accomplishments our "hero" made? Does grand theft, cultural and land destruction, rape, torture, maiming people and making people slaves sound like a hero to you? Because that's exactly what this supposed "hero" of ours did. If only there was a word to describe the actions of this man. A villain! Well now what is villain? A villain is known as a person guilty or capable of a crime. Now that sounds more like Christopher Columbus.



(1)Fact: Christopher Columbus forced the Tainos to convert into christian catholics, and when the people wouldn't convert he would kill them or torture them



(1)Evidence: The natives were forced into hard labor under terrible conditions, from finding gold to building settlements. And if they failed to comply with the orders from the Spanish guards, they were often beaten, tortured, and killed. Those who rebelled were punished by death. In order to undermine the authority of chiefs within the Taino villages, the Spaniards would gather thirteen of the leaders and, before a gathered crowd of enslaved natives, burn them alive. The Taino Indians did not deserve this type of punishment. The Western Tainos were very peaceful and passive. They welcomed Columbus and his men without caution and were helpful in aiding the Europeans’ recovery from their long voyage. The Classic Tainos were more warlike, but overall were not a very violent society. Eastern Tainos, however, tended to be much more hostile. Their close proximity to the Caribs caused them to be more violent and aggressive. When Columbus encountered them in the Virgin Islands on his second voyage, it is not surprising that they attacked him and his men.It was obvious from Columbus’s journal that the Tainos were not as used to battle and warfare as the Spaniards. Columbus notes that “with 50 men you could subject everyone and make them do what you wished” and that the natives were “such cowards and so fearful” that they were, therefore, easy to rule.

 HYPERLINK "http://www.glencoe.com/sec/socialstudies/btt/columbus/native_peoples.shtml" http://www.glencoe.com/sec/socialstudies/btt/columbus/native_peoples.shtml



(2)Fact: He killed large populations of the world, that many people today have no idea about those people or who they were; forgotten

(2)Evidence: This ruthlessness greatly injured the Taino population. When Columbus arrived at Hispañiola in 1492 there were an estimated 8 million people living on the island. By 1496 the population had been cut nearly in half; three to four million natives had died in less than four years. By 1508 the population was less than one hundred thousand. By 1518 there were fewer than twenty thousand. And by 1535, the entire native population of Hispañiola was gone. In just 43 years an entire culture had been eliminated. In fact, every island in the Antilles experienced similar purges and rapid decreases in population. The death and destruction of millions of people and their cultures has led to a lack of evidence about their lives. Researchers have been hard-pressed to find credible and complete relics of the Taino past. The most solid evidence we have which can provide insight into the lives of the Taino people is from the Spanish,Columbus, las Casas, and others historians. The recent discoveries of long-forgotten villages in the Antilles have uncovered pieces of pottery, remains of dwellings, zumis, and batey courts which give researchers a first-hand look at Taino life. Currently no government recognizes an official Taino group.  http://www.glencoe.com/sec/socialstudies/btt/columbus/native_peoples.shtml



(3)Fact: He enslaved a lot of native people because he felt that they had failed his tasks.



(3)Evidence: Many people are surprised to learn that Christopher Columbus and his men enslaved native inhabitants of the West Indies, forced them to convert to Christianity, and subdued them with violence in an effort to seek riches.  The search for gold was the primary cause for the mistreatment of the native people. He describes in vivid detail the punishments that the natives received at the hands of the soldiers and guards. The search for gold was so important to the Spanish leaders that they forced nearly all of the slaves, except young children, to look for the valuable metal. Those who found enough were given a token which they wore as proof of their success.  On one of Columbus’s later voyages he ordered his men to complete certain tasks to ensure their survival as a colony. His men, disliked hard labor and refused to work. When Columbus returned a few months later to find things worse than when he had left, he punished the natives for the failure of his own men. He blamed them for destroying the settlers’ property, stealing their food, and instilling fear. In retaliation for these acts, without knowing how many of these acts actually occurred, had his men round up over 1,500 Taino men, women, and children, then forced the Tainos into slavery. Columbus, in need of a cargo other than gold and spices to ship to Spain, decided to send the Taino slaves as a show of the wealth available in the New World. He loaded the “best men and women” onto ships and sent them off to Europe; beginning the widespread enslavement of the native peoples.

 HYPERLINK "http://www.glencoe.com/sec/socialstudies/btt/columbus/native_peoples.shtml" http://www.glencoe.com/sec/socialstudies/btt/columbus/native_peoples.shtml



(4)Fact: Syphilis; he might have had it, he raped people. Men on his boat had it as well.



(4)Evidence: A new study provides what scientists say is the most convincing evidence to date that Christopher Columbus and some of his crew caught the disease during their voyage to the New World and unwittingly introduced it to the old one circa 1493. Syphilis can only be spread through sexual contact and may be passed from mother to fetus. The only way he and his crew could have gotten syphilis in new lands was through rape. It was found on his boat by Dr. Ruy Diaz, who had treated members of the first crew of Columbus’s expedition. Las Casas said it stated that it was carried to Europe on the first voyage of Columbus, Oviedo put it on the second voyage.

 http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=did-columbus-bring-syphilis-to-europe and Pg. 316 of reading mid section of paper.

(5)Conclusion: Mr. Columbus our so-called hero, is not what he appears when you expose his true identity, a villain. No one should have had to suffer through these crimes and punishments for his own enjoyment. The man had a choice and he made the wrong one, nothing can be taken back, his actions were done, and they affected many. Nothing further your honor, thank you jury