The case to rename this famous Christmas plant.

The poinsettia is this.
Also known as cuetlaxochitl, one of its earliest names, la flor de nochebuena, the Christmas star, the lobster flower, the flame leaf, and Euphorbia pulcherrima.This plant, which often has potted leaves with vibrant red and green hues, is common throughout the holiday season in the US.It is less clear how it got here historically though.And it's all tied together by Joel Poinsett's contentious legacy.

Poinsettias are native to this region, from Mexico down into Central and South America.The Aztec called it cuetlaxochitl, meaning “flower that withers.And unlike the potted varieties we see today, in the wild these plants look like tall shrubs that flower in the winter season.It was a prized plant.The brilliant red colored leaves (which are leaves and not actually petals) were used to dye textiles, while the sap of the plants was used medicinally.And by the 17th century, likely because of those red leaves that bloomed in time for the holiday season, Spanish friars used the flowers to decorate elaborate nativity displays in Mexico.

It was given the name "flor de nochebuena," or "Christmas Eve flower," by Spanish-speaking Mexicans.And it came to be inextricably tied with Christmas for many people in the nation.
For hundreds of years, the plant's native regions were generally the only places where people were familiar with it.Until Joel Poinsett, that is.

Poinsett, a diplomat, amateur botanist, and native of South Carolina, was chosen in 1825 to serve as the country's first-ever minister to Mexico.According to legend, he discovered cuetlaxochitl in the town of Taxco, gathered some cuttings, and sent them to the US to share with his fellow botanists.They eventually became popular in the US as well.They made their debut in a Philadelphia flower exhibition in 1829.In the US, nurseries started producing and distributing the plants.And the "Christmas plant" became extremely popular.

In honor of Joel Poinsett's legacy, the name "poinsettia" persisted.One that would expand to include not just the minister to Mexico but also the US Secretary of War and a founding member of the Smithsonian Institute.

But his reputation is tarnished.
Consider Poinsett's tenure as minister to Mexico, where he actively sought to strengthen American influence there. Martin Van Buren expressed his views on the Mexican populace in a letter to the secretary of state, focusing on the potential to "enlighten minds with liberal ideas." He stated that the Spaniards had "constant intercourse with the aborigines, who were and still are degraded to the very lowest class of human beings...
helped make Mexicans a more illiterate and debauched people.


Poinsett, a slave owner himself back in the US, believed racial hierarchy between the indigenous and “white Creole” population could help progress in Mexico.
Poinsett also sought to expand American borders.At the time, the US looked like this…
and he was tasked with negotiating a deal to buy Texas from Mexico.But, before he could negotiate that deal, he ended up meddling so much in Mexican politics, that he was asked to leave the country.It happened like this: By helping to establish a network of freemason groups, known as the largest international secret society, he helped to gather men in Mexico with pro-American politics.This organizing eventually set the foundation for a popular, pro-American political party to emerge in Mexico.
displeasing a lot of people in the Mexican administration.His meddling in local politics sparked such strife that the word "poinsettismo," which means offensive and intrusive conduct," was originally created by Mexicans.Additionally, Poinsett was fired from his position in 1829 at the president of Mexico's request.

He was appointed US Secretary of War a few years after his return to the US.He was in charge of the As part of the Indian Removal Act,.