Open Letter to New York Times Reporter, Amy Harmon

http://video.on.nytimes.com/?fr_story=64e503694b30d9470a3ab73df89241f73caad7b0

Dear Amy Harmon,
After our communication, I was eager to read your article on Columbus and the struggle historians are involved in to identify his true lineage and nationality.
I read the article “Seeking Columbus's Origins, With a Swab” with interest hoping to learn new facts and to locate some bit of our long conversations and of the facts I passed on to you.

As you recall you contacted me requesting my assistance because Prof. José Lorente told you about my involvement with the DNA studies at the University of Granada.
Being the only historian ever to locate a document related to Columbus's wife in Portugal, the only Historian working with the Portuguese DNA and the only to have proven that the Last Will of Columbus was falsified 67 years after his death, I felt there was some newsworthiness to my work that would appear in your article.

But there was not a single mention of my work in your article, or should I say there was a lot of mentioning of my work with the DNA (His Royal Highness the Duke of Bragança and His Lordship the Count of Ribeira Grande but not linked to my name and my investigation nor to my book, being I the reason they are involved in this DNA study in the first place!).

I found it unbelievable that you quote Peter Dickson, who is not involved with any DNA studies, but did not mention me and my work nor of my assistance to you. Even my Polish Prince was mentioned and the Count of Ribeira Grande quoted. I fail to understand why my work which is being praised by the scientific community and is being shown on an upcoming Discovery Channel Documentary, was not mentioned.
I was able to get to where I did by being able to understand Portuguese, Spanish, English, Italian, French and by digging deep into the genealogy this is why the DNA is so important because it will resolve this fairytale history once and for all.
I can only hope that you did not mention me or my investigation because you are working on another article solely to mention my work.

Best Regards,
___________________________
Manuel Rosa - Columbus Historian
Christopher Columbus Colombo
"To sin by silence when they should protest makes cowards of men." ~ Abraham Lincoln
"We are making history one day at a time." ~ Manuel Rosa
"Support diversity because the best among us don't stand out by their similarities but by their differences." ~ Manuel Rosa
"Don't let the fringe be the main threads of our social fabric." ~ Manuel Rosa


On Oct 1, 2007, at 2:17 PM, amy harmon wrote:
Hi, I'm a reporter with the New York Times. I'm working on an article about how DNA testing is being used to try to determine the origins of Christopher Columbus. I am in touch with Dr. Lorente, who referred me to you. As you know, he is doing a test of men in northwest Italy and the Catalan region. I am told that in your book, you make the case for a Portuguese origin, and that two direct male descendants of the house of Aviz have agreed to give their DNA to compare it to that of Columbus and his son. I asked Dr. Lorente if he was doing this test, and he said I should ask you about it. Can you tell me anything about it? Do you know if these men have in fact given their DNA to be tested?
thanks a lot
Amy
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Amy Harmon
New York Times
(212) 556-1505
amy@nytimes.com