Observance of Columbus Day in the United States began in 1937 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt proclaimed October 12 to be a holiday to commemorate the landing of Christopher Columbus on the American continent, recorded on that day in 1492. The holiday came about as a result of intense lobbying by the Knights of Columbus, an influential Catholic fraternal organization. Since 1971, the holiday has been observed on the second Monday in October

Indigenous People’s Day commemorates the history and culture of Native Americans and has its origin in a “United Nations Delegation of Indigenous Nations” who first proposed it in 1977.  President Joe Biden became the first president to proclaim Indigenous People’s Day in 2021.

While some intense controversy has surrounded these observances and whether one should either replace or take precedence over the other, the two are now federally observed, officially, alongside one another. BVA observes the day as an employee holiday under both designations and the Association’s National Headquarters will be closed on Monday, October 14. The staff will return the following day, rejuvenated for White Cane Safety Day on October 15!