The movement in the U.S. to declare the second Monday of October, traditionally celebrated as Columbus Day, as Indigenous Peoples’ Day got a major political boost this year.

President Biden on Friday issued a proclamation naming Oct. 11 Indigenous Peoples’ Day. It will be observed the same day as Columbus Day, which was first declared a national holiday in 1934.

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The movement in the U.S. to declare the second Monday of October, traditionally celebrated as Columbus Day, as Indigenous Peoples’ Day got a major political boost this year.

President Biden on Friday issued a proclamation naming Oct. 11 Indigenous Peoples’ Day. It will be observed the same day as Columbus Day, which was first declared a national holiday in 1934.

“We must never forget the centurieslong campaign of violence, displacement, assimilation, and terror wrought upon Native communities and Tribal Nations throughout our country,” Mr. Biden said in the first such presidential proclamation.

Officials across the U.S., from governors to school-board leaders, have already declared the second Monday of October Indigenous Peoples’ Day. Boston and Philadelphia were among those adding official observances this year. In many places, the day has replaced Columbus Day. 

While some Americans have advocated for and embraced the change, others have taken issue with recasting Columbus Day, which they see as a commemoration of the country’s spirit of exploration and a day honoring Italian-Americans.

What is Indigenous Peoples’ Day?

Indigenous Peoples’ Day is meant to celebrate the contributions of indigenous peoples to society, and honor their place as the first inhabitants of what is now the U.S. and the wrongs they suffered, according to various proclamations. Mr. Biden, in his statement Friday, said federal policies systematically sought to assimilate and displace native peoples and eradicate their cultures over generations.  

South Dakota was the first state to observe Native American Day in place of Columbus Day in 1990. That movement has been gaining more traction in recent years at state and local levels. Vermont, Maine and New Mexico started observing Indigenous People’s’ Day in 2019, and Virginia followed last year.

“Observing Indigenous Peoples’ Day is about replacing the colonial myths passed down from generation to generation with the true history of the land upon which our nation was founded,” Boston Mayor Kim Janey said Wednesday in announcing the city’s official observation of the day.

Jean Dennison, co-director for the Center for American Indian and Indigenous Studies at the University of Washington, said that at best, Columbus Day and colonialism put native peoples in the past. At worst, it makes them invisible, she said. 

“Indigenous Peoples’ Day at its core really aims to celebrate the past, present and most importantly, the futures of native peoples throughout the United States,” she said.

Why has Columbus Day become controversial?

When Congress officially made Columbus Day a federal holiday in 1968, it “believed that the nation would be honoring the courage and determination which enabled generations of immigrants from many nations to find freedom and opportunity in America,” according to the Congressional Research Service. 

But the legacy of Christopher Columbus has been debated by academics and activists for decades. Some, including many Native Americans, associate the explorer with atrocities brought against indigenous people and the emergence of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Protests last summer sparked by the murder of George Floyd stoked the debate. Statues of Columbus in some places were defaced or toppled. 

Others view the holiday as a way to honor Italian-Americans. Most Columbus statues in the U.S. were erected in the wake of an 1891 lynching of 11 Italian immigrants in New Orleans, an era when Italians faced widespread discrimination.

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“Columbus represented their assimilation into the American fabric and into the American dream,” said Robert Allegrini, president of the National Italian American Foundation. Mr. Allegrini said Indigenous Peoples’ Day shouldn’t come at the expense of a day that is significant for millions of Italian-Americans and noted there are 364 days to choose for that holiday.

“We believe that the indigenous people are certainly worthy of a holiday that celebrates their contributions to America,” he said.

In some places, both holidays continue to be celebrated. 

Are Indigenous Peoples’ Day and Columbus Day federal holidays?

Columbus Day is a federal holiday, which legally applies only to federal employees and Washington, D.C. While many schools and some businesses close in observance, the stock market is open on Columbus Day and it isn’t a paid holiday for state employees in many parts of the country.

Write to Allison Prang at allison.prang@wsj.com