Senate Republican Candidates Join Together To Support Columbus Day
CONTACT: Robert Caroppoli 631-921-2104
For Immediate Release
Senate Republican Candidates Join Together To Support Columbus Day
Senator Phil Boyle and his future colleagues in the New York State Senate Republican Conference today joined together to collectively voice their support for the preservation of Christopher Columbus Day in New York State. Boyle was joined by candidates Assemblyman Anthony Palumbo (1st District), Mario Mattera (2nd District), Alexis Weik (3rd District) and Edmund Smyth (5th District) to publicly back the multitude of New York Italian-Americans who take great pride in this annual celebration of their heritage.
The five made the announcement as a direct rebuke of legislation (S.8553), introduced by Democratic Senator Jessica Ramos, that would eliminate Columbus Day and insult New York’s Italian-American families. The legislation, which is sponsored in the Assembly by Democrat Charles Barron, would replace Columbus Day with Indigenous People’s Day.
The five Republican candidates feel disregarding one group to honor another is the wrong approach and are unified in their opposition to the proposed legislation.
"To me, this is not an either/or situation. Columbus Day is not so much about one person, but an important celebration of Italian-American heritage and the contributions that millions of hard-working Italian immigrants have made to our great nation and state throughout our history. We should have a holiday celebrating our Indigenous People, and we have 364 other days each year from which to choose one,” said Senator Boyle.
“The history of this country is a precious reminder of how the freedom to evolve with the times has allowed us to develop into the greatest country in human history. The cancel culture’s arrogance to unilaterally erase historical facts ignores important lessons we learned and is insensitive to positive contributions made to our society. Columbus Day is a celebration of Italian-American heritage and we should not be forced to choose the importance of one culture over the other. We have plenty of room to celebrate them all,” stated Assemblyman Palumbo, the Republican and Conservative candidate in the 1st Senate District.
“As a proud Italian-American, I am totally opposed to any legislation that would attempt to erase the contributions of those who came before me. We must respect our collective history in a unified fashion without these political attempts to erase the accomplishments and significance of others. I implore everyone to understand the meaning of this day and reflect on the impact that Italian-Americans have had on the history of our great nation. To diminish that is an insult to all proud New Yorkers who take pride in their Italian heritage,” stated Mattera, the Republican, Conservative and Independence candidate for the 2nd Senate District.
“Columbus Day is a wonderful celebration of Italian-American heritage and the contributions of generations of Italian-Americans to building and strengthening our nation. The Italian-American experience is deeply enmeshed in our culture right here on Long Island and I’m always proud to join with my friends and neighbors to share in this special day of recognition,” said Weik, Republican and Conservative candidate for the 3rd Senate District.
"Columbus Day is an important holiday that in addition to honoring the legacy of Christopher Columbus, also highlights the vast contributions that Italian-American's have made to our country over centuries. I strongly support continuing this important holiday, and maintaining Columbus statutes in our communities,” added Smyth, the 5th Senate District’s Republican, Conservative, and Independence nominee.
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LINK TO THE LEGISLATION: https://www.nysenate.gov//legislation/bills/2019/S8553