Dispensaries opening throughout Akwesasne; MNCC opposes 'mind changer' drug, SRMT wants them licensed

By Andy Gardner

Cannabis dispensaries are popping up throughout Mohawk territory, and both the Mohawk Nation Council of Chiefs and the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe have their objections to their operations, but for different reasons.

Cannabis has been legal for adult use in Canada for several years. And although it's still illegal at the federal level in the United States, New York state recently legalized recreational cannabis use for adults ages 21 and up.

Dispensaries have popped up with names like Green Reserve, Budders, Island Flower Company, and Good Leaf. They sell cannabis flower, the green sticky buds, and also concentrated cannabis, often called "dabs" or "wax," as well as vaporizer cartridges and edible forms. Many of them also sell smoking devices.

The Mohawk Council of Akwesasne has issued nine cannabis licenses – four for cultivation and five for retail. They include Green Chief Naturals, retail, Kawehno:ke; Green Reserve, retail, Kana:takon; Happy Dayz, cultivation, Kawehno:ke; Bright Sky Growers, cultivation, Kawehno:ke; The Herbalist - retail, Kawehno:ke; Island Flower, retail, Kawehno:ke; Budders Quickstop, retail, Kana:takon; Green Reserve Farms, cultivation, Kana:takon; and Seven Leaf, cultivation, Kawehno:ke.

The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe has issued no cannabis licenses.

The MNCC has "a firm and clear statement on the use and sale of recreational marijuana."

"And it has never changed. They are the council of condoled chiefs who hold the 'fire' and sit at an acknowledged and recognized 'fire' as deemed by the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. They don't see a need to talk to the other place(s). They would see it as a form of validation of them - as if it were council to council and in their words - they do not have a council of chiefs or clanmothers," a statement from MNCC says. "They reiterated a number of times this is their statement, stance, position, and it has not changed. When they make a decision, it is made with the entirety of the Confederacy in mind, with those not yet born, and made as a unanimous and 'undivided' decision. They said it based on our teaching from the Great Law and Kariwiio and marijuana is seen as a 'mind changer.'"

In both that statement and an earlier statement, MNCC says they feel that cannabis, like alcohol and other narcotics, can "destroy peoples' minds and cause us to forget who we are."

"The Mohawk Nation Council of Chiefs does not sanction any cannabis products at all. Only physicians can prescribe. The Mohawk Nation Council has strong opinions against the creation of the cannabis industry in Mohawk territory," the chiefs said.

They say that cannabis is not indigenous to Turtle Island but was brought here from eastern Europe by early immigrants.

"Although our people were given many types of medicines in plant form, this plant was never considered as a gift from the Creator to our people," the chiefs say.

The MNCC also takes issue with Mohawk cannabis dispensary proprietors claiming to operate under the Great Law of Peace, or Kaianerakowa.

"It is our position that without approval that these individuals cease any further claims that they are conducting business under such laws and agreements that remain sacred to us. We will not support people doing this," the chiefs said. "The Kaianerakowa was put in place by the Peacemaker and his helper Aionwatha to strengthen our Nations by establishing a form of governance, 'we call coming of one mind (skanikonra).' This was not by any means a message to give individuals freedom to do as they wish and act in a lawless manner but was in fact the opposite. It was designed as a systematic process that would negate the opportunity of any individual to initiate or act in their own vested interests. We ask that any individual or groups to immediately cease the practice of hiding within the shadow of Kaianerakowa for their own personal interest."

The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe has issued several statements on Akwesasne's cannabis dispensaries. Their leaders say that the dispensaries should wait for the tribe to enact a cannabis use and regulation law, so that fees can be collected from each sale to fund tribal programs like Health Services.

"Simultaneously faced with pressure from outside governments to impose taxation on sovereign territory, business owners and tribal leadership also sought to keep needed revenue in Akwesasne. Working together to face the challenge and to improve the overall well-being of all Akwesasronon, a cooperative relationship took root that entailed the development of our community's own comprehensive regulatory and tribal licensing system," SRMT said. "Through the issuance of tribal licenses and the remittance of fees, initially from fuel sales to support the clinic, repeated efforts by external agencies were thwarted and helped lay the foundation for Akwesasne businesses. In the decades that followed, the addition of tribal tobacco and alcohol licensing fees provided an additional revenue stream that continues to support essential community programs and services."

In April and early May, SRMT solicited public input on a draft cannabis ordinance. It has yet to go up for a vote and be made official.

NYS doesn't expect to have licensed operating shops open for at least eighteen months – around March 2022, 'the Tribe is well ahead of NYS' and expect the ordinance to be 'approved in the very near future'.

"Through consultation meetings with membership, the final version of the Adult Use Marijuana Ordinance will oversee all licensing and regulation of adult use marijuana on tribal territory, including sales. Until such time that the ordinance is adopted, and business licenses are issued, no sales or commercial activity involving adult use marijuana is permitted under the jurisdiction of the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe," they said. "With the imminent legalization of adult use marijuana, the development of this new industry in consultation with tribal membership will provide another opportunity to exercise our community's authority in developing a comprehensive regulatory system that satisfies federal guidelines. Doing so will help ensure that this industry will benefit all Akwesasronon by providing employment and fees that will help fund essential community programs and services.

"The failure to move forward together under the auspices of the tribal government, however, will be a missed opportunity for economic diversification and, before they even open for business, shuts the door on community members who are seeking to open legally under the Tribe's Adult Use Marijuana Ordinance."