Bangladesh, Oct. 12 -- The campaign to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples Day is about far more than changing a holiday. It represents a broader ideological struggle over American identity, Western civilization, historical memory, and the question of whether a nation should preserve its traditions or dismantle them to satisfy contemporary political demands.

Democratic Senator Martin Heinrich and 14 Senate colleagues have reignited this debate by introducing Senate Resolution 900, which supports designating the second Monday of October as Indigenous Peoples Day. The resolution describes European contact with the Americas as resulting in the “suppression, forced assimilation, and genocide of Indigenous Peoples.”

Alth...