A Voice from the Eastern Door
A Voice from the Eastern Door
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Gov. Andrew Cuomo has an ideal opportunity to create a new relationship with the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy, one built on partnership, mutual respect and an affirmation of the unique status of the region’s native nations. The governor can begin by appointing a permanent Native American liaison to advise him on issues relevant to the Iroquois. This individual would be nominated by the Iroquois and act as an ambassador, insuring that the governor has direct access to the leaders of the confederacy and is given accurate, reliable i...
The owners of the Twin Leaf convenience stores need to have the active support of all Akwesasronon in their struggle to regain active Mohawk jurisdiction in an area which is clearly part of our territory. As a former land claims negotiator for the Mohawk Nation Council of Chiefs I was an outspoken advocate for the assertion of our territorial rights as I felt it was a mistake to leave this critical matter to a legal system which has had little sympathy, and even less understanding of, the need for our people to have our stolen lands returned...
My wife, Joanne Shenandoah, and I were preparing to attend the annual Midwinter Ceremony at Akwesasne when we were told of the passing of Ernie Benedict, one of the most venerated of Mohawk elders. Ernie had reached his 92nd year and lived through the greatest social, technological and political changes in human history. He was born in the second decade of the 20th century when Akwesasne was a community intimately tied to its natural environment, its residents self reliant from harvesting the crops they had planted and the fish hauled from...
On November 11 of this year a large delegation of Haudenosaunee Confederacy (Iroquois) gathered at the New York town of Canandaigua to commemorate the one and only legitimate treaty entered into between their ancestors and the United States in 1794. That treaty committed the US to respect the sovereign status of the Confederacy and to respect its territories while making a formal pledge to live in mutual peace, undisturbed by intrusions from each signatory. Although the treaty has been violated many times by the US and its subsidiaries (such...
On August 18 delegates from the Haudenosaunee and other Iroquois entities met in Rochester to discuss how to respond to New York’s plan to impose taxes on tobacco sales to non-Natives even if such transactions take place on Native territory. A vague public statement was issued by the delegates affirming our treaty status and standing as Native nations but no explanation was given as to the inclusion of those who had previously taken a harsh stance against the Confederacy. Specifically, the so-called “Oneida Indian Nation” and Seneca Natio...
A couple of weeks ago I gave a lecture at the Nor’wester in Williamstown, Ontario entitled “How the Mohawks Saved Canada”. The presentation was meant to remind Canadians that their very existence as an independent country would not have been possible without the military, economic and political contributions of the Iroquois Confederacy, and, more specifically, the Mohawk Nation Our mutual history began in 1664 when England assumed control over the Dutch colony of New Netherlands, renaming it New York. The English authorities knew that if they...
The era of big time tobacco sales is coming to an end. There are simply too many forces now aligned against the Iroquois to win this fight. With the recent setbacks in the US courts, the resolve of New York State to tax the wholesalers and the complete failure of the Iroquois to come up with a cohesive, collective response it is clear the days of freewheeling tobacco are over. It was in the early 1970’s when Bob Satiacum,a traditional leader of the Puyallup Nation in Washington State, took a page from the Iroquois book of political activism, d...
With the election of Randy Hart and Shelley Jacobs the St. Regis Tribal Council has new opportunities to create policies, which will benefit all Akwesasnorons. First, the incoming leaders should reexamine the Monticello casino deal. As an astute business owner Mr. Hart is well aware of the risks involved in any kind of economic venture. He has been successful in large part because of the unique legal status of Akwesasne a place which offers a distinct advantage for businesses because of our rights to engage in commerce free from external...
There are dates in every person’s life by which they mark the passage of time and events. Some are wonderful: the birth of a child, a birthday, graduation and marriage. Others are far less pleasant: the death of a parent, an accident or a natural disaster. There are also dates which have communal importance. It may be a spiritual gathering, a political rally or an athletic contest while others are controversial and may be so traumatic as to cause us discomfort, even anguish. May 1 across the world is “Worker’s Day” in which the labor of thos...
When we hear the terrible news about two Mohawks suffering serious injuries as the result of their boat being rammed by the US Coast Guard on Akwesasne waters we must do more than react with anger. We have to know not only how this happened but why. And then we have to demand the leadership act quickly to address this crisis before the external police agencies either bring more harm to the people or cause someone’s death. The “how” of the boat ramming will come out in time but the community must have hard facts before rumors and half truth...
If the Iroquois are to defeat New York State’s efforts to impose taxes on sales to non-Natives they must have not only credible people defending our rights but have to present a rational alternative to Albany’s plans. Last week the New York State Supreme Court held a session in Syracuse to hear arguments for and against the collection of sales taxes on Native territory. Outside the hearing chamber a group reported to consist of 150 anti-tax people carried placeards and beat a large drum. A group of speakers addressed the crowd with some of the...
Taylor Matt was an energetic teenager who had endured chemotherapy at age 12 and was entering her senior year at Cazenovia High School where she planned to carry on playing field lacrosse while studying hard for college and perhaps becoming a nurse like her mom Debra. She was also a role model for her younger sister Jessie and much admired student to her many friends. Taylor’s dad, Jeffrey, is a carpenter who coaches lacrosse, a game with deep roots within the Onondaga Nation. Jeffrey has p...
Haiti is a place of angry spirits yet to be released from the agony of their passing. This land was called Ayiti by its Arawak-Taino Native peoples who may, according to some, be the relatives of the Iroquois. We do have a place of common origin in the American south but while our ancestors migrated to the cool woodlands of the northeast others elected to enter the rich tropical waters of the Caribbean and gradually populate its islands before reaching the South American coast. Haiti was populated by hundreds of thousands of Natives at the time...
Thanks to a free and open media at Akwesasne we have had an opportunity to read or listen to the issues surrounding the proposed Sullivan County casino deal. This will all lead to the January 30th referendum at the Tribal Council as to whether to move ahead with the plan. I am deeply concerned that the Mohawk people are in danger of becoming entangled in a project in which vital information has been deliberately withheld from them. Instead of hard facts and open contracts we have been told to put aside our doubts and place our land and our...
The movie Avatar is a painful experience for Native people because we know the ending after the first minutes of the film. The plot describes the attempt by humans to exploit, by mining, a mineral called unobtanium from a moon which circles a planet in the Alpha Centauri star system. The moon, called Pandora by the humans, is inhabited by ten foot tall indigenous people who refer to themselves as the Na’vi. They are blue skinned, have cat like eyes, are tattooed and are graced with long tails. They live in and near a large, oak like tree c...
The St. Regis Tribal Council is holding a January 30th referendum, which will, hopefully, bring a permanent end to the Sullivan County casino project. The Tribe nullified a previous vote because the members were not given enough time between the public notice and when the actual ballots were cast but in light of recent information about the casino investors the vote against the project should be more decisive and without doubt. Empire Resorts, the casino company which is at the heart of this deal, is once again in a state of chaos. Empire was...
On December 2nd at 3:30 Am Maisie Shenandoah, the Wolf Clanmother of the Oneida Nation, breathed her last and passed into the spirit world. She had been selected by her clan as a kontiianehson in 1977 when the Oneidas were beginning to return to their ancestral homelands and eager to restore a traditional council. They knew the first step was to find a female leader, one who exhibited qualities which have long been honored by the Haudenosaunee: honesty, humility, generosity, kindness, wisdom and patience all wrapped up in a blanket of humor....
No Mohawk, wherever they live, should assume that the assault on Steve Barnes was isolated or of no concern to them. The Canadian Border Service Agency has been trained as to how to bring crippling physical force on any Mohawk who dares to defy their commands and assert their rights as Onkwehonwe. They have the mace, the steel cuffs and the firearms. They have the paramilitary uniforms and are hyped up on their own myths. They see the Mohawks as the enemy and have been conditioned to respond to us not as human beings but as cartoons. For this...
The annual commemoration of the 1794 Canandaigua Treaty is one of the most important gatherings of the Haudenosaunee. It reminds us of a time when our concerns were paramount in the US which, in response to our complaints about the massive theft of our lands, sent Timothy Pickering to negotiate a treaty of peace and friendship. The Americans were not acting out of a genuine concern for the Iroquois but in their own self interests. The US was involved in a military campaign against the native nations in the midwest and wanted the Confederacy to...
CKON was begun in the spring of 1982 when a group of Akwesasronon decided the time had come for the Mohawk people to exercise their right to control our airwaves by operating our own radio station licensed not by any external agency but by the Mohawk Nation Council. The organizing group which formed the Akwesasne Communications Society decided that radio was the ideal medium for the transmitting of news and entertainment from a distinctly aboriginal perspective. It would give our non-Native neighbours an opportunity to enhance their knowledge...
The Akwesasne community is being manipulated into a crisis by the Canadian Border Security Agency. They knew that by placing a facility in Cornwall it would provoke the Mohawk people and they would then use an incident to point an accusatory finger our way and state that their fears were justified and that the need to carry weapons is essential. The CBSA may also think that by taking Mohawk cars and assessing huge fines the residents of Akwesasne will be so upset as to demand the leadership compromise and allow the custom agents to be armed...
The press has recently reported that the St. Regis Tribal Council has apparently forgiven Empire Resorts and is prepared to discuss the proposed casino deal in Sullivan County. Given the anxiousness of Senator Charles Schumer and New York Governor David Patterson to make this happen the Tribe is in a unique position to dictate the terms under which the project may move forward. But first, it must learn from its past mistakes and come up with a plan which does not involve the complete destruction of our collective status as Native peoples-and...
So Canada pulled a fast one by ignoring the Mohawk leadership and openning a temporary customs check point in Cornwall. This is all too typical of a government which treats Native people as irritants and liabilities. Rather than sit down with the Mohawk people and negotiate in good faith the governnment elected to adopt a tactic which does nothing to resolve the longstanding problems the Huadenosaunee have with regards to our aboriginal rights to cross this land restricted only by the laws and customs of our respective Native nations. So be...
For the first time in over 100 years Canada has ceded a major part of Akwesasne back to the Mohawk people. Not entirely, but the decision by Canada Customs to relocate its facilities north of Kawehnoke is a major historical event. It shows what can be done when the Mohawk people take a firm stand in defense of our community without the use of violence or fear. It is a mistake for Canada to take unilateral action on the border crossing issue and we will all be subject to more intense examination by the agents (now armed) but the officials in...
Born: May, 1788 Lake George, NY Father: Thomas Williams Te-hon-ra-gwa-ne-gen Grandmother: Eunice Williams of Deerfield, MA captured in a raid by the Mohawks in 1704 Mother: Mary Ann Rice Kon-wa-te-wen-te-ta Both parents born and raised in Kahnawake Thomas Williams supported the US during the Revolution, was selected as a delegate to go to Albany to resolve land disputes, signed the Seven Nations of Canada treaty on May 20/1796 Thereafter Williams moves to Akwesasne Eleazer Williams sent to Longmeadow school in Massachuetts in 1800 Member: Congr...
