Los Angeles council votes to change Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples' Day

LOS ANGELES, Calif. - Los Angeles has become the largest city in the nation to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples' Day as an official holiday.

Council members voted 14-1 to make the second Monday in October a day to commemorate indigenous, aboriginal and native people. It will be a paid holiday for city employees.

Councilman Mitch O'Farrell, a member of the Wyandotte Nation tribe, pushed for the switch. Some activists view Christopher Columbus as a symbol of genocide for native peoples.

Councilman Joe Buscaino was the lone no vote on Wednesday. He sided with Italian-Americans, who view Columbus Day as a celebration of their national heritage.

The city now joins San Francisco, Berkeley, Santa Cruz, Seattle, Minneapolis, and the states of South Dakota, Hawaii, Alaska and Oregon in celebrating indigenous, aboriginal and native people rather than the famed explorer. 

KTVU staff and the Associated Press contributed to this report.