Ahead of the Monday vote on whether to change a city ordinance to rename Columbus Day as Indigenous Peoples’ Day, Concord City Council has been hearing from members of the public, including some Italian-Americans. Monday’s public hearing will be the first meeting where Concord residents can weigh in on the name change, which Ward 10 Councilor Zandra Rice Hawkins first proposed in September.

At that meeting, some councilors suggested that Italian-Americans might view the change as an attack on their heritage. Other New Hampshire municipalities, including nearby Hopkinton and Warner, already recognize Indigenous Peoples’ Day in October, and last year the Concord School Board approved changing the name in the school calendar.