Two Row Wampum Renewal Campaign

In the spirit of the Two Row Wampum, and as concerned peoples of Nations bound by "Two Row" and scores of subsequent treaties signed on our behalf and subsequently betrayed in our names, we are committed to reinvigorating this powerful vision.

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Upcoming Showings of Guswenta

Upcoming Showings of Guswenta: Renewing the Two Row Wampum a documentary film by Gwendolen Cates

Monday, October 13 (Indigenous Peoples Day) at 6 pm at The New School, 65 West 11th St., 5th Floor, NYC. Speakers: Tonya Gonnella Frichner, Gwendolen Cates and Aya Yamamoto.

Wednesday, October 22 at 6:30 pm at the Other Side, 2011 Genesee St., Utica, NY. Speakers: Daygot Leeyos Edwards, Liseli Haines and Buffy Curtis.

Friday, October 24 at 6:30 pm at Monroe Community College, Building 3, Room 130 (The Forum), Rochester, NY. Speakers: Freida Jacques and Andy Mager.

Thursday, October 30 at 6 pm at Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY Student Alumni Union, Bamboo Room (2650). Speakers: Freida Jacques and Cindy Squillace.

Wednesday, November 5 at Onondaga Community College, Syracuse, NY: 11:10 am at Mawhinney Hall Rm. 245. Speakers: Freida Jacques and Andy Mager. 6-8 pm at Storer Auditorium. Speakers: Daygot Leeyos Edwards and Cindy Squillace.

Wednesday, November 5 at 7 pm at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY, Rm TBA. Speakers: Kay Olan, Denise Watso, Andy Mager.

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Guswenta Film Screening in Syracuse

Sunday, June 29 at 7 pm at ArtRage Gallery, 505 Hawley Ave., Syracuse. Come see this powerful documentary film about the Two Row Campaign. The film will be followed by a panel discussion featuring:

-Oren Lyons, Onondaga Nation Faithkeeper (provisional) -Gwendolen Cates, filmmaker and producer of Guswenta -Daygot Leeyos Edwards (Oneida), Two Row paddler and spoken word artist -Cindy Squillace, Two Row organizer and school counselor

Free and open to the public. Refreshments provided.

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Share the event on Facebook.

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Guswenta Film Showing in Syracuse

Come see this powerful documentary film about the Two Row Campaign. The film will be followed by a panel discussion featuring:

-Oren Lyons, Onondaga Nation Faithkeeper (provisional) -Gwendolen Cates, filmmaker and producer of Guswenta -Daygot Leeyos Edwards (Oneida), Two Row paddler and spoken word artist -Cindy Squillace, Two Row organizer and school counselor

Free and open to the public. Refreshments provided.

Download the Flier to share

Share the event on Facebook.

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Guswenta Film Showing in New York City

Guswenta: Renewing the Two Row Wampum won the award for best short film at the 2014 Rated SR Socially Relevant Film Fest in New York City.

The film will be followed by a panel discussion featuring: Kay Olan, Mohawk educator Gwendolen Cates, award-winning filmmaker, photographer, and author Aya Yamamoto, Two Row Campaign organizer and environmental educator

This 33-minute film features stunning footage of the 28 day paddling journey from the Onondaga Nation to the United Nations in New York City during the summer of 2013, along with powerful words from Haudenosaunee leaders including Onondaga Faithkeeper Oren Lyons, Onondaga Clanmother Freida Jacques, Mohawk spiritual leader Tom Porter, and Tadodaho Sid Hill. The film inspires people, indigenous and non-native, to consider our collective responsibility 400 years after the Two Row Wampum Treaty was created.

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Sixth Street Community Center

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Two Row Campaign to Close--Work to Continue

Following three years of intensive work to develop, carry out and then follow up on the Two Row Wampum Renewal Campaign, the time has come for us to lay down the organization.  This seems like the best way to build on the powerful work we have carried out together!

When we began this process we didn’t seek to create a new organization, but rather to lay the groundwork for a larger social movement to support Onondaga, Haudenosaunee and Native Sovereignty, honor Treaties made between our peoples and work together to protect the Earth.

Together we have made significant progress toward those goals, but much work remains to be done.  That work is being carried out by Native people and allies far and wide. It will continue through the work of Neighbors of the Onondaga Nation (NOON), Neetopk Keetopk in the Hudson Valley, the Doctrine of Discovery Study Group, the Skanoh Great Law of Peace Education Center, the Onondaga Canoe and Kayak Club, the Haudenosaunee Murals Project in Ithaca, a proposed Two Row Paddle down the Grand River and much more.

We are still determining what to maintain in terms of online and social media resources from the campaign and what to merge with the work of NOON, the organization which gave birth to the campaign.  You can expect to hear more from us about that as we clarify the best path forward with those resources.

We will continue working with interested people and groups to schedule screenings of the documentary film Guswenta to continue the educational work. We hope you’ll remain part of this important work for social justice and environmental protection. We believe it is critical for a sustainable future.

Now that many understand what the Two Row Wampum intended, we hope you will find opportunities to support Native Nations in their ongoing struggles. Letters to your representatives when issues come up are always helpful, as are letters to the editor. There is continued work to stop hyrdro-fracking in NYS, reduce fossil fuel consumption to avert the worst effects of climate change, obligations to protect our Mother the Earth, etc.

As the Project Coordinator, I have had the privilege to work with all of you and expect that many of those relationships will continue as we find additional ways to collaborate and support one another’s efforts.

Peace,

Andy Mager Project Coordinator

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Two Row Action Step and Upcoming Events

The Onondagas were among the first in NYS to be aware of the dangers of hydrofracking. Tadodaho’ Sid Hill speaking at an anti-fracking rally in Albany on May 2, 2011. Photo: NOON Archives.

Scroll down for events listing… Last week on a news program, New York Senator Chuck Schumer said that there is widespread support for fracking, saying that most Democrats support it (which is wrong, according to polls) and “it’s worked quite well.” He also said if it is done carefully he “sure would” like to see fracking in New York. http://bit.ly/1ij3HGR

Senator Gillibrand, who expressed support for the Two Row Wampum Renewal Campaign last year, had a spokesman respond to Schumer that Gillibrand believes fracking is a “tremendous economic opportunity for New York,” but that it “can not come at the expense of clean air and safe drinking water for all New Yorkers.” Instead of supporting a ban on fracking and honoring native treaties, Gillibrand thinks “we must have strong controls and safeguards in place coupled with full transparency… before any drilling moves forward”. http://press.sn/1kMklA6

For a Senator to support the Two Row Wampum Renewal Campaign and support fracking is hypocrisy. The Two Row Wampum is the grandfather of treaties… it states that settler people and the Haudenosaunee in what is now known as New York State shall live together side by side, respecting each others ways in peace, friendship and forever. We cannot live side by side in peace and friendship forever if we allow our representatives to speak for us in this manner or if we allow New York to make a decision allowing fracking in New York State.

We ask those of you who are part of the US political system to call both Senator Schumer and Senator Gillibrand reminding them of their obligation to honor treaties which necessarily includes a ban on fracking.

It is up to those of us who are citizens of New York to demand this of our representatives. Please contact the office closest to you of both senators reminding them of their obligations to pay attention to their constituents and to honor treaties with Native Nations.

To contact Senator Kristen Gillibrand, please visit http://www.gillibrand.senate.gov/contact/ to submit an electronic comment. To call Senator Gillibrand, please scroll to the bottom of this page to find an office near you.

To contact Senator Schumer, please visit http://www.schumer.senate.gov/Contact/office_locations.htm and call the nearest office. May 18, 2014: GUSWENTA: RENEWING THE TWO ROW WAMPUM  Film Showing in the Rochester Museum and Science Center 3pm-4pm (657 East Avenue, Rochester NY) Onondaga Clanmother Freida Jacques will speak after the film along with Jack Spula, a Rochester resident, community activist and journalist who paddled from Albany to New York City. https://www.facebook.com/events/1391270081157862/

May 22, Tell Governor Cuomo No Fracking at the Democratic Convention on Long Island 10:00 am – noon, Hilton Long Island/Huntington Hotel, 598 Broad Hollow Road, MelvilThis is a very important day for us to demand a ban on fracking, so we need all hands on deck. Buses from the Hudson Valley, Rockland and Westchester Counties, and Manhattan. For full details or to register for a bus, see: http://nyagainstfracking.org/rally-to-ban-fracking-at-democratic-state-convention-long-island/

May 24-25, 2014 Doctrine of Christian Discovery: After Repudiation, What Next? Skä noñh–Great Law of Peace Center, Syracuse, NY A conference for people who have worked on addressing and repudiating this doctrine so that we might learn from each other, and develop strategies for moving forward with this work.  How can we use the momentum from repudiation to change the colonial paradigms that drive decisions in our settler-immigrant based society? What are core issues that will benefit from alliances between Indigenous Peoples and Faith-Based Communities? What have we learned about people and what impacts their understanding of this foundational religious problem? Sponsors:  Onondaga Nation Council of Chiefs, Skä noñh–Great Law of Peace Center, Doctrine of Discovery Study Group, Neighbors of Onondaga Nation, and others. $30 Registration Fee includes meals during the conference.

June 2, 1-3 PM,Good Friends Gardeners Educational Presentation about gardening in our bio-region Onondaga Nation Cookhouse. It is open to the general public and anyone interested in helping with the garden. This event will immediately follow their 3rd Annual Seed and Plant Giveaway for residents of the Onondaga Nation, another of their projects. If you’d like to help, contact Cindy Squillace, at 315-415-5508 for ride sharing or directions. June 19-22, 2014: World Peace and Prayer Day (Bowdoin Park, Wappingers Fall, NY) A weekend to honor sacred sites, all nations and faiths. There will be a sacred fire ceremony, guest speakers and performances demonstrations and lectures on primitive skills, wellness, permaculture and sustainability. For more information, you can visit their website at www.worldpeaceandprayerday.com

June 21, 1-3 PM, Roots of Injustice, Seeds of Change Workshop, Skänoñh – Great Law of Peace Center, (former site of St Marie Among the Iroquois). Paula Palmer from the Boulder Friends Meeting will be presenting an experiential workshop to help allies of native peoples work towards right relations with America’s native peoples. $10-$30 suggested donation at the door. Reservations required. Please contact Gail Bundy at or 607-423-0503.

June 21-22, 2014: Gathering at the Heart of Niagara 10am-6pm (Goat Island, Niagara Falls, New York) Two days of music, dancing, drumming and presentations. Free admission.

June 28-29, 2014: Kanatsiohareke Mohawk Community Strawberry Festival 10am-6pm (4934 State Highway #5, Fonda, NY) A weekend of Mohawk culture and fun! Come out for traditional and contemporary arts and crafts, music, dance, storytelling and food. Admission: Adults $5.00, Seniors & Children under 12 $3.00, Children under 5 free. https://www.facebook.com/events/830793500284035/

If there are any events that we missed or if you have any questions, you can reach us at [phone].

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Video Available: Onondaga Nation Land Rights Action Goes International

Onondaga Nation leaders bring the Canandaigua Treaty belt to the White House to remind the U.S. government of their obligations. Photo: Travis Shoff

On May 5, Neighbors of the Onondaga Nation (NOON) organized a public presentation for Central New Yorkers to hear from Onondaga Nation leaders and their legal counsel about the petition they filed in April to the Inter-American Human Rights Commission. Tadodaho Sid Hill, Clanmother Freida Jacques, General Counsel Joe Heath, Faithkeeper Oren Lyons and Chief Irving Powless, Jr. all spoke. You can watch the video here. (Thanks to Rochester Indymedia for filming and posting it.)

The Onondaga went to this international venue seeking the justice denied to them by the United States courts. For further details, see the Onondaga Nation website.

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Rochester Museum and Science Center, Eisenhart Auditorium

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Guswenta Showing in Rochester-May 18

The screening will take place during the Native American Cultural Center (NACC) Annual meeting which runs from 2-5 pm.

Onondaga Clanmother Freida Jacques will speak after the film along with Jack Spula, a Rochester resident, community activist and journalist who paddled from Albany to New York City.

Free for NACC members.  Donation suggested for non-members.

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Freida Jacques Talk LiveStreamed Tonite ~7:15

Haudenosaunee Values: Gifts to our contemporary world, catch it at www.stopmitionsolo.tv.

Freida’s talk will be followed by participatory Haudenosaunee Social Dancing.  Saturday is a full day of activity at Brooklyn Friends Meeting and Brooklyn Friends School. Walk-ins welcome.

See www.honorthetworow.org for full details.

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Two Row Events across New York State this week!

Tuesday, April 22, 4-7 pm

Buffalo State – Bulger North

Guswenta: Renewing the Two Row Wampum

, a short film by Gwendolen Cates, won the award for best short film at the Rated SR Socially Relevant Film Fest in New York City.

The film will be followed by refreshments and a panel discussion featuring:

Christine Abrams, Tonawanda Seneca, organized Tonawanda participation in the Two Row Wampum Renewal Campaign

Rick Levins from Batavia, and of Six Nations Tuscarora descent, paddled from Albany to New York City

Neil Patterson, Jr., Tuscarora, works for the Haudenosaunee Environmental TAsk Force and paddled from Onondaga to New York City

Jack Spula, writer, social justice activist and non-native ally from Rochester, paddled from Albany to New York City

This 33-minute film features stunning footage of the 28 day paddling journey from the Onondaga Nation to the United Nations in New York City during the summer of 2013, along with powerful words from Haudenosaunee leaders including Onondaga Faithkeeper Oren Lyons, Onondaga Clanmother Freida Jacques, Mohawk spiritual leader Tom Porter, and Tadodaho Sid Hill. The film inspires people, indigenous and non-native, to consider our collective responsibility 400 years after the Two Row Wampum Treaty was created. ——————————————————————————

Listening to the voices of the Earth and of Native peoples to heal our relationship with the land and with each other

Friday, April 25, 6 – 9:30 pm Saturday, April 26, 9 am – 6 pm

LOCATION: Brooklyn Friends School 375 Pearl St, Brooklyn, NY 11201, and Brooklyn Friends Meetinghouse 110 Schermerhorn Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201

Friday evening no cost. Saturday Suggested Donation: $25. No one will be turned away. Lunch and refreshments included.

Register Now!

Friday evening, April 25 at Brooklyn Friends School 375 Pearl St, Brooklyn, NY 11201

6:00 pm Opening Thanksgiving Address, dinner 7:00 pm  Keynote presentation on Haudenosaunee values: gifts to our contemporary world by Freida Jacques, Onondaga Nation Clanmother and educator. This will be followed by Haudenosaunee Social Dancing in which all are invited to join.  No Charge

Saturday, April 26  Brooklyn Friends Meetinghouse 110 Schermerhorn Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201 (workshop and presentation sessions in afternoon at Brooklyn Friends School) 9:00 Gathering, light refreshments 9:30 Thanksgiving Address: Mohawk Elder Tom Porter Keynote: – Tom Porter: From Where We Stand to Seven Generations (30 min, plus 15 min q and a)

11:00 Workshops

Bringing the Haudenosaunee Longhouse into the Classroom—Kay Olan (Mohawk, retired teacher)

Creating an Ally organization/working as allies to indigenous people—, Andy Mager (Two Row Wampum Campaign Coordinator), Sally Bermanzohn (Retired professor of political science, Brooklyn College and cofounder of Neetopk Keetopk: Sharing the River of Life), others

Incorporating indigenous perspectives into environmental activism/TEK and SEK—Charlotte Logan (Mohawk), Elizabeth Nanticoke (Mohawk), Raymond Gutteriez (Wuksachi-Mono), Aya Yamamoto (Two Row Campaign organizer and environmental educator)

Drumming Workshop – Spirit of Thunderheart

 1:00 Lunch (with informal discussions over lunch on topics of interest to participants)

2:30 Presentation Session I

Role of Haudenosaunee Women and influence on Women’s Rights Movement – Daygot Leeyos Edwards (Oneida), Sally Bermanzohn (retired professor of political science, Brooklyn College and community organizer)

Unity and the Oppressed: The Ramapough and recent film “Out of the Furnace” – Chief Dwaine Perry (Ramapough)

Forgotten Founders: Haudenosaunee influences on US Democracy – Kay Olan (Mohawk, retired teacher), Andy Mager (Two Row Wampum Campaign Coordinator)

Guswenta: Renewing the Two Row Wampum, a short film by Gwendolen Cates – Hickory Edwards (Onondaga), Gwendolen Cates (filmmaker), others

Lessons from Maine’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission — Denise Altvater (Passamaquoddy) and Arla Patch

3:45 Presentation Session II

The UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: Progress and Challenges – Roberto Múkaro Borrero (Taíno)

The Anti-Fracking Struggle and Indigenous Rights – Messiah Rhodes (anti-fracking filmmaker), Hickory Edwards (Onondaga)

Doctrine of Discovery – the “Moral” Justification for Colonialism and Theft of Land – Susan Wolf, (New York Yearly Meeting of Quakers Indian Affairs Committee), others

Three Lessons in Peace – Freida Jacques (Onondaga Nation clanmother and educator)

Native New Yorkers – Evan Pritchard (Algonquin educator and author)

5:00 Closing Plenary— Unity: The Path Forward for Indigenous Peoples and their Allies – Hawk Storm (Schaghticoke), Daygot Leeyos Edwards (Oneida), Chief Carlos Whitewolf (Taíno), Donna Coane (Scaghticoke) and Chief Ed Wolfwalker (Schaghticoke).

 Register Now!    Download the flier to share. Full schedule and registration information at: http://www.honorthetworow.org/teach-in For more information, or to offer to assist in some way, contact Aya Yamamoto or Tom Rothschild.

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Film Screening Guswenta: Renewing the Two Row Wampum

Monday, April 28, 7:30 pm The Madison Theater 1036 Madison Avenue, Albany, NY Phone: [phone], Web: www.themadisontheater.com

Cost: $10/adults, $8/senior citizens, $5/children

Download the flier to share

The film will be followed by a panel discussion featuring:

Hickory Edwards, Onondaga Nation Turtle clan and Two Row lead paddler

Gwendolen Cates, award-winning filmmaker, photographer, and author

Don Rittner, of the OnRust which joined with the Two Row in 2013

Denise Watso, Abenaki community organizer and Two Row paddler

This 33-minute film features stunning footage of the 28 day paddling journey from the Onondaga Nation to the United Nations in New York City during the summer of 2013, along with powerful words from Haudenosaunee leaders including Onondaga Faithkeeper Oren Lyons, Onondaga Clanmother Freida Jacques, Mohawk spiritual leader Tom Porter, and Tadodaho Sid Hill. The film inspires people, indigenous and non-native, to consider our collective responsibility 400 years after the Two Row Wampum Treaty was created.

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Support Onondaga Nation's quest for Justice

The Onondaga Nation’s quest for Justice took another step forward yesterday!

Two busses carried Onondagas, other Haudenosaunee people and a couple of non-native allies to Washington, DC yesterday.  We traveled to show our support for the petition filed by the Onondaga Nation before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (part of the Organization of American States).

A well-attended news conference was held at the Washington Quaker Meeting House and then we went to the White House (though President Obama wasn’t there to welcome us).  The Onondaga leaders brought with them the original wampum belt, commissioned by President George Washington, to mark the 1794 Treaty of Canandaigua.  The Onondaga continue calling on the US government to honor the Covenant Chain of Treaties. President Obama specifically referred to this when speaking to native leaders last fall. Unfortunately, he is taking no action to honor the commitments, at least not yet.

Our work continues with a

Support Gathering for the Onondaga Nation’s Quest for Justice

Syracuse’s Inner Harbor – map Tomorrow, Thursday, April 17 at 5pm

Please join Neighbors of the Onondaga Nation in support of the Onondaga Nation as they bring their Land Rights Action to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (part of Organization of American States) as the next step in their quest for justice. They will present their petition in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday, April 15.

We will gather at Syracuse’s Inner Harbor, where Onondaga Creek begins its final flow into Onondaga Lake. We will hear about the filing and offer our appreciations. If weather permits, those who wish to will walk to the Lake (about a mile). For more information, contact Carol at [email protected] or  315.472.5478

Read more at the Onondaga Nation website

  See photos from yesterday in Washington, DC

  Read NOON’s statement of support

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Onondaga Nation to File Historic International Appeal

On Tuesday, April 15 at 11:00 am in front of The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., Washington, DC members of the Onondaga Nation will file a petition against the United States with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR).  They invite supporters to join them. More background information below…

To join in ride-sharing from Syracuse  (leaving between 1 and 3 am that morning, contact Andy, 315-559-7058.  If you’re interested in helping organizing carpooling from other parts of the region, contact Andy as well.

For those in Central New York, Neighbors of the Onondaga Nation has organized a gathering, Support the Onondaga Nation’s Quest for Justice on Thursday, April 17 at 5 pm at the Syracuse Inner Harbor, 412 Spencer St, Syracuse, NY map.

We know that few people will be able to come to Washington, DC on short notice on a weekday, so wanted to suggest additional ways to lend support.

1)  Organize a local support action in your community.  Possible venues could include sites where we gathered last year during the paddle or polluted sites in your community (since environmental protection is so central to the Onondaga message).

2)  Write a letter to the editor of local papers expressing your support.  If the Two Row Campaign came through your community, referring to it would help add some local relevance.

3)  Check out the Onondaga Nation’s website for updates and great background information or the Two Row website.

Background Information Since 1788, 2.5 million acres of land have been stolen from the Onondaga Nation by New York State, and the failure of the domestic court system has left the Nation with no choice but to seek assistance for human rights violations from the international community.

Chiefs, clanmothers, nation citizens and non-native supporters will demonstrate in front of the White House with the 1794 Canandaigua Treaty belt, commissioned by President George Washington to signify peace and friendship as guaranteed by the treaty.

The Nation is not seeking evictions, monetary damages or a casino. Instead, it is asking to continue a healing process between themselves and others who live in the region, and for a ruling that would allow the Nation to continue its role as an environmental steward of the land it conserved for centuries.

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Guswenta Screenings in Syracuse and Albany

The new film Guswenta: Renewing the Two Row Wampum will be shown twice this month, in addition to the screening at the Sharing the River of Life Teach-In in Brooklyn.

Wednesday, April 16 at 2:30 pm at Moon Library Room 110 at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse. Dr. Robin Kimmerer, Director of the SUNY ESF Center for Native Peoples and the Environment and Hickory Edwards, Onondaga Nation Turtle Clan and Two Row lead paddler. will speak after the film Download the flier to share.

Monday, April 28, 7:30 pm at The Madison Theater, 1036 Madison Avenue, Albany Cost: $10/adults, $8/senior citizens, $5/children The film will be followed by a panel discussion featuring: Hickory Edwards, Onondaga Nation Turtle clan and Two Row lead paddler Gwendolen Cates, award-winning filmmaker, photographer, and author Don Rittner, of the Onrust which joined with the Two Row in 2013 Denise Watso, Abenaki community organizer and Two Row paddler Download the flier to share.

Screenings are also being scheduled in Rochester, Buffalo, Onondaga Nation, Hudson Valley, Seattle and more. To find out about scheduling a screening in your area, contact Andy, 315-701-1592.

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Two Row-Inspired Art Exhibit in Albany

New artworks by MaryK Weeks debuted at The Daily Grind, 204 Lark Street, Albany, NY, on Friday, April 4. The exhibit will be up at least through early May.

The acrylic paintings and mixed media collage are infused with the spirit of the Two Row Wampum Renewal Campaign begun in 2013. The campaign was initiated by the Onondaga Nation (Haudenosaunee) in partnership with its non-indigenous neighbors.

The artist became energetically charged at the Two Row flotilla launch on the Hudson River in Rensselaer and at commemorations of the Tawagonshi Treaty of 1613, an agreement to honor the Earth, at Sage College in Troy and in lower Manhattan. It is her hope that the power of native heart to bridge time, space and culture be felt through the exhibited images.

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Connecting the Dots: The Onondaga Nation Land Rights Action Goes International

The Onondagas were among the first in NYS to be aware of the dangers of hydrofracking. Tadodaho’ Sid Hill speaking at an anti-fracking rally in Albany on May 2, 2011. Photo: NOON Archives.

An update on the Onondaga Nation’s plans for taking their land rights case to the international arena, from the April 2014 Peace Newsletter #833

by Jeanne Shenandoah, Onondaga Nation

“All men are born free and equal, in dignity and in rights, and, being endowed by nature with reason and conscience, they should conduct themselves as brothers one to another.” - From the Preamble to the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man, adopted in 1948 by the Ninth International Conference of American States in Bogotá, Colombia; the same meeting adopted the Charter of the Organization of American States and thereby created the Organization of American States.

In “Reasserting Sovereignty: Onondaga Lake” (Peace Newsletter #832, March 2014), Joe Heath, the General Counsel for the Onondaga Nation, explained the reasoning behind the Onondaga Nation’s 2005 filing of its Land Rights Action in Federal District Court. In 2013 the case finally reached the US Supreme Court, which refused to hear it, thereby leaving the Onondaga Nation without a remedy for the wrongful taking of their land. In this article, I want to share more about the Nation’s connection to the lands that are its home, particularly Onondaga Lake and Onondaga Creek, to help deepen understanding as the Land Rights Action moves into the international arena

The Land Rights Action The Onondaga Nation continues to believe that there needs to be a healing with respect to New York State’s wrongful taking of the Onondaga Nation’s land. In April, 2014, the Nation will bring the Land Rights Action to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, which is part of the Organization of American States. This Commission has demonstrated, through rulings in other cases, a profound respect for the rights of indigenous peoples, demonstrated in part by its reliance on and respect for the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Throughout the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People, the fundamental rights associated with land are explicitly and implicitly protected. Article 32 speaks directly to the prevention of environmental degradation. It provides that “indigenous people have the right to determine and develop priorities and strategies for the development or use of their lands or territories or other resources,” that States shall consult and obtain free and informed full consent from indigenous people through their own governments “prior to any activity affecting their lands or territories, particularly in connection with the development, utilization or exploitation of mineral, water or other resources.” Significantly, the article concludes: “States shall provide mechanisms for just and fair redress for any such activities, and appropriate measures shall be taken to mitigate adverse environmental, economic, social, cultural or spiritual impact.” It is this just and fair redress that the Onondaga Nation seeks in bringing its Land Rights Action into the international arena.

The Creek and the Lake It is difficult to put into English words our Nation’s and our people’s deep and fundamental cultural, historical and spiritual connection to Onondaga Creek and Onondaga Lake. Onondaga Creek flows through the center of both our currently recognized territory and our much larger aboriginal territory. We believe that the Creek is a living spirit which has provided life and sustenance to our people for all the centuries that we have lived in what is now called Central New York. The Creator has given us a great duty to take care of, or be stewards of, Mother Earth and the air, water and all plants and animals. It is the knowledge of our people that all living things have a spirit. It saddens us greatly that the Creek, the Lake, and all the fish, plants and animals that depend on these waters are being harmed and destroyed. In our culture, we are taught to give thanks daily to the Creator for all forms of plants and animals; we do not consider that humans have superior rights to these other life forms. We are taught that we must all share the gifts of the Creator. One of the responsibilities of our leaders is to preserve the natural world for those yet to be born.

Water Historically, it is important to remember that the Onondaga Nation’s aboriginal territory, which we enjoyed up until the invasion of the Europeans about 400 years ago, was an area of land approximately 40 to 50 miles wide that began on the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario in the North, and ran down well into Pennsylvania to the south.  Our aboriginal territory was bordered on the east by the territory of the Oneida Nation and on the west by the territory of the Cayuga Nation. Before the Europeans, our people had access to many lakes, rivers, streams and ponds for fishing and gathering. Fish from all of these waters were one of the main sources of our food and sustenance. Additionally, our culture relied heavily on plants and other wildlife from these water sources. After the illegal activities of New York State in the late 1700s and early 1800s, taking our land in violation of federal law and treaties, our territory was drastically reduced from this large aboriginal area to its currently limited size. During this same period, the majority of our people were either killed or driven out of our territory to try to live elsewhere. The negative impacts of these land thefts were extreme on the Onondaga people and on our culture. One of these negative impacts was to dramatically reduce our access to water to that limited portion of Onondaga Creek that runs through our currently recognized territory. Therefore our ability to supply our people with the important food source of fish and other water-based wildlife has been drastically reduced. As a result, our people’s health has suffered immeasurably. Further, the lack of access to water-based plants and other water-related wildlife has had an extremely negative impact on our people and our ability to maintain our traditional culture. One example of this is that several of our clans, such as the turtle clan, the eel clan, and the heron clan, are named after our water-based brethren. Even today, fish, eels, crabs (crayfish) and clear water are still key components to some of our ceremonies. A key activity connected to the need for clean water is a ceremony where participants dance in the Creek and use fish and eels from the Creek as part of the ceremony.

Healing Because of our traditional mandate to preserve the natural world for our future generations, our Nation and its Chiefs, Faithkeepers and Clan Mothers are dedicated to restoring Onondaga Lake and Onondaga Creek to the pristine condition we enjoyed for centuries before the arrival of the Europeans. We believe that such restoration will provide and promote a healing, not only for our people and our culture, but also for all people who live in this area. We are very grateful to those who have supported the Onondaga Nation in so many ways over the years. Going forward, it is clear that support from our neighbors will be critical to the success of our Land Rights Action. While the international forums in which the Onondaga Nation will seek justice have moral authority, they have limited ability to compel the United States or New York State to redress the harm that the Onondaga Nation has suffered to its lands and waters. We call on you, our neighbors, to support the Nation by calling for clean water, clean soil, clean air, for all of our children and grandchildren.

Note: Portions of this article appeared in slightly different form as Appendix 2 to the Partnership for Onondaga Creek’s Title VI Petition to the US Environmental Protection Agency, 2004.