On Columbus Day, protesters in Binghamton were speaking out — but not against Christopher Columbus. Rather, they were rallying against Rep. Claudia Tenney.

They said they were upset by a memo sent to Claudia Tenney's staff. The memo, obtained by the New York Post, says the family of her opponent Anthony Brindisi has "used political connections to get away with violence, intimidation, and thuggish behavior for years."

Protesters believe the memo is referring to Brindisi's Italian heritage.

"For Ms. Tenney to slur one of us, smears all of us, and it has made me very angry and upset," said protester Linda Mackenzie.

"We are asking for an apology, for Ms. Tenney to call and apologize to Mr. Brindisi and to all to all of the Italian Americans that she has disrespected,” said protester Amelia Gaggolia.

Supporters of Tenney are not making the same connection and don't believe the memo was offensive.

"Saying someone represented organized crime is anti-Italian is, I think, a slur on Italian people. Italian people aren't represented by organized crime and organized crime shouldn't be represented by Italian people,” said supporter Ed Hickey.

Tenney's campaign manager says Tenney did not write the memo, and that the protest is a distraction from Brindisi's well-documented ties to organized crime.