ABSTRACT
Columbus's own journals make reference to the innocence and primeval charm of the Indians who approached his boats, "naked as their mothers bore them," as he writes in his diary, and the generosity and abundance of the natural environment. The concept of the Noble Savage dominates Las Casas's work, and even Spaniards who actually participated in the conquest of Mexico thought much the same, at least at first, fascinated by the complexity and sophistication of the societies which they encountered. In the United States, the lead has been taken by the National Council of Churches, which refers to 1492 and all of the events which followed as "an invasion and colonization with genocide, economic exploitation, and a deep level of institutional racism and moral decadence." The circumstances of Columbus's voyage, as well as the short and longer term impact, have never been in doubt, including all of its unlovely aspects.
