We should honor Western civilization not for the ethnocentric reason that some of us happen to have European ancestors but because it is the objectively superior culture. Underlying the political collectivism of the anti-Columbus crowd is a racist view of human nature. Only the lack of a sense of self leads one to look to others to provide what passes for a sense of identity. There are no racial achievements or racial failures, only individual achievements and individual failures. One cannot inherit moral worth or moral vice.
Individualism is the only alternative to the racism of political correctness.
We must recognize that everyone is a sovereign entity, with the power of choice and independent judgment. That is the ultimate value of Western civilization, and it should be proudly proclaimed. Michael S. Berliner, Ph.D., is the former executive director of the Ayn Rand Institute in Marina del Rey, California.