Monday is Columbus Day. While some will heap coals of fire on this explorer for the atrocities that followed his voyages, I give credit to Christopher Columbus for bringing together the Old World and the New World. Like many notable men in history, he was a man of his times. When we curse Columbus for his sins, we ignore the era he lived in and the blessings that we enjoy today as a result of our ancestors.

Columbus belongs to the complicated history of our nation. It’s unfair to judge him on the standards of conduct of today — and most Americans agree.