In observance of Columbus Day, a national holiday in the United States, the U.S. government has informed that its Embassy in Abuja and Consulate General Office in Lagos will remain closed on Monday, 9th October.
Columbus Day is commemorated annually on this date to honour Christopher Columbus’ historic arrival in the Americas in October 1492.
Columbus, the renowned Italian explorer credited with discovering the routes to the Americas.
In the 400th anniversary of his voyage in 1892, 11 Italian immigrants were murdered in New Orleans by a mob for their alleged role in the murder of police chief David Hennessy after some of them had been acquitted at trial.
President Benjamin Harrison, an American politician who served as the 23rd president of the United States from 1889 to 1893, declared Columbus Day a national celebration, as part of efforts to pacify Italian Americans and mitigate diplomatic tensions with Italy in the aftermath of the lynching incident.