Mod 1- Blog
I am reviewing The Six Nations: Oldest Living Participatory Democracy on Earth by Bruce E. Johansen and Donald A. Grinde. The Six nations, also known as the Iroquois Confederacy, originally consisted of five nations which consisted of the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca. During the eighteenth century they were joined by a sixth nation named the Tuscarora. They were the oldest participating and living democracy on earth. https://ratical.org/many_worlds/6Nations/  Take note that this website shed light on the fact that most people are unaware that the United States democracy, credited to the likes of Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, was inspired by the Iroquois Confederacy. Liberty and the pursuit happiness have been performed by the Six Nations for over 800 hundred years.
An interesting thing that caught my interest was the contents of How to be an Ally to Indigenous Peoples by Two Row Wampum Renewal Campaign. There’s a great message beyond the words. https://ratical.org/many_worlds/6Nations/BeAllyToIndigenousPeoples.html This is not only a great way to look at life, but a great way to live life. For example, “Remember that all beings (animals and plants) are your relatives not your resources. Appreciate the diversity of nations, cultures and people,” are the types of messages on the bookmark below (https://ratical.org/many_worlds/6Nations/BeAllyToIndigenousPeoples.html). We should all stop to smell the roses and to look around once in a while. We should take care of and respect earth, along with all its creatures.  
            These resources were put in to the course to open eyes of its participants to the truth, and to the Native American perspective. The youth of our country and the world are the ones that can make changes for the better. I’m not sure if the material has changed my mind. I would say it has confirmed my suspicions. There is a reservation near my home, and there are many signs posted that state “Honor Indian Treaties.” I assumed that the natives on the reservation were not just putting up signs for no reason.
             A treaty is an agreement between two nations or sovereigns. “In 1870, the United States Supreme Court ruled in The Cherokee Tobacco case that an act of Congress can supersede treaty provisions. One year later, Congress formally ended treaty-making with Native nations. Since then, the United States has furiously chipped away treaty rights and treaties themselves, turning sacred promises into hollow words” (https://indianlaw.org/content/treaty-rights-and-un-declaration-rights-indigenous-peoples). This type of information confirms my preconceived notions.




References
E. Johansen and Donald A. Grinde. The Six Nations: Oldest Living Participatory Democracy on
            Earth., https://ratical.org/many_worlds/6Nations/
Karla E. General. Treaty Rights and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.,
            https://indianlaw.org/content/treaty-rights-and-un-declaration-rights-indigenous-peoples
 Two Row Wampum Renewal Campaign. How to Be an Ally to Indigenous Peoples.,
            https://ratical.org/many_worlds/6Nations/BeAllyToIndigenousPeoples.html

Comments

  1. RussSeptember 27, 2019 at 4:17 PM

    I agree that these resources allow us to seek the truth and be able to learn what the Native Americans had to deal with. I have posters throughout my home with inspirational quotes on them along with famous sayings. With that in mind, the messages on that bookmark are what everyone should refer to. We should be thankful for the things we have and enjoy our surroundings. Signs are posted to let people know that the property is theirs and shouldn't be taken from them.

    ReplyDelete
  2. JM599September 28, 2019 at 2:06 PM

    The only way this situation can improve is if more people become educated on these issues.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Janice VassellSeptember 30, 2019 at 2:45 PM

    They ruled in favor of the Cherokee Tobacco case, only to put and end to it a year later?
    Sounds to me like the US Government was not benefiting from the deal. They had a, "If we can't have it, you can't either" attitude. The sign shown, This is Mohawk Land, spoke a powerful message. It shows that they would do what must be done to fight. The message was clear, US Government might be big and power, but we will not go down without a fight. And many didn't.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

National Museum of the American Indian

Image
This week I’m highlighting the National Museum of the American Indian. This museum is located in Battery Park, New York City. Here you will find information involving the indigenous people of America pre and post European contact, as well as the history and culture and the impact they made in the western civilization. Clothing was important in many natives tribes. They used skin and fur of animals hunted to design their clothing and other household needs. Intricate details went into each preparation. They tell a story.  For many tribes, the men kill the animal and the women prepared the clothing. The museum displays many tribes and their environment. Many tribes located in different regions in search of resources.  Tribes of the plains, Lakota, Cheyenne, Ojibwe, Arapaho, traveled to the Plains because there was an abundance of Buffalos.  Tribes in the Arctic Circle, The Inuit, Yupik, and Aleut, migrated to Alaska and Canada for fishing and hunting of pol...
Read more

A Conversation with Vine Deloria Jr.

                I watched with fascination the “Interview with Vine Deloria Jr.”   I have read some of Mr. Deloria’s writing in the past, but have never seen or heard him.   Being from the old white male population, I have my opinions of Native American relations with the United States that may not coincide with those of Native Americans.   I have long believed that many Native nations and their people were treated poorly at best by our nation over the last few centuries, but I also believe that there has been ample time and ability to make needed changes on both sides.   Although I don’t agree with Mr. Deloria on every point that he makes in this video, he did make me more aware of the inability of Native Americans to be heard and tell their story.                 The first thing that caught my attention was the...
Read more

Native Tribes of the Northeast

As I read Treuer's book, Atlas of Indians Nations, I became intrigued by the tribes of the Northeast. I wanted to learn much as I can but the native’s location and the relationship with the European and American settlers.  It’s known that the island of Manhattan was sold to the settlers, but what about the other areas? I’ve traveled to towns on Long Island, New York and it was interesting to learn that some downs in still hold their tribal names. Towns such as Massapequa, Setauket, Manhasset, and Montauk. I’ve even lived in a neighborhood in Brooklyn, NY called Canarsie, which was named after the Canarsie tribe.  According to Access Genealogy, the last of the Canarsie tribe died in 1800. It wasn’t clear if they had locations in Brooklyn also, but the tribe was known to have locations on Long Island, NY. We learned in Treuer’s Atlas of Indians Nations, the majority of New York tribes spoke the Iroquoian language. Known tribe such as Cayuga, Mohawk, Oneida, Shinnecock, and Sen...
Read more